LARRA NATURAL RESERVE, TOP OF ARLÁS
Circle route. Length 5,5 km. Elevation 461 metres. Estimated tour time: 3 hours.
This is a beautiful route, easy and with incredible views that you cannot miss. We parked in the helical curve parking lot, this place is known by locals as El Scalextric. The starting point of the tour is next to the facilities of the La Contienda ski center.
The trail is narrow, winding and well marked; We ascend very slightly and cross a semi-forested area of black pines for approximately 1,3 kilometers until we reach a pleasant area of meadows. Once we have overcome these, we begin the ascent of 700 meters, between rocks that will take us to the Col de Pescamou mountain pass, 1927 meters high, always with the Arlás as a reference point. The views of the Pyrenees are impressive.
We continue climbing another 500 meters until we reach the top of Arlás at 2044 meters high. The ground of the last 20 meters before reaching the summit may entail some risk of slipping, so we take extreme caution. From there we enjoyed the best views of Larra, we saw the mountains Anie, Soum, Añelarra, Ukerdi, Soum Couy and the first heights of the French Pyrenees, a landscape like no other.
Next, we begin the 700-meter descent that will take us to the Collado de la Contienda and from there we travel 1,2 kilometers of winding path until we return to the NA-137 highway where we travel another 900 meters until we reach the starting point of the route.
You can climb to the top of Arlás without difficulty as long as your physical conditions are good. The views, with the Annie in the background, are spectacular.
-The starting point of the route is located on the helical curve, in front of the Contender in the vicinity of the Ernaz pass. To get there we take the Roncal NA-137 road, heading towards France.
-It is very important to bring the water necessary for the route, depending on the weather and the time of year in which you do the route, the available source could be covered with snow. -In winter the snow can close the port and the route is one of the routes to practice mountain skiing or snowshoeing. More information in www.esquilarrabelagua.com.
-The route is not well marked, the paths get confused, but since from the beginning we see the summit of Arlás in the distance we always have the reference point of where we want to go.
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