The GR10 Trail - France - A Trekker's Guidebook

• Location
• Description
• Contents
• Introduction
• Sample Route
• Maps
• Updates
• Further Reading

This classic long-distance walk across the Pyrenees from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean takes a lower route than the more arduous Pyrenean High Route. Nevertheless it passes through striking mountain country and gorge scenery. The easy ascent of the Pic du Midi d'Ossau is described as an excursion. The route takes about 50 days to complete, but the author divides it into sections conveniently tackled in a fortnight's holiday, with details of accommodation and transport.

There is invaluable practical information for British walkers visiting France for the first time.

The GR10 is one of a number of official long-distance paths (Grandes Randonnées) in France. The GR system is very extensive and some 25,000+ miles (40,250+km) of footpath have been designated and waymarked. Each GR route has been allocated a number. The GR10 runs from Hendaye on the west coast through the mountains of the Pays Basque, Béarn and Hautes Pyrénées to Luchon. From here it continues generally in an easterly direction to pass the sparsely populated Ariège, then across the Pyrénées Orientales to end on the Mediterranean coast at Banyuls-sur-Mer. The total distance is some 538 miles (866km).