Circ de Colomers
Track GPX
From Salardú we follow the indications by car to get to the Baños de Tredós, leaving the C-28 through an asphalt track, the Aiguamoix road, about 8km.
Keep in mind that in winter time you have to leave it in the village since it is not allowed to go up. There is also an information point where you can buy public taxi tickets to go directly to the area near the refuge. If you choose to save the taxi, you should know that a good stretch of walking with views and beautiful scenery, but that it does not stand out and that it really does not provide anything special (approximately 6km uphill). Very close to this point is the Banhs de Tredòs spa, the highest in Europe.
The track ascends along the river valley, but there is also a beautiful trail that ascends very gently parallel at all times to the riverbed with subalpine meadows and forests of black pine (Pinus uncinata) and wild pine (Pinus sylvestris) always on the edge from an idyllic stream. If we decide not to take the taxi and walk up the hill, from the Montanheta taxi stop, in the Baños de Tredós car park, a sign indicates an uneven and smooth path that goes up. First we will find the broken Bridge (at 1,827m, after half an hour). Spend a little over an hour we find the Pletiu la Montanheta (at 1,857m). About fifteen minutes later we arrive at Planhol dera Lòssa (at 2,045m) and we see a first lake: the Laguna dera Lòssa. Once you reach the river, where there is a sign, without crossing it, take the path on the right towards the Colomers Refuge.
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The walk up requires about 2 hours of ascent, while with the taxi (4 Euros / person, service start at 9 am) just over 20 minutes.
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From the Planhol dera Lòssa, at about 2,045m, it took us about 30 minutes to reach the Colomers Major Lagoon, through an area with shrubby vegetation and crossing some trunk walkways that allow us to cross the waterlogged area. Then we cross a wooden bridge over the Aiguamòg river and take the right detour, as marked, gently ascending to the Colomers Lake Maggiore outlet. It is an obvious and well-trodden path through the passage of so many hikers, since this area is one of the most crowded and affordable in the Aran Valley, but of great beauty and alpine perspective. Before us, at the foot of this lake, is the Circo de Colomers, a set of high and abrupt mountains where the Cruz de Colomers (2,896m), the Gran Tuc de Colomers (2,993m) or the Tuc de Ratera ( 2,840m).
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We crossed the dam and skirted the lake until the Colomers Refuge (the old one, closed and replaced in 2008). After the refuge we arrive at the Old Colomers Refuge (at 2,135m, which paradoxically was the initial refuge and is now the new one, therefore, in some references we can find that the new refuge is called old) where we can rest with good views of the lake.
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We continue until we find a detour from which we can go up to Puerto de la Ratèra towards Refugio de la Restanca (GR11), but we follow the indications for the two lakes circuits ( yellow and red ).
SHORT CIRCUIT
The yellow marks are what lead us.
The yellow ones are followed to the left, which lead to the Laguna des Garguilhs de Jos . The drain is surrounded and crossed. The path goes up, down, another torrent is crossed and in we continue to the left, below a peak there is a zone of dammed waters. It descends into a small basin, and a small neck can be traced that gives access to the Laguna des Cabidornats.
We continue to the left until the start of the Laguna Larga and then turn left onto the GR that leads to the neck or Cuello de Clòto, where you can see the Cuello de Baish Lagoon . After the neck, it descends until it forks and continues along the path on the right until it meets the first intersection, next to the river. The final part of the trail is redone to the starting point.
LONG CIRCUIT
The red marks are what lead us.
After a few minutes, after gaining about 100m, we reached the Lac des Cabidornats, at 2,315m. From this point the terrain becomes flatter and we can enjoy the various smaller lakes, such as Estanyets deth Pòrt (2,375m), streams and the wide view of the Circus. After passing through the Port de Colomers Lake , located at 2,420m, we began to gain altitude quickly. Here snow plates are frequent, although they are not usually seen in the middle of summer. We climb until we reach the " Estany gelat" , at 2,590m, which is usually frozen in July, always watched by the imposing and nearby 2,729m Tuc de Pòdo. We are at the foot of majestic and rugged mountains that culminate the Circus, the Cruz de Colomers, the Pico Oriental, the Tuc Blanco and the giant Gran Tuc de Colomers. From this point, the Coth de Pòdo (2,600m) we begin to descend carefully through a stony but comfortable channel arriving without difficulties on the Podo Lagoon, at 2,450m, with the Cerro de Ratèra as the background and where in summer there is no there is usually snow. We continue the walk to Lake Obago (2,235m), one of the most characteristic and largest in the circus, an ideal point to stop for lunch. Then we find the GR11. The route from here is more relaxed and in a small continuous descent with parts of the plain. We continue to lose altitude along the path marked with the red mark towards Lac Redon (2,175m) and Lac Long (2,175m), which being so long, initially, you cannot see the moment beyond a small part , so it is necessary to surround it until you have a good panoramic view. There are usually people soaking there. We continue skirting the lake ascending a grassy trough where the granite emerges leading to Coret deth Clòt. The path here descends on the other side through a trough until it leads us to the intake of Lake Maggiore de Colomers , but we turn off to undo the uphill path to go to the Cròtze de Colomers car park, where the taxi has left.
The descent to the Baños de Tredòs can be done with a taxi or on foot (the descent lasts approximately 1.5 hours). The total time spent on the route from the point where the taxi leaves us in Cròtze de Colomers varies greatly from the stops to contemplate the landscape, take photographs or other stops. The long section can be done in 6h to cover 13km (the 22km that appear in some guides, 9-10km of which we have done with a taxi). This is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful and well-known routes in the Val d'Aran and the peripheral area of the Aigüestortes National Park, and it has the advantage that it is accessible to hikers of all levels, especially if the short circuit is followed.
