“You can't always get what you want but sometimes, if you try hard, you get what you need”.
Mick Jagger

The theme of the Stones' song is a bit of the history of this hike. Initially, with his friends Vincent and Benoit, our Wigwam Store ambassador, Adrien Ballanger, had planned the ascent of La Grande Fache. A summit of the Pyrenees placed on the Franco-Spanish border, one of the rare Pyrenean summits at an altitude of more than 3000m, it culminates at 3005m exactly.
It is part of the Pics-d'Enfer massif, a must in the region. Adrien and his buddies had planned their move well ... but sometimes in the mountains, you have to know how to improvise.

MEETING PICO ARAGÓN

(text: Adrien Ballanger / Photos Adrien Ballanger / Benoit Verdonck)

Little flashback to start the story of this hike:
In 2017, I bivouaced for the first time at Lac de la Fache, located at the foot of Grande Fache. This small lake, perched at 2400 m, is my first outdoor night experience, alone. No risk of forgetting it because that day, a wild animal almost attacked me. As I fall asleep, my tent canvas begins to move and the sound of crinkling plastic wakes me up. Then the noise stops! I go back to sleep somehow. Five minutes later, again, I sit down and start mumbling to scare away the unfortunate who is trying to steal my sleep. It stops! I go back to sleep. And then it starts again, the fair starts again, this time, I start yelling, getting angry… I'm ready to get out of the tent. I was sure that I was going to be pissed off! But to be honest I still have the balls to come out. So, I stop fidgeting, I turn on the headlamp and less than it takes to realize that we're completely unblocked, I see that it's simply the wind that agitates the canvas of the tent. Since then I have never come across this famous wild beast again and now I always sleep soundly!

Now for this hike.
Up to the Refuge du Wallon, the starting point for altitude races, it's a quiet and soothing walk. With my two friends Vincent and Benoit, both experienced hikers, we start from the fabulous Pont d'Espagne and its impressive waterfall. Then we follow the Gave which, for thousands of years, has shaped this valley. Green trays and fir trees set the scene. Horses graze among the trees and hikers, sometimes coming to you to beg for a cuddle. No particular difficulty, the path is maintained and even paved in places with large stones which facilitates the approach. After 2h/2h30 of walking, we reach the refuge du Wallon. In 2017, during my very first visit, I was able to photograph the old refuge, at the time already, bags of materials were placed around it, in anticipation of a major project. Today, the Wallon refuge has become the largest refuge in the Pyrenees. Despite a questionable architecture, it will be a wonderful place for those who wish to marvel at the surrounding high peaks and those, more daring, who will go and rub shoulders with the surrounding 3000.

1 p.m., lunch in the sun, we take advantage of it because tomorrow it will rain. 2:30 p.m., the useless belongings for tonight's ascent are left in the dormitory of the refuge and we leave in the direction of the Grande Fache. Here the path sets the tone for the rest to come. We gain height much more quickly than in the morning and we arrive fairly quickly at Lac de la Fache. On the way the first traces of snow appear and the ice makes us skid reminding us that up there it will not be so simple. The lake is still just as beautiful and its view magnificent. There, the Vignemale reveals itself completely to us and the great Fache seems to crush us from the top of its 3005 m. In the direction of the Col de la Fache, we meet a mountain dweller in his fifties. I ask him: “How is La Fache with all this snow?”
“Rotten” he replies! “The snow doesn't hold for the crampons, it's soft and with the rocks sliding underneath, the ascent is complicated. I gave up fifty meters before the summit. »
We have been warned. Our initial plans seem to be in jeopardy. Me who had in mind to redo this beautiful 3000, distant memory of an autumn morning. The altitude begins to be felt and we advance more slowly. But despite everything, our little train allows us to quietly wait for the pass.

It is now 4:30 p.m., and at a glance, we see that the ascent of the giant must indeed be perilous. We even come to wonder if the mountaineer we met earlier was telling us the truth. The snow intertwines each rock transforming them into so many traps at each bend. We honestly don't want to come back at night in such a dangerous corridor. Looking north, you can see a small peak that seems to dominate the Spanish landscape. We consult our GPS and we see that it still peaks at 2900 m. The slopes seem much more passable. We launch.

After an hour of sporty ascent we are at the top of Pico Aragón at 2918 meters above sea level.
It is around 5:30 p.m. and the sun begins its gradual decline.
All that's left for me, my two expedition companions and myself, is to land in front of the series of massifs that rise up in front of us. The magic of the spectacle of the Pyrenees with this soft autumn light can begin.
We don't always get what we want but sometimes, by working hard, we get what we need...

Location: Pico Aragon Marcadau Valley, Cauterets | 25 km, 1500 m D+