Part 11 (1/2)
CHAPTER X.
BAGNeRES DE LUCHON.
The bathing establishment and its surroundings--The lovely _Allees_--Montauban church and cascade--The Villa Russe and its genial host--Various excursions--Orphanage of Notre Dame de Rocher--The Vallee du Lys--The Rue d'Enfer and cascades--A lively scene--The view from Superbagneres--Loading wood--”The Oxen's Appeal”--Visit to the Orphanage--A ”holy” relic--To Bosost--St. Mamet--”A Stumbling-block”
--Cascade of Sidonie--Horse tricks and jockey dodges--Lizards in flight--Fas.h.i.+on on a donkey--On the Portillon 'twixt France and Spain--The Valley of Aran--Snug Bosost--A curious inn--Children with artistic bent--A bright pathway--Missing much, but thankful still.
The most delightful of weather throughout our stay doubtless added greatly to our enjoyment of Luchon, and our willingness to agree with its t.i.tle as ”The Pearl of the Pyrenees ”; and, in fact, to all people but those who love dust, noise, and fas.h.i.+on, this month of May is the pleasantest time of the year to go, see, and be happy.
The great bathing establishment, situated as it is in a lovely garden (Quinconces) with a charming lake overhung with the graceful weeping willows, and under the wooded sides of Superbagneres, seems to invite one to enter and bathe. When we looked in, very little business was going on, and one of the attendants, in the hope of receiving a small coin, was nothing loath to show us round.
It is the largest and most efficiently arranged of all the Pyrenean establishments, and can accommodate over 200 people at the same time; ”douche” baths, swimming baths, ordinary baths, rooms for inhaling, rooms for ”pulverisation,” seemed to succeed one another with unending rapidity, as we followed our guide down long corridors or up flights of stairs; and when at last it was all over, and he had quietly and contentedly pocketed his coin, we felt as though we had been taking quite a long walk.
[Ill.u.s.tration: ”THE 'PEARL' IN THE PEERLESS VALLEY.”]
The Allee d'Etigny--the princ.i.p.al street--and all the other _allees_, notably the Allee des Bains, make most delightful promenades, even in the heat of the day, so delightful is the shade afforded by the trees that line the way on either side. To walk from the ”Thermes” along the Allee des Bains, turning into the Casino gardens, or continuing further--leaving the ”Chute de la Pique” on the right--along the riverside till the road to Montauban cuts it at right angles, is a most delicious evening stroll. We prolonged this, by taking the road in question between the poplars up to the village of Montauban itself; but found more interest in the beautiful new church than in the waterfall at the back of the village, which is gained by pa.s.sing through the good cure's garden, and for which privilege half a franc is charged. The church, of white stone, very symmetrically built and of quite a different architecture from the usual French types, stands out imposingly at the entrance to the village, backed up by the tree-clad hills and the cottages beyond. The interior is most chaste and tasteful, as different from the usual Roman Catholic interior as is the outside from the general exterior, the texts on the pillars near the entrance being quite an unusual feature. Whether the decoration was not yet finished, and the tinsel therefore not yet arrived, we could not learn; but are afraid it is only too probable, as the church, as it stood, might have been one of our own; for even the gilt pulpit harmonised so well with the rest, that it did not detract from the religious and solemn effect, while the light through the finely-coloured windows threw a softening glimmer over all.
[Ill.u.s.tration: THE CHURCH OF MONTAUBAN.]
We returned by a short cut through the fields on the left and the garden of the Villa Russe, whose owner, ”charmant et gentil,” not only showed us all over, but very kindly invited us to a strawberry feast a month hence--which sorrowfully we had to decline--as well as making us free of his garden and fields, the latter being filled with the sweet-scented narcissus.
The Hotel Canton, in which we were staying, was very conveniently situated and comfortable. While standing in a quiet part of the Rue d'Espagne it was close to the post-office and casino on the one hand, and the bathing establishment and the Jardin des Quinconces on the other. Moreover, the stables of Jean Sanson--a most excellent guide for all excursions--were close at hand, and his horses would be difficult to beat; while his son Luis is experienced in all trips and ascents, not only in the vicinity, but over a large part of the Pyrenees.
The new casino, barely three years old, is situated in as charming a quarter as could well be imagined, for besides possessing a finely laid-out garden with many fine shrubs and trees, it is bounded by three beautiful _allees_ as well. As previously mentioned, it can be gained by the Allee des Bains, but the most direct way to the building itself, from our hotel, was by keeping to the right along the Rue d'Espagne and the narrow street beyond (the post-office being to the left), opposite which a side entrance leads to the imposing edifice.
The three most popular excursions from Luchon are those to the Port de Venasque, the mountain pa.s.s at the head of the Pique Valley; the Vallee du Lys and the Cascades; and thirdly, the ascent of Superbagneres.
The greatest of all, and in truth the greatest in the Pyrenees, is the ascension of the Pic de Nethou (11,170 ft.), the highest of the range, and its two great b.u.t.tresses, the Pics Maladetta (10,867 ft.) and Milieu (11,044 ft). None but experienced mountaineers, with the most experienced guides, attempt this ascent, which is attended with much danger; but there are many other delightful trips in the vicinity, including a visit to the Spanish village of Bosost; up the Aran valley to Viella; a drive to the picturesquely-placed St. Beat, or to the old Roman town of St. Bertrand de Comminges.
Pleasant walks and drives are probably more numerous from Luchon than from any other Pyrenean resort, and though we were rather too early in the year for mountain climbing, the fine weather enabled us to enjoy several other outings, which we will describe in turn.
The Vallee du Lys and the Rue d'Enfer make an agreeable picnic, either in a carriage as far as the ”Cabanes du Lys” (6-1/4 miles), and then horses for the other 3-3/4 miles up to the abyss, the cascades, and the Rue d'Enfer, or on horseback all the way. We preferred the latter, and taking a good lunch in the saddle-bags, made a start at the favoured hour of ten. Under the lee of the Quinconces, past the Hotel Richelieu, Villa Richelieu, and the elevated Villa Marguerite, and we were fairly on our way, the air sweetly laden with the scent from the flower-decked fields and the lilac-trees in the gardens.
When we pa.s.sed the little road on the left leading to the Orphanage of Notre Dame du Rocher, the lilac-scent was very strong; and the position of the various buildings in connection with the inst.i.tution seemed so attractive that we determined to take a stroll there later on. Pursuing our way, with the restored ruin of the Castelvieil above us on its ”monticule” overlooking the Orphanage, we were soon in a narrower part of the valley, with the wooded slopes on either side. Then we crossed the river to the left bank, which we followed until reaching the point where the road to the Hospice and the Port de Venasque led to the left, and ours crossed the river by a neat bridge (the Pont de Ravi) to the right bank again. A little beyond this, the route for Superbagneres --which we hoped to take another day--struck off among the trees on the right of the road, which in turn gradually bent in the same direction all up the beautiful Lys valley, till it again curved in the opposite direction and arrived at the base of the Cascades, where there is a fair inn (Auberge du Lys).[Footnote: Only in summer.] From thence the road forks, but the track to the left is the better of the two, at any rate if on foot, and by it--after fifteen minutes'
labour--the foot of the Cascade d'Enfer is reached; and the Pont d'Arrouge in another quarter of an hour. A similar length of time is still necessary to reach a small tower whence a good view of the Gouffre d'Enfer and the Pont de Nadie, above it, can be enjoyed. This tower is about a mile distant from the foot of the lowest fall. The other cascade (the Cascade du Coeur) is not a very difficult twenty minutes' walk by a path that leads through the trees to Lac Vert, and as there is a capital inn there (later in the season), we think that this would be a good spot for lunch. Even as it was, we managed to enjoy ours pretty well, for fresh air and suns.h.i.+ne are good appetisers, and the ride had added its effect besides. The return ride in the afternoon, when the sun was commencing to decline a little, was very pleasant, and the snow-covered Port de Venasque, so beautiful in its whiteness, and yet for the same reason quite inaccessible, looked very lovely when tinged with the crimson hue that the setting sun shot o'er it, as we arrived in Luchon again.
[Ill.u.s.tration: THE RUE D'ENFER AND CASCADES.]
The following morning broke beautifully fine, and Luis Sanson was at the door punctually at seven, with the horses for our trip up to Superbagneres.
The saddle-bags were again filled, and away we went, the horses--still so fresh--being eager for a canter in the fresh morning air. In summer the ascent is usually made by St. Aventin and the Granges de Gouron, in which case the road towards the Col de Peyresourde is followed as far as St. Aventin, and thence a way leading to the left; but we were too early for that route, as an avalanche had only lately fallen, so were obliged to go and return by the route used in the season for the return only, viz., by the ”Pont de Ravi” up the Vallee de la Pique. Having reached the bridge and taken the path indicated by the sign-board on the right, we were soon among the trees, which lent a very welcome shade from the increasing heat, which even at this early hour (7.40 A.M.) the glorious Sol was not ashamed to diffuse.
At every fresh turn the strokes of the axe rang through the wood, mingled with the sound of voices, and after making considerable progress--during which our guide narrated incidents in his career as hunter, guide, and jockey--we arrived in view of a very lively scene.
Workmen busy with the hatchet, the saw, and the plane, in the foreground; others in the rear occupied with mortar and stones, building a small but substantial house; a cart with oxen lazily waiting, like Mr. Micawber, for ”something to turn up”; a few superior individuals in deep consultation, and the irrepressible sun struggling through the beeches and pines to have ”his finger in the pie”--such was the scene we saw, but soon left behind. After this the good broad carriage-road soon came to an end, and the easy gradient changed to a steep path among a grove of nothing but beeches, which emerged later on the slope of a somewhat bare and stony hill dotted with a few gentians.
The view improved with nearly every step, growing magnificently vast; and when at length we reached the summit, or rather a mound a few feet lower, but equally good as a point of sight (for the summit was covered with snow), we gazed on as grand an expanse of mountains and tree-clothed valleys as imagination could picture in the most lofty of its lofty flights.
[Ill.u.s.tration: ON THE ROAD TO SUPERBAGNeRES.]
Probably but few people will be disposed to deny that, considering the comparatively small amount of labour necessary to attain the summit, it is more than amply compensated for; and, when the height of Superbagneres--which is only 5,900 ft.--is taken into account, such a grand sight is almost unique. For over two-thirds of a circle the chain of peaks continues, extending from the Cecire of Superbagneres to the Cecire [Footnote 1: We have only the guide's authority for this name here.] above Bosost, and even beyond. Beginning with the nearest, the Cecire (8,025 ft.) of Superbagneres, then come the Pene de Montarque (9685 ft.), and the cone-shaped Quairat (10,037 ft.), followed by the huge glacier of Crabioules, which, in spite of its eternal snow, supplies the various cascades in the Rue d'Enfer that flow into the Lys valley. Above rise up the Pic de Crabioules (10,233 ft), the Pic de Bourn (9,875 ft), and the peculiar Tuc de Maupas (10,204 ft.); after which the Trous d'Enfer and the Pic de Sacroux (8,786 ft) appear. The next of the near peaks is the Pic de Sauvegarde (9,145 ft), but between the Sacroux and this, calm and clear, the highest peaks of the range, the Milieu, the Maladetta, and the Nethou, with the dead white glacier below them, rise in view. After the Sauvegarde, the Pic de la Mine (9,048 ft.), the Port de Venasque (7,930 ft.), and the very pointed Pic de la Pique (7,854 ft.) appear, followed by the Pas de l'Escalette (7,877 ft.) and the Port de la Picade (8,219 ft.), towards which group the Vallee de l'Hospice leads.
To the left of the Picade, the cone of the lofty ”Posets” may be seen in the distance, while more to the left, and more distant too, the Pena Blanca (9222 ft.) is also visible. Further round, over the wooded ”cols” that guard the ”Pique” valley, the Mont Segu [Footnote: We have only the guide's authority for the name.] and Cecire near Bosost, and the _Pyrenees Orientales_ beyond, finished the magnificent chain.