Day 1, Jun 14, 2024
From Hendaye to Olhette
23 km hiked, 2.3% complete

What a beautiful day to start our hike! First was a bus ride to the starting point on the ocean beach at Hendaye. There we dipped our hands in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and set off towards the Mediterranean Sea.

So far, the path has been well marked with the signature red and white horizontal lines. It has taken us along roads, up steep ascents, through forest and over rolling hills. This part of France is farmland, green and lush grazing lands for cattle and sheep. 

We’ve been told that the many ponies in the fields are native to this Basque region of the Pyrenees and are known as pottok. They seem gentle and unafraid of us, though we pass close by them on the trail. We also spotted 2 mountain goats and enjoyed hearing birdsong as we hiked.

After a steep climb in the hot sun, we arrived at Col d’Ibadrin where we enjoyed a lovely lunch looking out over the towns we had passed and down to the ocean.

The afternoon journey was less arduous and a little cooler with a welcome breeze. For a while, the trail was in Spain. It also followed an old Roman road for a bit. We enjoyed a light cooling rain as we trekked the last kilometre to the town where we are staying the night.