Chemin de la Liberte

Chemin de la Liberte, September 2024

Peter Bristowe recounts an unforgettable trip to the Pyrenees and battles the elements for an epic adventure.

I founded Vespucci Adventures to put together a series of accessible great walks in the UK. Every now and again, an opportunity comes along to push the boundaries a bit further. Last week some friends and I tackled the Chemin de la Liberte, a route across the Pyrenees used by over 30,000 in the second world war fleeing Nazi occupied France. We had read Edward Stourton’s “Cruel Crossing”, a vivid account of the passeurs who risked their lives shepherding the vulnerable and this gave us a sense of the scale of the challenge.

There is no disguising the fact that it is challenging in many respects. It is remote, accommodation en route is tricky, the trek takes you over high mountain passes with steep ascents and descents. I was told that September was the best time to give it a go with sunny days most likely. Little did we know!

The catalyst for this adventure was Jonnie Miller, a guide I had met a few years previously. He lived in Saint Girons, the start of the official Chemin de la Liberte. He promised me that he would get in touch once he had achieved the necessary qualifications to take us over the Pyrenees. A year ago, he did just this and my wife and six friends signed up!

Whilst it is possible to do this unsupported and unguided, the logistics and navigation are tricky (to put it mildly) and I can highly recommend Freedom Trail Treks run by Anne Arran who booked everything for us, provided pick ups and tents and distilled everything into four memorable days.

Day One

Having visited the Chemin de la Liberte Museum in Saint Girons, we were dropped further up into the foothills of the Pyrenees at La Soumere. The Museum is a poignant reminder of the hardship and bravery endured by those making the crossing. Having set off around lunchtime, we soon came face to face with the fragility of life during the German occupation. An old farm building and cross mark the spot where 19 year old, Louis Barrau, was shot by a German patrol having refused to surrender. He was waiting for a group to arrive, escorted by his older brother, that he was due to take across the mountains. After 11kms and 445m of ascent we arrived at an auberge in Aunac, once used as a remote staging post. The weather was perfect although the clouds did appear to be gathering for Day Three, the hardest day of all! Nonetheless, morale was high, the chat animated and confidence undented.

Day Two

We all knew that things were going to ratchet up gently today. We dropped back down into the valley before a long but manageable ascent culminating at the Col de la Core (1395m). The panoramic views made the effort more than worthwhile and we could enjoy our picnic lunch knowing that we had broken the back of the day.

Alarmingly, the temperature noticeably started to drop and the first wispy grey clouds began to fleck across the sky. A sign of things to come! We carried on and after 17kms and 1,153m of ascent, we arrived at the Subera Hut (1449m). Gilles, the shepherd, was in residence along with his cattle. We set up the tents and cooked up our dinner with help from Jonnie and Andy. The forecast rain arrived on schedule at 8pm and we settled in for the night to the steady pitter patter of rain on tent. In the darkness, thoughts inevitably turned to how we would get on the following day with two peaks, significant descents and the longest day all in
prospect!

Day Three

We woke up (assuming we had slept) to cloud and a light drizzle and Jonnie declaring it was safe to carry on but that it was our call. It would have been easy to have pulled the plug but everyone agreed we should put our faith in Jonnie. Over the following 48 hours, Jonnie repaid this faith many times over!

We had reached the point of no return and we left at 8am heading up into the cloud. Soon we were passing a herd of beautiful wild black horses, straight from a Lloyds Bank advert. The crash site of a Halifax bomber, 80kms off course in July 1945, hove into view with first a wheel, then parts of the fuselage and finally a plaque. All on board were killed. By 11am, after an unbroken ascent in cloud and drizzle, we reached the Col de Craberous (2282m).

As we crested, the wind blew and the temperature dropped even further. The disappointment of missing out on a memorable view started to be replaced by a feeling that we were becoming part of an incredible adventure, far more testing than we had originally envisaged.

Always following in Jonnie’s footsteps, we descended steeply to the Espugues Refuge where we sheltered for lunch. Jonnie’s qualities and skills were starting to be revealed as he produced a stove and a brew. If he had any qualms of guiding a group with an aggregate age of more than 250 years over the Pyrenees in increasingly dodgy conditions, he never gave it away.

The description in the brochure had promised a beautiful lake and wild swimming opportunity before a final ascent to the Cap de Pecouch (2245m). I am sure it existed but we never saw it! After scrambling up boulders on all fours, we could just make out the jagged teeth above the Cap and a fleeting glimpse of the Estagnous Refuge below. The clouds were now breaking up and we had an idea of the incredible scenery around us. After 9 hours, 12.4kms and 1,323m of ascent, we finally arrived at the refuge, feeling a mixture of elation and exhaustion.

A night in a refuge is one of those things in life that it is worth experiencing at least once! The sardine metaphor hardly does justice to the sleeping arrangements but the communal dining and hearty food more than makes up for this. The camaraderie reached new levels when we bumped into a group of young English chaps doing the same as us but self-supported and self-guided. Huge respect especially as I discovered a close family link. A strange world, indeed. Just as we were about to retire to our dorm, the Refuge Manager announced the weather for tomorrow: SNOW and ICE!

Day Four

Jonnie had told us that he would brief us at breakfast at 7.15am. Younger and fitter hikers and climbers (even some with ropes) were milling around as we peered out of the window and the snow covered tables and chairs outside.

Jonnie calmly set out the plan for the day: a steep descent to the lake below, a sharp ascent regaining all the lost height (200m) including using wires. There would follow a long haul ascent in snow and ice to the highest pass on the trip (Col de la Clauere at 2522m) and the Spanish border. This would take about four hours followed by a four hour descent and the promise of a rendezvous with Anne in Spain. None of us had signed up for this but there was no Plan B. It’s amazing what can be achieved when needs must.

Looking back, it was one of the most amazing days of my life. It was possibly a good thing that we could not see what was ahead of us or below us. It was steep, icy and slippery. Thank God for Jonnie! A former Royal Marine, an incredible array of adventures and achievements under his belt, he calmly led from the front giving us the confidence to press on. We stopped to brew up, warm up and cheer up and we made it!

As predicted, the clouds started to break up at around midday just as were crossing into Spain on the highest point of the trek. By the time we had descended to meet Anne (after 15kms, 635m ascent and 8 hours of walking), there was hardly a cloud in the sky and the drama of the morning and preceding day seemed a figment of the imagination.

I think we were all sustained by knowing that thousands had made this trip before us, in far more challenging circumstances, many never making it. Unlike the reception we received from Anne (cold beers by the fast flowing river) those crossing in war time continued to face great uncertainty.

The Chemin de la Liberte is not for everyone but it has provided us with an experience that we will never forget. None of this would have been possible without Freedom Trail Treks and Jonnie Miller.

If you have enjoyed reading this article, please consider donating to Climb 2 Recovery.

Climb 2 Recovery supports seriously and chronically wounded, injured, sick, disabled and disadvantaged service people and veterans through a year-round programme of fully-funded residential adaptive and progressive climbing and mountaineering. Jonnie is part of the team delivering this.

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