Route in the Aspres

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Here is a lovely walk that takes place in the foothills of the Aspres, at the foot of Mont Canigou.

Details

n°4950
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Horse riding
    Activity: Horse riding
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.66 mi
  • ◔
    Duration according to the author: 3 hrs 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 902 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 889 ft
  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,191 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 495 ft
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Description of the walk

Head back to the village of Terrats and continue along the road heading south-west until you reach the end of the tarmac road at a DFCI track. Park and prepare the horses.
(S/E) Turn left onto the track heading south-west, leaving the track leading to the ruins of Xatard straight ahead. At the next junction, turn right and you’ll soon reach another track.

(1) Turn left at a 90° angle and follow it to Les Hostalets.

(2) Arrive at the top of the village, then take the small road on the right. You’ll reach a Fork in the road on the D2. Turn left to reach the very pretty little Chapel of Saint Amand and its square lined with plane trees, perfect for a picnic.

(3) Return to Les Hostalets via the same route.

(2) Take the track on the right. Climb gently and steadily through the Serrat dels Hostalets forest. You’ll reach a three-way junction.

(4) Continue along the middle path to reach another large crossroads due south.

(5) Turn left towards Mas Julia. Go round the houses to the south to reach the area between Mas Vallpuig and Santa Maria del Mas d'en Costa.

(6) Keep heading north along the path and through the Serrat de Pedres Blanques valley.

(7) Cross the Réart and head towards els Hostalets.

(2) Follow the outward route back to the starting point (S/E)

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 495 ft - DFCI track
  2. 1 : mi 0.47 - alt. 656 ft - Crossroads at the ruins of Xatard
  3. 2 : mi 2.67 - alt. 784 ft - Els Hostalets
  4. 3 : mi 3.23 - alt. 820 ft - Saint Amand Chapel
  5. 4 : mi 4.54 - alt. 981 ft - Three-way junction
  6. 5 : mi 5.38 - alt. 1,191 ft - Heading towards Mas Julia
  7. 6 : mi 6.03 - alt. 1,079 ft - Mas Vallpuig and Santa Maria del Mas d'en Costa.
  8. 7 : mi 6.89 - alt. 758 ft - Cross the - Réart (rivière)
  9. S/E : mi 9.66 - alt. 495 ft - DFCI track

Notes

Small stream at the foot of Saint Amand Chapel.
There must have been water at the second chapel (but the tap wasn’t working).

Worth a visit

The Chapel of Saint-Amand
The Mas Coste Chapel (and no water...)

Reviews and comments

4.1 / 5
Based on 5 reviews
Reliability of the description
3.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.2 / 5
Route interest
4.2 / 5
AP3142
AP3142

Hello
Is this route organised by a riding club or a ranch?
Can we hire horses nearby?
Thank you for your reply
AP

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marie-anne malet
marie-anne malet
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 08, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A lovely walk in the Aspres! And I’d even say, at last, a rider who’s sharing their walk!
When you’re not from round here, you really appreciate it!

Thanks for this route… plus, yesterday the weather was absolutely lovely and we went at a time when the hunters had finished…

Just so you know, I’d downloaded the route onto my GPS, so all I had to do was follow the track.

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astrale66
astrale66

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 08, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

There are lots of criss-crossing paths, so it’s best to have a sat-nav.
The scenery is superb, and you can visit the ruined tower (I think from the 11th century?) via a path that goes behind Mas Julia: an interesting viewpoint.

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mado66
mado66

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 18, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

There weren’t many signs pointing the way to the Mas d’en Costa chapel, given the large number of paths on the site! It took a bit of intuition to work out which way to go!
Otherwise, a pleasant walk with a lovely view of the plain from the chapel!

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gazok54
gazok54 ★

Thanks, Chris66240.
What do you think is wrong with the description? Could it be improved, and if so, how?

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Chris66240
Chris66240

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 07, 2016
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Great for a family hike, or for getting back into it

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bibi
bibi ★

I've just moved the post to the right section: . Thanks

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ericlagane
ericlagane
• Edited:

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 14, 2013
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

We set off on this short walk on 14 July 2013

We got our bearings wrong in Terrats and couldn’t find the start, so we walked a bit further to join the route (we took Rue Voltaire instead of Rue du Canigou)

In fact, you need to walk past the cooperative winery towards Sainte Colombe, then turn left towards the south, then right after 100 metres towards the west; just past the small cemetery, you’ll find Rue du Canigou, which slopes down nicely!)

Passages through vineyards and a few olive groves and cork oaks.
A lovely start, but also very sunny: with the heat of the day, my older teenagers (19 and 17) started to moan a bit.

We finally stopped for a picnic just before the descent to ELS HOSTALETS, in front of the lodge.
Then we retraced our steps!!

Threatening clouds appeared >> the return journey was a bit cooler.

To be done again: a bit earlier in the morning and with plenty of water.

Eric

PS I saw that this walk was listed under the French Overseas Territories – it’s actually in the Pyrénées-Orientales, south-west of Perpignan

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