Before leaving Val d’Echo we wanted to do another hiking trail which started just a couple of kilometers along the road. We did a short version to the Collado de lo Foraton and on the way we did see chamois (goat-antelope) and a vulture and passed nice high altitude grassy meadows. After we had finished the hike, we drove back to the camping for having lunch and a shower and made our way to Canfranc Estacion via backroad A-2605 to Aisa. Canfranc Estacion is a border town in the mountains between France and Spain. From here trains traversed the mountains between this two countries through a 20km. long tunnel, but after an accident and the opening of two train tracks on both sides of the mountains (Hendaye-Irun / Cerbere-Port Bou), the Canfranc connection became useless. The huge train station in Canfranc Estacion closed down and was overgrown and plundered. It is still an impressive sight. After doing some shopping it was time to look for a camping. In this valley you got only one option…camping Solopuent in Castiello de Jaca. We checked-in and when we were asked to pay we decided not to stay in this place…they asked for 33 euro a night…even camping Zeeburg in Amsterdam is cheaper and this camping lies just in a sleepy village in the countryside…we thanked and kept on driving until we got to camping Burjaruelo in Ordesa National Park. This national park should be the best what the Pyrenees have to offer at the Spanish side. They forgot to seal the last couple of kilometers to this beautiful stuck-away place in the mountains and just when we arrived it stopped raining…welcome in nature.

Reason to come to Ordesa was to wander and wander, but when the weather god is not playing with you in the same team…it is not much of a joy. We watched the forecast and it told us that it would be raining from 1pm…we decided to hike anyway, but chose the shortest track from the book and walked the Valle the Otal. At 9am we took the pushbikes out and drove the last 3 kilometers of the valley to trailhead San Nicolas de Bujaruelo from where a couple of hikes start. Our easy hike for the day took us to refugio de Otal and back following the car track all the way. At the end we found a nice place to have lunch near a waterfall. We saw the black clouds rolling in already and made us ready for going back. As soon as we reached the bikes we were pretty soaked and for a reward we got ourselves a hamburguesa at refugio San Nicolas de Bujaruelo hoping the rain would stop…wet soaked we arrived at the camping jumping under a hot shower immediately. From then on it rained until 3am continuously.

Fortunately the rain had stopped, but clothes and shoes did not get a chance to get dry. We turned on the heater and within half an hour we could put on the same clothes on as we worn yesterday. This time we drove the last 3 km. to the end of the valley by car and concentrated on the other side of the valley we had visited yesterday. From the parking lot we crossed the old bridge again and had a 1000 meters up in front of us. The first 300 meters up was actually more hiking in a river than on a path. We did not have seen so much water as we did the last 2 days, but the weather today was just perfect so we could finally totally enjoy the hike. Once we got closer to Puerto de Bujaruelo, which marks the border between France and Spain, it got colder and we had to pass a couple of snow areas. But also the view down got better and better and at the top we got rewarded for getting up here. We made a detour and rounded Pico del Puerto. This part was not part of the official track, but apart from two tricky spots is was doable. From Puerto Viejo de Bujaruelo we walked downhill all the way back to San Nicolas. On the way we could puzzle a cow together from all the bones we saw. We drove back out of the Valley towards Torla and find ourselves with camping Ordesa a new camping ground with fantastic views over the national park. By bike we scored some food in the village and like a miracle it got dry all evening so we had dinner with a view outside.