Cauterets & Pres du Pont d' Espagne

Off into the Pyrenees!

Heading out from Lourdes

This post is about our drive into the Pyrenees- one afternoon when we were visiting Lourdes.  I have been meaning to finish this post for a while now, but other posts kept sneaking in.  This little trip was actually on the day we left Lourdes.  We had to check out of our hotel, and my husband still had some meetings to attend, so I decided to take the girls on a little drive into the Mountains.  A good friend of ours had recommended the town of Cauterets as a nice place to walk around - and you can see the drive there was stunning too!

These first few photos were taken by my eldest daughter as we drove into the Mountains...This was mid-May and it was amazingly beautiful - there was still snow in the peaks!  After our long rainy Winter/Spring in Bordeaux - I'm not surprised the mountains got all snow!

Looking into the Mountains from the highway!

Another view from the highway.

The road twisted and turned and around each bend there was more beauty to behold and I loved all the little waterfalls and creeks flowing out of the mountains.

Even the small cascades coming off the sides were stunning!

We arrived in the resort town of Cauterets and it was stunning!  A beautiful little ski town nestled quaintly in the mountains.  This town is located about 20 miles (32km) Southwest of Lourdes. It is the center for many excursions, both skiing and hiking.  Cauterets is also well known for its thermal Springs, which date back to 1843 and are still functioning today.  This particular day, the town was very quiet as it was not only off season (between ski and hiking season) but also a Sunday when everything is closed.  It was nice to just walk around peacefully and take in the beauty of the area.

Cauterets

View looking from the Center of Cauterets

More Mountain views

The high peaks were stunning!

Below you can see where people in the town can take lifts up into the slopes & peaks with skis or hiking gear.  Wonderful concept!

The lift from the center of Cauterets

Some colors of Cauterets

I adored all the colors in this town - Pink buildings, yellow buildings, brightly painted shutters.  It was just so pretty and joyful.  I could definitely get a feel of how lively & vibrant this town could be during Winter and Summer seasons.

Love the colors and the style!

More colors & style of the town

Note the flower boxes with greenery ready to bloom - Spring was in full force - even though we had a long cold Winter.  My girls had fun wandering the streets - they too found the buildings very colorful.  It almost became a game to see how many different colors we could count.

Pink, yellow and the window boxes ready to bloom.

Having fun exploring the town.

Train station in Cauterets

We left Cauterets and head further into the Mountains toward the Pont d'Espagne.  This bridge is suppose to be stunning and very beautiful - with lots of hiking and snowshoeing trails around it. Pont d'Espagne is a stone-built bridge that spans the Gave de Marcadau at the point where it meets the Gave de Gaube, near one of its sources high in the French Pyrenees.
The Pont d'Espagne is at an altitude of approx 1500m. The name translates to Spanish Bridge. Unfortunately, we were running a bit short on time as we needed to head back to Lourdes and pick up my husband as he was finishing his conference.

Cascade du Lutour

We made it to the Cascade du Lutour - about 8 km from the Pont d'Espagne - this little stop has obviously become a great viewing area, as many cars had stopped here, along with a tour bus.  There were also a couple of restaurants and shops nestled on the side of the road.

More waterfalls

At Cascade du Lutour - relais Pont d'Espagne

Now of course, being the photographic mother that I am, my girls posed for some portraits - I loved how they just laugh with each other!

Sisters!

Having fun!

An ice cream was the final treat before we headed back to Lourdes - full tummies in the car are always a good thing!

Ice Cream!

A few final photos taken from the car as we drove back to Lourdes - again I give my 12 year old daughter photo credits for the next 3 shots.

Heading back to Lourdes - looking down into the valley

Up in the Mountains

Some curvy roads!

I look forward to enjoying this area again.  I would love to go back in the summer - when we can hike and walk around in the mountains.  A little spa time wouldn't be too bad either!

During this hot summer, I find it refreshing to look back through these snow-capped mountain photos.  This is such a beautiful area and truly not that far from the Bordeaux area.

Lourdes - History & Spirituality in the Pyrenees-Part I

The town & Lourdes Castle

This past weekend we had the opportunity to spend a long weekend in Lourdes.  My husband was attending a conference there and we decided to take the family along for a mini-holiday.  This was my first trip to this beautiful spiritual mecca.  I am actually writing 2 posts about this weekend as there were a couple different themes to this trip - the first being the typical tours of a quaint beautiful town nestled in the Midi-Pyrenees and the second the religious significance and pilgrimages that our made to this spiritual spot.  This post will focus more on the town itself and it's beauty.

We arrived there on a Thursday evening and after settling into our hotel, we wandered out into the town to find some dinner.  One of the first things that struck me was the number of tourist and buses that were around town - this is definitely a big stop for many tours and it's amazing as the town itself only has 17,000 inhabitants.  One can see from the following photo that bus drivers have to really know how to maneuver their buses...there is just not a lot of space anywhere and the roads in this town are narrow!

One way street with tiny sidewalk & parking on one side of road...and believe or not, this bus was trying to back up!

This is a view from our hotel room, overlooking the river and the mountains after dark.

Same view in the morning- love the lighting on the mountains!

The next day the girls and I headed out to wonder around the town...first stop was to find the tourism office. I was struck by how colorful many of the building were.  

The town square with the office of Tourism

More of downtown Lourdes - very picturesque

Our first stop was the Lourdes Castle or Chateau fort de Lourdes.  This amazing fortress sits in the middle of the city high up on a hill.  It's very impressive in size.  This is a view taken from the pool terrace of our hotel.  

One has the choice of taking an elevator to the top of the fortress or walking up the stairs - knowing we had a full day ahead of us, and I have a 5 year old - we opted for the elevator.  This amazing fortress dates back to the 9th century, when it was used as a place from which to control the frontier and defend the area.  As the centuries progressed this castle was passed  from the regional lords, to the cathars,then to the English who controlled it and the direct lands around it from around 1300 until 1407.  From 1425 until 1607 it belonged to the house of Foix, a regional seat.  It finally became crown property in 1607 when this region became part of France.  It also served as a prison during the Napoleonic period.  It definitely has a rich history and gives a stunning view of the region.

My youngest called this little turret, her princess tower.

Part of exploring this fortress was taking a path down the back side that lead to an old cemetery   It was fascinating to see the dates of some of these headstones.

Having walked down the back side to explore the cemetery - the only way back out of the castle was back up....(good thing we took the elevator originally!)

Another fascinating part of this tour, was the kid's puzzle they gave the girls - as you wondered around, you had to fill in various words and terms of the fortress.

There was a beautiful little chapel on the property - I loved the old stain glass window.

The keep, the tallest part of the fortress was used as a prison during the Napoleonic period.

Of course the view from this Chateau was stunning no matter which direction you looked.  The following is looking toward the Basilica on the other side of the river.

Looking in the opposite direction were the outskirts of the city and foothills.

Of course the mountain views on the outskirts of the city were stunning!  It's May and there is still snow in the high peaks!

The Tourist train is a great mode of transportation around the city of Lourdes.  Not only does it drive around the whole city and describe many interesting sites, but it also allows you to get on and off at various points to tour museums & even take the funicular up the mountain on the outskirts of town. 

The girls enjoyed the train and a break from walking.  Of course, we got off at the Pic Du Jer site and waited to take the finacular up the mountain.

The car runs on tracks and cables up the mountain and through 2 tunnels - it's been in existence for over 50 years.

The views from the top were breathtaking!  Everywhere you looked it was stunning.  Unfortunately, we had to deal with a bit of rain - but the clouds did break up a little for some sunshine at least part of the time we were at the top.

View of the city of Lourdes

Cloudy view from the top

Snow covered peaks - breathtaking!

A little rain didn't hurt either.

We also enjoyed attending the daily market, one morning, and walking through the park near the mayor's office with it's beautiful fountains.  As I said in the beginning of the post, there is the whole spiritual side to Lourdes and why it's a center of pilgrimages for many people.  I will be talking about that aspect of Lourdes in Part 2.  For now - scroll back and take in the views - they certainly were beautiful and stunning.