Martino y los trios Pirineos 1 – Bisaurin

11-07-2013

Streetlight approach to Bisaurin

Now we’re talking excitement and thrills. Los Pirineos/The Pyrenees – they are real mountains, pointy rocky things, snow/ice, danger/thrills, crowds, expensive resorts and, of course, those damn thunderstorms almost every afternoon.

Bisaurin - besides having a great name is prominence number 25 with P1038 at 2668m. 

Refugio de Lizara

The obvious starting point is Refugio de Lizara N42.76309 W0.63343 (1506m) with a large unshaded car park. The path is obvious and waymarked. There may be room for a little confusion at a stream crossing N42.77357 W0.64444 (1746m) - however, no matter as all the choices meet up again. The official path takes a major right turn N42.77375 W0.64912 (1872m) and then an equally significant left turn N42.77803 W0.64512 (1955m) and you end up on a junction at the Collado del Foration N42.77697 W0.64991 (2006m). Don't go down and don't turn left - so that means go right and upwards. Initially it is easy going (cows can graze there) and gets scrappier and more scrambly as you get higher with a nice patch of snow to cross.

Cows expecting rain?

Cows might be right

GPS taking a reading on top of the snow

Trig lying down on the job

The summit at Bisaurin (snow) N42.78851 W0.63995 is snow covered - so not easy to guess where the true summit might be. I measured the highest point on the snow - from the lack of footprints it looks as most people don't bother and are content to count the recumbent trig point nearby.

Bisaurin from Collarada

There is an alternative longer way back to the refugio. However, the cows were sitting down on the way up and they were right, a thunder storm was on its way. I returned by the ascent route - missed the wort of the scrappy loose stones by using the remains of a long snow slope as a semi-glissade and I confess I went straight down from the Collada del Foration rather than use the long traverses. Got back just in time to avoid the heavy rain, unlike some of the people who I had overtaken on the way down.

11.37km, 1468m total ascent

Overnight in Refugio de Lizara carpark