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Sights & Attractions in The Basque Country, Gascony and Hautes-Pyrenees

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The Basque Country, Gascony and Hautes-Pyrénées Sights

From the lazy, sandy sea level around Bayonne, Biarritz, and St-Jean-de-Luz, this southwest tag end of the Pyrénées hops suddenly up to La Rhune (2,969 feet) and from there it's ever higher, through lush green hills of the inland Basque and Béarn countries past the 6,617-foot Pic d'Orhi to the 10,883-foot Vignemale peak just west of Gavarnie and its historically famous Cirque. Bayonne and Pau are the urban and cultural centers anchoring and connecting these lofty highlands to the rest of France, while the Basque, Béarn, Gascon, and Bigorre cultures offer linguistic as well as culinary variety as you meander eastward and upward from the Basque coast. Gascony is the realm bordered by the Bay of Biscay to the west, the Pyrénées to the south, and the Garonne River to the north and east—pretty Pau is the main city in the region, which sweeps south past Lourdes to Cauterets. Trans-Pyrenean hikers (and drivers) generally prefer moving from west to east for a number of reasons, especially the excellent light prevailing in the late afternoon and evening during the prime months of May to October.