We’ve been waiting for the temperatures to go down enough to go skiing and today they finally did. However, alongside the cold snap also came a hefty wind. We had a weather warning of stong tramuntana winds at the coast (gusts up to 125km/h), mistral in the Ebro valley and winds of up to 90km/h in the Pyrenees. Not much fun going skiing when the wind stops you from actually getting up any speed.

Johnny called us about going flying, and I assumed that if it was on, it would be really good at Santa Brigida. We decided to do something else though, which was go for a walk I have been wanting to do for years.

Toroella de Montgri, near L’Estartit, has a 300m, near conical hill above it, with a square castle on top. You can see it for miles. The views from the top are supposed to be stunning and there’s no road up the hill, so if you want to see them, you have to make the effort to walk up. It’s part of the GR92, so a well trodden path and well marked, no need for maps, etc.

We arrived in the town and went in search of a spot of lunch before the walk. With the incredibly strong wind, it was bitterly cold, and I realised I had not brought enough clothes with me. Crucially, I forgot a hat and gloves. We wandered around the old town and were really impressed by how nice it is.

Once on the path up the hill, Geoff took pity on me and got out his hood, so I could have his hat, since my ears seemed about to drop off. Although very windy, we were in the lee of the hill, until we came to a saddle and met the full force of the breeze. It was pretty much like walking up a volcano in Lanzarote… hold on to all your posessions or you lose them. Once at the top, the views were indeed impressive. You can see the Medes islands (allegedly some of the best diving in Europe is around them), the Bay of Roses, the plains around Figueras and of course the Pyrenees.

The wind noise inside the castle was deafening, but we went for a stroll along the castle walls and had to hang onto the railings to keep steady. Once you’re standing on the castle walls you can also appreciate why they built the castle where they did. 10/10 for defensive position!

Rather than taking the same way down, Geoff spotted some green arrows pointing over part of the steep cliffs which are under the castle. Excellent – the direct way down. Many of the rocks were so worn, they were polished and really, really slippy, and with the wind as well, it turned into quite an exciting descent. Half-way down we encountered a stunning cave, and ended up having to skid down a rock fall to get back to the path.

By the time we got back to the car, I was frozen, so we decided to go to Peretallada for a coffee. It’s a walled medieval village, with many streets too narrow for cars. One street still has deep furrows from horse-drawn carts and the whole place is very atmospheric. We’ve been before, so know it’s packed with restaurants and cafes, but just our luck, not one was open. We then tried neighbouring Palau-Sator and drew and equal blank. I was getting colder and colder, so in the end we just drove home and made our own coffee.

On arriving back in Castellfollit, there was a half moon with a double halo (red and green) around it. I’ve never seen anything like it, but wish I could have taken a photo for posterity. And we spoke to Johnny later… it was epic conditions at Santa Brigida. Very thermic, very buoyant and he’s in love with the Niviuk Zion.

See photos of today.

No comments yet - please add one »