The bordermarkers of the Pyrenees : all my trips
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- saturday 9 april 2022 -
Redoing bm091-109

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Summary: part of a series of 10 daytrips in april 2022 in the Basque country, mainly redoing bm085 to 197. This is day 2.

Today: first day of three days of backpacking along bm091 to 144. Today getting as far as bm109.

Weather: heavily clouded, sunshine in the afternoon.


track-20220409.kml
(click to open this trip in Google Earth or copy link to Google Maps; click right on this link to download gpx-version). The gps-track has not been manually  corrected which explains the inaccuracy and misalignment at some points. For cartographic backgrounds: see the cartography-page

Gps-waypoints of all bordermarkers (most recent version):
kml:  esfr-bordermarkers-all-waypoints.kml
gpx:  esfr-bordermarkers-all-waypoints.gpx (with elevation added by gpsvisualizer.com)
According to Garmin Basecamp (uncorrected track with elevation added by Gpsvisualizer.com):

Distance: 15,3km
Max-height: 1133m
Min-height: 146m
Elevation: +1744m -927m
Total elevation: 2671m

Start 9:49  Finish 18:23
Total time: 8:34
In the early morning a drive from Bayonne to Saint-Étienne-de-Baïgorry.

That's where I park my car for a few days.


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I pick up the GR10-trail


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which climbs into


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the hills and


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passes a rocky area


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to arrive at


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Col de Buztanzelhay.

It took me much longer than I thought before.


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Here I go left, towards Col d'Ispeguy.


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This picture showing roughly the trail to follow, waymarked red-white of an unknown route.


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Much later - back at home, a little googling makes things much clearer.

This annotated picture is derived from this webpage.

The GRT-trails are 'Grandes Randonnées Transfrontalieres', connecting the French GR10 with the Spanish GR11.

In this case they help us to navigate from bm091 to 130 and from bm155 to 177.

Another interesting feature: from bm130 to 155, the GR11 and GR12 could serve as an alternative for my main GRPdesBF-route.

The bordermarkers between bm130 and 155 are covered by a variant.
Arriving at this point with


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(zoom-in) a view to Col d'Ispeguy.


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The trail takes the west-side of the ridge


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and descends to Col d'Ispeguy.

It's slippery now and then, after a night of rain, and the track being much more trodden than 10 years ago.


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Getting close to Col d'Ispeguy with the next bordermarkers indicated.


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But first bm091 at Col d'Ispeguy itself.


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Bm091


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Bm091


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Bm091


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The trip is more tiring than I am used to. I am not 100% fit, probably a bit of influenza.

Anyway: time for a lunch-break in the Venta.


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At the back of the venta, it's going straight ahead, climbing through a steep forest.


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Above the forest: bm092


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Bm092 with cross 92 at its feet.


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Bm092


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Bm092


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Not far away, the damaged bm093,


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reassembled as far as possible.


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Bm093


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Then climbing to the hilltop


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with this rock on its summit


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with the bordercross bm094.


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Bm094


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Bm094


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Bm094, looking south.


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Then continuing south


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and arriving at this junction of two paths: the one on which I come from bm094 and an orange waymarked trail coming from Col d'Ispeguy

But what is this orange waymarked trail?



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It is the 'Sentier des Contrabandiers'

I found this link to this trail and the stage along the border on this page and this page.

I show here the relevant part for today and for tomorrow.

Much of this trail will coincide with my route of today and tomorrow.
Same junction, seen from the other side.

The red trail (orange waymarked) is the easy trail coming from Col d'Ispeguy and is part of the main route of my GRPdesBF-trail.


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Further on, bm095 is standing ± 30m left of the trail.


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Bm095


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Bm095


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Bm095


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The trail (orange waymarked) climbs to a sort of pass


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with this view ahead.


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But I go first right to do bm096 (and bm097).


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Bm096


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Bm096


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Bm096, looking back


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Further on at the ridge bm097.


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Bm097, the border descends into the valley to the square meadow.


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Bm097


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Peaceful scene in between.


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Arriving at the NE-corner of the square meadow.


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That is where I remember the shattered pieces of bm098 are still present.


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I even find a part of the original marker with the groove at the top which indicates the direction of the borderline.


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But I am wrong when I check my gps. Bm098 is in the bunch of grass in the background


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where the foot of it can still be found.


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Bm098


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Bm098


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I reunite the foot with the bits and pieces presumed to be original which I found earlier.


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Then to bm099


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with the groove at the top which indicates the course of the borderline.


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Bm099


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Bm099


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Then a big and disappointing surprise: bm100 has disappeared.


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It has been broken or sawn off.


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Note the white edge.

According to Carlos Roca that's the part where a saw has been used. After that a crowbar might have been used to do the rest of the job.


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Then to bm101: it's still there but also broken off.


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Bm101


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Bm101, again a whitish edge visible.


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Bm101


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A bit further: bm102


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Bm102


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Bm102


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Bm102


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I have made a semi-circle from bm098 to bm102 and now the borderline heads to the forest.


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We are still - in general - on the orange trail (sentier des contrebandiers) and I see Urepel is the terminus.

But the orange trail now makes a big detour to arrive much later  bm109.



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Also present: a white/red-waymarking. and that's the one I can follow now.


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Bm103 is a cross and about 50m to the S of the trail.


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Bm103


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Bm103


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Bm103, last picture


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Picking up the trail again which climbs in the forest to this hillridge.


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Further on, the trail bends along the hillside.


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Continuing along the hillridge


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and arriving at this intermediate summit


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with bm104.


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Bm104


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Bm104, looking back.


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The next bm is at the next hilltop. The trail bends underneath the hilltop to the right.


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Bm105


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Bm105


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Bm105


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Bm105, looking back.


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Then descending SSW to bm106.


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Bm106


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Bm106


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Further downhill bm107.


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Bm107


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Bm107


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Descending further to bm108.


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Bm108


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Bm108


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Bm108


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I am now back at the white-red trail, unknown which one.

Descending further to the pass in the background.


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There we find bm109.


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Bm109


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Bm109


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Bm109

Enough for today, time to


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pitch my tent.

An experiment: I removed the inner tent and replaced it with this groundsheet.

It saves me weight but will it work?


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Ready for dinner.

Sleeping will not be success with my experiment. The surface is not well horizontal and during the night I will keep sliding from the groundsheet. Also cold drafts passing through the tent.

But I use a fleece sleeping bag as an extra outer sleeping bag and that helps a lot to keep warm.


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