Basque pig trail from the Ascain sheepfold

Take a short tour of the Basque pig farm that gave rise to the Kintoa designation, with a picnic at the Ascain sheepfold.

Details

2796899
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 5.81 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 176 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 182 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 243 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 61 m

Photos

Description of the walk

From the village of Ascain, take the D4 towards the Col de Saint Ignace (the station for the little train to La Rhune)
Before reaching the pass, take the road on the left, passing over a cattle grid.
Follow this small road down to the car park at the bottom, next to the Terminen Muga sheepfold.

(S/E) Head south and walk back up several dozen metres. Then take the path that climbs up to the left, following the Arraioko Erreka stream. Walk up the valley until you reach a T-junction.

(1) Then turn left. After about 100 metres, at a crossroads, take the path that branches off to the left into the forest.

(2) At the next intersection, turn right at an acute angle. At the next fork, turn left. Go around the Zuhalmendi hill on the left and stay on the hillside. At a fork (elevation 222), take the path on the right.

(3) At the T-junction, follow the track on the left which descends to the corner of the Basque pigsty. At a fork, follow the left-hand track and you will soon come to a cross.

(4) Continue straight ahead, heading north-west, until you reach a T-junction.

(5) Turn left, then immediately left again, downhill. At the T-junction, turn left again. After a hairpin bend to the right, take the path downhill (not shown on the map) that heads straight towards a stream. Ford the stream.

(6) At the T-junction that immediately follows, turn left. At a fork, go left and, at the fork that immediately follows, go right (do not cross the stream). Continue along the path to the sheepfold (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 101 m - Parking at the refuge
  2. 1 : km 1.09 - alt. 208 m - T-junction
  3. 2 : km 1.73 - alt. 210 m - Intersection
  4. 3 : km 2.67 - alt. 243 m - T-junction
  5. 4 : km 3.61 - alt. 220 m - Cross
  6. 5 : km 4.45 - alt. 140 m - T-junction
  7. 6 : km 4.81 - alt. 61 m - Path going up to the left
  8. S/E : km 5.81 - alt. 101 m - Parking at the refuge

Notes

Worth a visit

Take the time to read the information panels about Basque pigs, which are both entertaining and informative. You'll even find some recipes.

Reviews and comments

4.5 / 5
Based on 26 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
User 23325350

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 25, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Very easy hike, interesting to do with children. Beautiful views. Be careful on the way back to follow the directions on the app, as you need to take a very narrow, steep path that is difficult to see. The only slight downside is the directions to the starting point (car park), which can be confusing with one of the "train de la Rhune" car parks, especially during the busy summer season. But you'll find it quickly!

Machine-translated

Pascal (Arbonne)
Pascal (Arbonne)

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 16, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

A pleasant route with a beautiful variety of landscapes (mountains and ocean) and wildlife, including the famous Basque pigs known as "KINTOA" and semi-wild pottoks
One downside is the section between points 5 and 6, which is steep, rocky and difficult to access due to overgrown vegetation, including brambles and gorse, which are very prickly!
Don't hesitate to continue on the track towards the place called ARRAIOA, cross the stream and immediately climb up the path on the left bank of the stream to reach point 6 of the circuit. This detour is less than 1 km long, easy and much more pleasant than the suggested path.

Machine-translated

emal
emal

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 22, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Details about the condition of the paths are missing, so it's difficult to be sure you're going in the right direction, e.g. take the path that goes downhill with large rocks, follow the green path, etc.
The distances are not entirely accurate because we ended up walking about 10 km along this path and at the end, we had to walk a long distance on large rocks along an unmarked river. It would have been easier to find our way and clear up any doubts.
Otherwise, the walk is really worth doing, with magnificent views
I would recommend it, but you need to be careful to follow the route

Machine-translated

Nine 68
Nine 68

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 13, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Having passed the starting point despite following the directions, we did the circuit in reverse. We had difficulty finding the path at point 6, as it was covered by vegetation and we had to cross a small stream with plenty of water... The climb was certainly easier than the same path going downhill. Beautiful views, pigs and pottoks in abundance.

Machine-translated

lavanant
lavanant
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : May 13, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

a family walk along a well-marked trail offering beautiful views of the ocean. The hike is made even more enjoyable by encounters with cute Basque pigs

Machine-translated

denisnicoli
denisnicoli

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 29, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike with lovely views. The pottoks and pigs were there. The trail is useful for avoiding other paths.

Machine-translated

MOUSTIC31
MOUSTIC31

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 03, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful hike, fairly easy and very pleasant despite the heavy rain that day.
In case of a storm, the small paths turn into streams. The route description is
perfect. We'll do this walk again on a sunny day.

Machine-translated

Pascal L6.
Pascal L6.

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 29, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

No major difficulties, beautiful view of the coast and the pigs are there! Not many, if any, direction signs, so GPS and a phone are essential. Picnic table is high up! 😁😁 Good hike

Machine-translated

Sara2056
Sara2056

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 30, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful hike that I highly recommend!!! Very easy, even if you're not particularly athletic!!! Luckily, Visorando was there to guide us at the start, because signposting in the Basque Country isn't exactly their strong point!!! But thanks to the app, we were able to continue our hike without any problems!!! I therefore recommend downloading it to guide you!!!

Machine-translated

blacksteeler27
blacksteeler27

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 30, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very good short hike.
The start was a bit tricky to find, but once you're on the trail, it's easy to follow.
A little tip after point 2, when you turn left, continue straight ahead and climb up Zuhalmendi (with the antenna) for a breathtaking view of the entire Basque coast. However, the little path down to point 6 is not easy, so take it slowly or you'll end up falling...

Machine-translated

Agnès B.
Agnès B.

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 01, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant hike to discover Basque pigs. Like the others, we climbed to the top of Suhalmendi and continued further along the path because the one indicated was impassable: too many brambles and tall grass. A beautiful, pleasant and easy loop. The signs are informative and the markings are easy to spot.

Machine-translated

louis35
louis35

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 29, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike, which starts off climbing alongside a stream in a well-shaded forest.
I then continued towards the pass at 247 m. A few families were picnicking in the shade. The summit of Suhalmendi is very close and we had a magnificent 360° view of La Rhune, Sare, St Jean de Luz, the coast... Then there were the pig pens and well-designed information panels with recipes. After that, the path is sunny and stony, so be careful. Like others, I continued to the small wooden bridge and didn't take the shortcut, which I thought was dangerous. It was only an extra kilometre. The climb back up to the sheepfold is pleasant and shaded. This is a hike that is definitely worth doing when you're in the area.

Machine-translated

Mathilde95
Mathilde95

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 31, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful walk offering unobstructed views of the ocean. However, as already mentioned in the comments, the passage between points 5 and 6 is not a path. We missed it, turned back to find it, and seeing this narrow, steep trail, we finally continued down the path. This led us to the stream (500m below) where the passage is supposed to cross it, then we turned left to go back up along the stream. This adds about 1km according to the GPS, but the path is more pleasant and the route is on the map. Good shoes are recommended for the last descent, which can be slippery due to gravel.

Machine-translated

GRISARD
GRISARD

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 21, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

:

Machine-translated

JP LAC
JP LAC

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 16, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful route, mostly through woodland from the start at the sheepfold to the pig farms. At its highest point on the slopes of Zuhalmendi, there are magnificent panoramic views. The path then becomes much less pleasant until you cross the stream (a stony track suitable for vehicles, then a steep descent with a risk of slipping and falling for inexperienced hikers). The end of the route along the stream is a pleasant, shaded walk in this very dry and mild autumn weather. This fairly short hike (6 km) is accessible for families (up to 79 years old in our case) provided you are properly equipped (especially footwear).

Machine-translated

Other walks in the area

For more walks, use our search engine .

The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.