The foothills of La Rhune

Park at Ascain in the car park known as ‘des carrières’.

(S/E) Follow the wide traditional path to La Rhune until you reach a hairpin bend with a path on the right-hand side

(1) Leave this path (which leads back) and follow the wide main path on the left. Pass a renovated cattle shelter and, before the Ruisseau des Trois Fontaines, find a path on the left.

(2) Take this path downwards. Cross two fords: the second may be tricky to cross in heavy rain. The path continues over large stones, then veers sharply to the right. This first fairly steep climb will take you onto a grassy plateau. Pass to the right of a ruin, cross an easy ford just before some beech trees. Continue, leaving a wide grassy path on your right-hand side – which leads directly to the Trois Fontaines – and arrive at a hut.

(3) Leave the main path, which descends to the left, as well as the small earthen track that branches off opposite. Go round the hut to cross two or three metres of marshy ground and take the path that follows, leading onto a grassy slope. Follow this fairly steep grassy slope, finding your way along the easiest routes, to reach the Mouiz Entrenchment Camp (elevation 535).

(4) Turn right to join the path coming from the rack-and-pinion railway station. Follow this grassy path south-west, ignore the next path branching off to the right and continue straight up. A little further on, ignore another path on the right; you’ll rejoin it later. From here, you can see two passes: aim for the one on the right. There isn’t really a defined track, although it is marked on the map (OpenStreetMap World Hiking). The final stretch is quite strenuous, but a lovely viewpoint awaits just to the right of the Altsanga (624 m).

(5) The more experienced can follow the ridge line over the rocks. To ensure this walk remains accessible to everyone, it’s best to descend a few metres to rejoin the path you left behind further down. Follow it to the left, heading west. It crosses over to the southern slope and joins the^GR®10coming from Sare.

(6) Turn right to follow the^GR®10until you reach a junction with a signpost.

(7) Then take the grassy path opposite, which leads to the Cabane des Aigles.

(8) Go round the hut on the left. The path leaves the southern slope, passes through the rocks and follows the northern ridge slightly below it. The track is clearly visible and, after a wide circular loop, leads to a viewpoint and a table carved into the rock.

(9) Continue north-east along the grassy path which joins the traditional path. Follow it to a renovated barn.

(10) Leave this main path and walk past the barn on the right. The path climbs gently amongst the gorse to a first cluster of rocks. Go round it and head towards the next rocky outcrop, slightly to the left. From there, look for the start of a path that descends alongside this outcrop on the left. After a bend, it descends quite steeply over stones, then gravel. After a flat section, join a track that climbs up from the right.

(11) Go straight on and, immediately afterwards, take the grassy path that climbs to the left towards a solitary birch tree. The path narrows to a track, winding its way through the gorse in places, and leads to a barn. Continue downhill to a wide path.

(12) Turn right and rejoin the path you took on the way up.

(1) Turn left, then head due east and follow the route back in the opposite direction to how you came, returning to the car park where you started (S/E).

This walk does not follow any specific signposting. Any yellow markings you encounter are not relevant to this route.
The route is entirely in the open. There is no shade or water source.