The only way is up.

I’ve written about Via Ferrata many times before, but for those perhaps new to this blog they are basically climbing routes protected by steel cables, staples and rungs. This equipment negates the need for ropes, rope skills, route finding ability etc. You can find out more about them by following this link. Alternatively you could dip into my old GANDALFONTOUR blogs here. It won’t take you long to find another via ferrata tale or two.

A sign at the start lets you know what equipment you need.

The thing with via ferratas is this; even if you are a climber and you’ve not climbed for a while, you’d really better have a good head for heights. This is important because they really do get you up and into big exposed places very quickly.

You can see the steel cable that you clip on to to the right of the steel staples on the rock (and above the road below).

Me. Enjoying the view.

Mrs P about to negotiate the overhang.

The big staples, ladders and other bits of ironmongery allow the climb to go pretty vertically up the rock. With occasional overhanging sections to test the old arm muscles.
The cables are attached to the rock with staples every 5 or 10 metres and you simply use the 2 carabiners attached to your harness, one at a time, to get past these staples thereby remaining attached at all times.
It is easy to inadvertently climb past these staples and forget to move the clips/carabiners up particularly on overhangs because you are concentrating on not letting go. If however, you forget, you and your already tired arms will have to down climb back to where you forgot to move the clips and hang on with one arm while you clip past the staple thereby enabling you to continue to move upwards.

We’d best not do that then had we. Doh!

Mrs (arms of steel) P smiling a little less at the end of the rather tiring overhanging section.

They (the fiendish designers of these vertical playgrounds) like to throw in the odd traverse. Cables to balance across, bridges of dubious design and other such fun stuff. This one had a bridge.
I posted a picture on Facebook of this bridge and a friend of mine said she, “could do the bridge, but not the climbing”.

I shall now convince her otherwise.

The Wibbly, Wobbly Way

First of all, to get on to the bridge you have to walk an admittedly short, but delicate tightrope of two parallel steel cables.

You are then on the “bridge,” for want of a better word. This bridge comprises a walkway about 10 inches (25cm) wide. A bit wider than a walking boot. Made of metal plates placed about another 10 inches apart. Perhaps so you can look down better. This is slung loosely across a rather dizzying drop. At about chest height either side of this walkway are two more cables, even more loosely slung across said void. A third cable is slung above this to clip one of your carabiners to (the other is clipped to one of the hand cables. I’d call them “hand rails”, but that suggests an element of stability, which certainly didn’t exist).The foot part and the hand cables are not connected to each other apart from being in 3 places roughly in the middle ish of the bridge. Each of these 3 cables is so loose that it swings completely independently of the rest of the structure. Isambard Kingdom Brunell would turn in his grave. The designers of this particular via ferrata on the other hand simply titter with masochistic glee.
By the time you reach the point where you must let go with one hand (thereby shifting your weight and the wobble) to swap over your clip/carabiner this structure is gyrating in so many different directions simultaneously that you desperately try to evolve a third arm in the hope that you don’t have to let go. Ever!
It is WAY more unnerving than the overhang.

Still think you could do it Helen? Happy to take you up there.

We loved it. It is a great via ferrata. It took us about an hour and 50 minutes including walk in and back to Gandalf the campervan and all for the princely sum of nothing. Our very favourite price.
A big thank you to Gavarnie-Gédre Bureau des Guides for constructing such a fun way to spend a sunny morning. If you ever find yourself in the area and have the kit (or you can hire a guide to take you) it is well worth a trip

Via Ferrata de Coumély. Near Gavarnie n the Pyrenees

And, as if that weren’t enough to keep us happy for the day, WE SAW A MARMOT!!

Our very first Marmot sighting.

The little critter just popped out briefly to say hello as we walked down from the climb.
Result!