A hastily arranged walk with our neighbour Sandrine and we opted to head over the Col de Barlonguère and descend via the Etang Long and Etang Rond, which are often snow filled at this time of year.
The steep climb up past the cascades d'echelles was a rude awakening, especially for Sandrine as this was her first mountain walk since lock-down. On emerging from the tree line an overdose of sensations from the noise of the torrent and the colours of the wild flowers and butterflies.
Looking back to the skyline we walked a few days ago
We managed to find a place to cross the torrent without too much difficulty, before the long ascent in the sun to the upper valley.
Snow patches appeared a km or so before the cabane de Barlonguère
We had a short lunch at the cabin because it was gone 1.30 by the time we arrived and it was 2.30 by the time we started our descent from the Port de Barlonguère. The views were magnificent and the descent though all on snow was soft and easy.
The Etang Long still had a sprinkling of snow islands floating around.
The descent to the Etang Rond was snow free though there is a place where the the path has fallen off this winter requiring a short detour.
From the Etang Rond the long descent back down to Pla de Lau on tired legs. 18km and 1450m of height gain, it's always a tough day.
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