Ossau Valley

I couldn’t very well spend a week in Béarn, in the shadow of the Pyrenees, without spending at least one day exploring the majestic mountain range.

So we set off on a road trip that would take us through the Ossau Valley, one of a number of valleys cutting a swathe through the Pyrenees.

The Ossau Valley is the third largest Pyrenean valley in Béarn, starting just south of the regional capital Pau and running all the way to the Spanish border.

We followed the D920 and then the D934 into the valley, passing a number of small towns along the way, the most notable being the charming town of Laruns.

After Laruns, we began steadily climbing as we continued to follow the road along the side of the mountain.

At Eaux-Chaudes (above), we stopped briefly to stretch our legs. The small village is situated on the side of a mountain above the Gave d’Ossau, and in the 19th century was renowned for its hot springs.

The pretty, peaceful village is still home to a spa, but there were few signs of life during our visit.

With no cafés or bars open, we hopped back in the car and continued our journey, passing the town of Gabas and a fair few hydro-electric stations, before reaching our destination, Artouste-Fabrèges.

The Pyrenean village is essentially a mini-tourist resort and is home to a large dammed lake (below), shops, restaurants, a cable car and a tourist train.

The village was busy, far busier than anywhere else we’d been in Béarn, and there were quite a few bus loads of tourists milling about.

Our plan, after we’d had a spot of lunch (goat’s cheese and tomato crêpe), was to take the cable car to the top of the mountain and to hop on the tourist train.

The little yellow train claims to be the highest train in Europe and runs from the top of the mountain to the picturesque Lac d’Artouste, which is otherwise only accessible via a three-hour long walk.

The only snag in the plan came when I went to buy the tickets and found they were sold out for the day – at 1pm! Undaunted, we decided to take the cable car to the top of the mountain and have a look around instead.

The mountain was very steep and I was glad the cable car was doing all the hard work for us as I wouldn’t have wanted to climb it.

From the window, I spotted a number of furry creatures, which looked like mountain beavers, running along the side of the mountain. They were super cute and I later found out they were marmots, which are a familiar sight in the Pyrenees.

After alighting the cable car near the top of the mountain, we decided to keep going until we reached the top so we could get an even better view of the valleys and peaks around us. The views were spectacular and it was an incredible sight.

The mountains and lakes were stunningly beautiful, and we spent quite a while soaking up the sights and watching the cows and horses milling around the mountain top.

We then made our way back down to the café next to the cable car station, where we stopped for a hot chocolate, which we sipped on the outdoor terrace overlooking the valley below.

Having soaked up our fair share of glorious mountain views, we travelled back down the mountain in the cable car (and saw more marmots), before making our way back up the Ossau Valley and home.