Backpacks Boots and Baguettes: A Walk in the Pyrenees
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High in the Pyrenees, a full day's hike from any trappings of civilisation, is no place for a human to be - unless you are searching for the time of your life.
This is the roof of a mountain range that stretches from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean coasts, and provides some of the most breathtakingly beautiful landscape to be found in Europe. It is also the place for hikers to get soaked, roasted or scared out of their wits - not by the endangered brown bear, but by rights-of-way such as the precipitous Chemin de la Mature, hacked out of a cliff by 18th century convicts and is still used in the 21st century to punish anyone fearful of heights, such as TV presenter Simon Calder. Luckily, his friend and walking companion Mick Webb has a complementary range of phobias, such as being confined with 54 fellow hikers, and their socks, in a refuge two miles above sea level.
Together, they step out to conquer the roof of the Pyenees, following the time honoured tradition of walking the GR10. the preferred route of the, at times eccentric, French Ramblers' Federation. Testing a hiker's emotional resilience as keenly as his walking boots, the GR10 is not for the faint-hearted. Weaving an occasionally treacherous, always exhilarating trajectory through a landscape of strong traditions and strange animals, Calder and Webb narrate an eventful and humerous travelogue. With their backpacks, boots and baguettes, they explore the region: meeting the people, savouring the views and the wines - and aguing about how best to cope with the constant surprises and challenges of magnificent mountains. They also very quickly learn that la loi de l'emmerdement maximum means 'sod's law' in French.
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High in the Pyrenees, a full day's hike from any trappings of civilisation, is no place for a human to be - unless you are searching for the time of your life.
This is the roof of a mountain range that stretches from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean coasts, and provides some of the most breathtakingly beautiful landscape to be found in Europe. It is also the place for hikers to get soaked, roasted or scared out of their wits - not by the endangered brown bear, but by rights-of-way such as the precipitous Chemin de la Mature, hacked out of a cliff by 18th century convicts and is still used in the 21st century to punish anyone fearful of heights, such as TV presenter Simon Calder. Luckily, his friend and walking companion Mick Webb has a complementary range of phobias, such as being confined with 54 fellow hikers, and their socks, in a refuge two miles above sea level.
Together, they step out to conquer the roof of the Pyenees, following the time honoured tradition of walking the GR10. the preferred route of the, at times eccentric, French Ramblers' Federation. Testing a hiker's emotional resilience as keenly as his walking boots, the GR10 is not for the faint-hearted. Weaving an occasionally treacherous, always exhilarating trajectory through a landscape of strong traditions and strange animals, Calder and Webb narrate an eventful and humerous travelogue. With their backpacks, boots and baguettes, they explore the region: meeting the people, savouring the views and the wines - and aguing about how best to cope with the constant surprises and challenges of magnificent mountains. They also very quickly learn that la loi de l'emmerdement maximum means 'sod's law' in French.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent read - buy it to enjoy not as a walking guide,
By
This review is from: Backpacks, Boots and Baguettes: A Walk in the Pyrenees (Paperback)
I bought this book whilst planning my complete walk of the GR10 this Summer. I don't think it is intended as a guide book - it is just a good read. You do get a flavour of the ups and downs of walking in the Pyrenees and I can associate many of the anecdotes with my own experiences.
The reviewer who described it as disappointing needs to re-align is perspective. For a guide you need to get the late Paul Lucia's Cicerone guide and the French Randonnée guide. Steve Cracknell's "If You Only Could Walk Long Enough" is also an excellent read and a little more serious. Buy this book for what it is and you will not be disappointed.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Disapponting,
By Tam Tam (France) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Backpacks, Boots and Baguettes: A Walk in the Pyrenees (Paperback)
Whilst amusingly written is of no practical value for anyone planning to traverse the Pyrenees. The title is misleading - hardly a walk, more an account of calametous incidents occurring over several short visits along the length of the trail. Better of purchasing Steatfeild-James and the Rough Guide to the Pyremees.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
2.5 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews) 1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
amusing and entertaining,
By Anne Chung "funbooks" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Backpacks, Boots and Baguettes: A Walk in the Pyrenees (Paperback)
Though I have only been to the Atlantic side of the pyrenees, I
loved what I saw. I would like to do what these 2 guys did, see the whole of the pyrenees. The writing is light and funny, makes for easy reading. We can trust the brits to still have this sense of adventure.
1.0 out of 5 stars
How much did they actually walk?,
By S. Blankenship "International Midwife" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Backpacks, Boots and Baguettes: A Walk in the Pyrenees (Paperback)
I felt ripped off by this book. I bought it in preparation and for inspiration on the walk I plan on taking next year.
Simon and Mick, by my estimation, didn't backpack even 1/3 of the Pyrenees... they taxied it, bus rode it, hitchhiked it, but surely didn't do much walking in it. Simon even admits this towards the end of the book. Humorous at points, but a disappointment for the most part. |
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