Sometimes, an unexpected surprise comes into your life and changes your
predetermined path forever. This is
pretty much what happened to the Garonne
river… Born Spanish, the Garonne runs mostly through France. Thus, waters that were
meant to discharge into the Mediterranean Sea, flow towards the city of Bordeaux, ending up into the French
Atlantic coast instead…
But if you think about it, this is not that rare when talking about
people. After all, who hasn’t had this
sort of detours that completely turned our plans upside down? For me, for instance, I confess I wasn’t
meant to be a trail runner at all. Maybe
a fencer, if any sports. Until the day I
fell into my particular Forau de Aiguallut…
The actual Forau de Aiguallut is in Benasque
Valley, near to the Aneto peak,
the highest of all Pyrenean peaks. This natural pothole features a karst formation that is the result of
the slow but steady underground erosion in limestone, shaping a huge
colander-like occurrence. This colander
filters the snowmelt coming from the
several surrounding glaciers. This runoff turns into a waterfall dropping into the Forau
(pothole). And, as is if it were magic, water disappears below the surface! Only a much smaller flow remains, running
down to Benasque under the name of Ésera river.
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| Aigualluts waterfall |
It’s understandable that this evasive nature perplexed everybody. For centuries, geologists came up with different
explanations for the water’s ultimate destination. It was only in 1931, when a spelunker devised
an experiment to solve the mystery. How
did he do it? What a question! He resorted to fluorescein, of course!
If you aim to duplicate this experiment nowadays, here’s the procedure. Firstly, grab a couple of friends to assist
you. The strongest one should help you
carry six kegs of fluorescein (a soluble
colorant used in medicine and as a food additive) up to 6,500 feet high,
where Forau de Aiguallut is. Pour the contents of the kegs into the
pothole and run back to Llanos del Hospital.
Drink a beer and wait. Meanwhile,
assistant nº 2 should have got to the other side of the mountain range that
separates Benasque Valley and Val d’Aran. He will see how, just as it did in 1931, the
mysterious underground river springs up
again, but in orange color. From now
on it is called... Garonne!
This is one of the classic tours you shouldn’t miss when in Benasque
Valley. One of the guided runs we provide will take you to this beautiful and geologically
interesting place. The course takes you through Scots pine forests, green meadows and a few creeks. It’s very likely you will come across some Pyrenean mountain goats and cows
peacefully grazing. It’s all part of the
mind-blowing fun!
Want to see how it is?
Want to see how it is?
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