The Long Traverse

The traverse starts hard. From the valley floor at Plànoles, the GR11 climbs steeply to the Collet de les Barraques — 1,475m of total ascent through the day. It is the right way to begin: no gentle warm-up, no false start. Refugi Corral Blanc sits just below the high point, a good place to stop before the descent into Queralbs.

The route drops to Queralbs, passes below Núria, and continues east to Coma de Vaca — a remote high valley at 1,995m where the refuge sits beside the headwaters of the Ter. There is nothing here but mountain and silence. Camping is not permitted in the Queralbs Municipal Area; the refuge is the only option, and the only one you need.

The stage that earns the route its reputation. Departing Coma de Vaca, the GR11 climbs the border ridge to reach Col de Noucreus at 2,785m — the highest point on the entire 820-kilometre GR11. The ridge is exposed and demands an early start; afternoon thunderstorms are a real risk in summer. Make the col before midday if there is any weather uncertainty.

The views from the col are extraordinary in both directions. The long descent via Coll de la Marrana and Refugi d'Ulldeter — familiar territory to anyone who has done the Valley Base expedition — arrives in Setcases with 1,745m of descent completed and two days of the traverse behind you.

The GR11 leaves the high mountains behind on Day 4 and enters a different world: steep wooded foothills approaching the Mediterranean. One final climb to the Coll de Lliens (1,864m) — a last look at the high country before the route descends through increasingly warm forest to Beget.

The route passes through Mollò, a mid-stage village with a chance to stop before the final kilometres to Beget — a medieval village set deep in a limestone river valley at 550m. One of the most beautiful villages in Catalonia, and one of the most welcome sights on the route. The limestone paths into the village can be very slippery when wet.

After four substantial days, Day 5 is the gentlest of the traverse — a shorter stage through limestone valley country that follows the Riera de Beget eastward. The Collada dels Muls (651m) is the only real climb before the route descends through the Alta Garrotxa into the village of Oix.

The terrain here shifts from high mountain to ancient woodland and stone-walled farmland. The pace drops. The village of Oix, set in the hills of the Alta Garrotxa, is a fitting place to spend the penultimate night — quiet, unhurried, and a world apart from the high ridges of Days 2 and 3.

The final day. From Oix the route passes the ancient monastery at Sant Aniol d'Aguja before climbing steeply through limestone country to the Puig de Bassegoda (1,374m). It is the last significant summit of the traverse — modest by the standards of Days 2 and 3, but earned. The descent to Albanyà is long, sustained, and satisfying.

The guidebook notes this stage has the two best swimming holes on the entire GR11, both a few minutes off the trail near Sant Aniol. The limestone gorge of the Riera de Sant Aniol, carved deep into the rock, is the reason so many people walk up from Sadernes. It makes a fitting final stretch. Albanyà, at 350m, marks the end. The distance from Plànoles — in metres, in days, in effort — is tangible from here.