Easter Weekend, day 2

On the 2nd day we drove first from Axat to Lapradelle where we wanted to visit the Castle of Puilaurens (Château de Puilaurens). Unfortunately it rained cats and dogs and was foggy, so we decided to continue directly and not walking up and visiting this Cathar ruin on the top of a mountain.

So, by car we drove through the Gorges de Galmus, a nice canyon without a lot of traffic so it wasn’t a problem to get through. Then we went to visit the Castle of Peyrepertuse, one of many more from the Cathar’s which are remaining in this area. The ruin is located on the top of a mountain surrounded by cliffs. Sometimes it was covered with fog and suddenly the sky opened for a few minutes and the surrounding landscape was visible.

Afterwards we went to the next ruin, the Château de Quéribus, also from the same time. It’s on a steep rock from where we had a nice view towards the mountains (when the fog it permitted).

On the way to Trèbes near Carcassonne where we slept, we passed through Villerouge-Termenès with another castle and Lagrasse where a nice monastry is.


Gorges de Galmus


The Castle of Peyrepertuse is divided in 2 parts, a lower and the higher one which is reachable after climbing up narrow steps.

The Château de Quéribus sitting at the top of a rocky mountain.

The Castle in Villerouge-Termenès.

And finally the Abbey and town of Lagrasse.

Easter Weekend, day 1

For the Easter vacation we rented a car for 4 days to explore a bit the south of France. On the first day we drove via Vic directly to Puigcerdà, in the Pyrenees on the French boarder. Here we stopped to have a look around in the center where a nice market square attracts the attention.

In Llívia, a Spanish enclave just a few minutes away from Puigcerdà, we had lunch and a walk through the village with some nice houses and the church which has some remaining towers of a former castle.

The weather was sunny, but when we continued further fog came up and it also started raining. We visited Mont-Louis, a fort with a village inside constructed by the famous French architect Vauban at the end of the 17th century to defend the new Spanish boarder after the Pyrenees contract. However the fog was so dense that it was really difficult to see the impressive walls and impossible to see any mountains around.

To get away from this fog, we drove down direction Perpignan and in Villefranche-le Conflent it was much better. This place which also Vauban built into a big fortress is the fortified town surrounded by high mountains and on one side, about 300 meters higher the Fort Libéria. To get to this fort we had to climb up, it’s connected by an underground tunnel which leads from the town to the fortress taking about 1000 steps. From the top we had a nice view down to the town and of the 3 valleys which come together in this strategic site.

At the end we drove further to Axat where we spent our first night.

In the Pyrenees close to La Molina with our Smart for Two.

Puigcerdà with the nice square and Llívia's church where once stood a castle.

Vauban's fortress built next to the Spanish boarder has impressive big walls but unfortunately due to the fog it wasn't possible to see a lot.

The walls of Villefranche-le-Conflent and higher located on a mountain Fort Libéria.

The entrace and walls of the Fort Libéria from where we had a nice view down towards the town of Villefranche.

Walking tour from Garraf to Sitges

Another walking trip, a shorter one, we did was from Garraf along the GR 92, passing 2 mountains and then to Sitges. We took a train to Garraf which is a small village on the coast a bit in the south of Barcelona. From there we went up to a mountain, passing the ruine of Garraf which is nearly not visible and along a mining complex. This part isn't really nice, but once on the top it's quiet and only a few houses are around and the fields full of vines.

On the other side of the mountain we had to go down, passing the cement factory in Vallcarca and up to the next mountain. On the way to the top we passed an hermitage which has a nice entrance door and from where we had a nice view towards the blue sea. Crossing the mountain, with good views along the coast, we went down to Sitges from where we went back by train.

The whole trip took us about 4,5 hours on a well marked trail.

The small village of Garraf with its sandy beach.


The mining complex on one side, Garraf and the sea on the other.


On the mountain it's quiet and many flowers were blooming


On the way up to the mountain we passed a hermitage which is located above the sea with nice views.


The view from the other mountain along the coast and Sitges.

Hiking Trip, GR 5 Sant Feliu to Figaró

We are still alive, but just less active than a year ago as work doesn't permit us to travel as much as we would like to. Already a few weeks ago we went walking on a nice trip along the top of some cliffs, about 40 km away from Barcelona. We went along the GR 5 from Sant Feliu de Codines to Figaró, it took us about 7 hours to get there on a mostly sunny day.

By bus we went to Sant Feliu de Codines where the tour started. On a easy walk we went to Sant Miquel del Fai which we didn't visit as we had already been there before. Sant Miquel del Fai was full of tourists and the parking occupied, but it was the only place we met a lot of people, before and after it was quiet.

The only village we passed was Bertí which has a church and about 2 or 3 houses, really not a lot. However to get there we had to climb up from Sant Miquel del Fai. Afterwards we went along the "Cingles del Bertí" (Cliffs of Bertí) and walked down to Figaró where we took a train back to Barcelona.


Walking along the cliffs to Sant Miquel del Fai


Bertí with a small church and the Cliffs of Bertí from where we walked down and through a small canyon to Figaró.

Sant Miquel del Fai

On a trip we went today by car with Laura's parents and aunt to Sant Miguel del Fai, about 40 km from Barcelona. There we visited an old church in a cave (about 1000 AD), an hermitage, caves and a waterfall.
The church and Priory House are located in the middle of a rock face, built by water over centuries. From there we had a wonderful view over the valley and a big waterfall. The weather was sonny and quite warm, perfect to go walking around.

The entrance to Sant Miquel del Fai, high above a valley. The most impressive building is the Priory House (16th century) on the edge of the rocks. The church inside a cave is the oldest part.

The view towards the Priory House, the valley and the waterfall.

2 nice but small caves are possible to visit, one with water inside, the other one quite narrow, it's necessary to wear a helmet.