We were keen
to show Thomas and James the Combau Valley while they were with us so we all
decided to return for a walk up to the col at the head of the valley. The weather was superb yet again and,
although there was some low cloud over the high tops early on during the
morning, it soon cleared to give fabulous views. Thomas and James were as impressed as we are
with this location; it must rank as one of my favourite high mountain valleys
anywhere. The clean, pale, grey of the
limestone cliffs set against deep azure sky and brilliant green grass studded
with a myriad of beautiful alpine flowers make this a very special place. Although the six of us were roughly together
we wandered separately looking more
closely at the things that particularly interested each of us. We stopped for lunch above the hut among the
marmot burrows, the occupants of which entertained us during our meal. The views from the col of the distant Ecrins
National Park and the nearby dramatic Mont Aguille were wonderful. The towering cliffs surrounding this isolated
peak give it a ‘Lost World’ feel. While
Peter wandered up to the summit in a successful search for ibex the rest of us
relaxed by the hut. I lay back on the
grass looking up at the patterns being created in the swirling clouds
above. There were two layers: incredibly
high ones being blown in an easterly direction by the jet stream and lower ones
moving in the opposite direction. Like
Nan Shepherd in The Lonely Mountain I
felt one with the landscape, body sinking into the ground and mind wandering
among the clouds. Eventually we roused
ourselves to wander back to the cars, although I had to climb back up to the
hut to retrieve my glasses which I had yet again left on the grass. Back at the cars we returned to the main
valley and the then drove up through the Gorges des Gats to explore the
fantastic canyon of the Rio de Soud.
This involved scrambling down into the stream and paddling up the ever
narrowing slot canyon. The colours in the stream and rocks were fantastic, but
the water and air in the defile were freezing.
Once back at the site it was beer o’clock and BBQ time. What a fabulous day.
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