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Home Experiences Walking routes Ascent to the peak of Amitges and Tuc de Saboredo

ASCENSION TO THE PEAK OF AMITGES AND
TO THE TUC OF SABOREDO

We discover two of the great watchtowers of the Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park: the peak of Amitges and the Tuc de Saboredo.
 
A long and demanding high mountain route with a total distance of 21 km and a cumulative positive difference in altitude of 1,500m. We start the route at the Prat de Pierró car park in the Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park. From this point we climb up the Escrita valley to Sant Maurici lake, walk along the north shore of the lake and ascend along the path to the Ratera waterfall and along the track to the Amitges refuge. We border around the Gran de Amitges lake and go up the Coma d'Amitges to the Amitges pass. From this high mountain pass we first climb the peak of Amitges and then crown the Tuc de Saboredo. We descend from the Tuc de Saboredo passing through the small pass that separates this peak from the Agulles d'Amitges and continue descending to the Munyidera lake. We return to the Amitges refuge, go down the track to Sant Maurici lake and retrace the path through the Escrita valley to Prat de Pierró.
 
Amitges peak (2,848m) and Tuc de Saboredo (2,829m) are two of the best known peaks in Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park. The ascent we propose here is one of the classic high mountain excursions in the Park and at the head of Amitges, a route that delights us with beautiful and spectacular landscapes, from the riverside forest at the beginning of the route to the granite rocks of the spectacular ridge that connects the peak of Amitges and the Tuc de Saboredo, passing by glacial lakes, waterfalls, crags and alpine meadows.
 
THE BEST OF THE ROUTE
- Admire one of the most beautiful spots in the Pyrenees: Sant Maurici lake, the Encantats and the Ratera waterfall.
- The high mountain refuge of Amitges, located in a magical enclave next to the Gran de Amitges lake and at the foot of the slender Agulles d'Amitges.
- The unforgettable views from the peak of Amitges and the Tuc de Saboredo in all directions.
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ROUTE DESCRIPTION

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Difficulty: High
Departure/arrival: Prat Pierró Parking
Total time: 11:00
Minimum altitude: 1635
Max Altitude: 2848
Accumulated slope: 1500
Total distance: 21km
Nearest town: Espot
Accumulated slope: 1500

MORE INFORMATION

 
- Duration: Full day.
 
- Total effective time (without stops): 11:00h in total: 3:15h from the Prat Pierró car park to the Amitges hut via Sant Maurici lake, 2:30h from the Amitges hut to the Amitges peak, 0:50h from the Amitges peak to the Tuc de Saboredo, 1:45h from the Tuc de Saboredo to the Amitges hut, 2:40h from the Amitges hut to the Prat Pierró car park.
 
- Accumulated difference in altitude: 1.500m
 
- Difficulty: High.
 
- Season: Summer and early autumn.
 
- Equipment: If there is snow and/or ice it is necessary to carry ice axe and crampons. It is necessary to find out about the state of the terrain beforehand and to equip ourselves with ice axe and crampons (especially if we do the route at the beginning of summer or in autumn).
 
- Cartography: Parc Nacional d'Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici. Sant Maurici sector. Scale 1:25.000. Editorial Alpina.
 
- Observations: We can divide the excursion into two days, spending the night at the Amitges refuge and leaving the ascent to the summits and the descent to Prat de Pierró for the second day.
 
- How to get there by car from the Hotel Les Brases:
From Sort we follow the C-13 road towards Esterri d'Àneu and the Aran Valley. We leave Llavorsí and Escaló behind us and just after the Torrassaón dam we turn left (W) towards Espot and the National Park of Aigüestortes and Estany de Sant Maurici. Arriving at Espot, cross the village on the right and continue for about 4 km to the Prat de Pierró car park.

STEP 1

We start the route at the Prat Pierró car park (0:00 - 1,634m).
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STEP 2

From this point we begin to climb the valley of the river Escrito, taking the well-defined path that passes through some wooden walkways and discarding the track used by the 4x4 taxis that come up from Espot.
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STEP 3

We cross several meadows, cross the taxi track and soon enter a forest dominated by Scots pine, black pine and spruce.
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STEP 4

We continue climbing along the path, which at some points offers us views of the river Escrito and the north face of Los Encantats, with the central channel and the Enforcadura that separates the two twin peaks.
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STEP 5

The path advances close to the track, but never crosses it, until we definitively move away from it a little higher up.
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STEP 6

At this point the slope increases and the path also becomes wider.
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STEP 7

We leave the forest a bit and pass by a meadow where we see the small hermitage of Sant Maurici at the foot of a large rock. Shortly before the hermitage there is a water source.
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STEP 8

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STEP 9

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STEP 10

We make one last effort and reach a plain where we find the Sant Maurici lake (1:00 - 1,915m).
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STEP 11

We are in a wonderful place, one of the most photographed corners of the Pyrenees, with the beautiful and extensive lake of Sant Maurici before us, the unmistakable silhouette of the Encantats on the left and the various valleys that feed the lake around it, such as the magical valleys of Monestero and Subenuix, both of glacial origin.
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STEP 12

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STEP 13

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STEP 14

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STEP 15

We are in the subalpine zone, dominated by coniferous forests, especially black pine, but also with firs, birches, willows, poplars... We discard the track (it is where we will descend) and take the path that borders the north Sant Maurici lake. We pass by another fountain, which is the last one we will find on our ascent.
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STEP 16

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STEP 17

The path, well defined, moves away from the lake and, through the interior of the forest, climbs the side of the mountain. We pass under the impressive Ratera waterfall and continue up until we reach a meadow where we see the track that goes up to the Amitges refuge.
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STEP 18

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STEP 19

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STEP 20

We take a short cut along a path that climbs to the left and joins the track a little further up. We take it to the left, we pass by the beautiful lake of Ratera
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STEP 21

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STEP 22

We overcome a slope and arrive at the discreet Estanyola de Ratera, very full of sediments.
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STEP 23

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STEP 24

We continue along the track, passing by the Cabana lake and finally arriving at the Amitges refuge (3:00 - 2,366m).
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STEP 25

After regaining strength, we resume our ascent towards the Col de Amitges and the two peaks that frame it. We leave Barbs Lake behind to the left and, just at the point where the track ends, we take a path to the right (E) that goes down to a small bridge. This bridge is located right in a strait between the Munyidera lake and the Gran de Amitges lake. We are therefore located on the other shore of these two lakes. From here and until we go through this point again, the itinerary will be losing. We will find some paint marks and some milestone, but we will have to pay close attention to orientation.
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STEP 26

Once we have crossed the small bridge, we follow a path with milestones to the right (E-NE). We skirt the north shore of the Gran de Amitges lake and go up the Coma de Amitges. We advance through a great chaos of granite blocks paying close attention to follow the milestones. At the beginning of summer we can find this rocky area covered in snow, which will make progress much easier, but if the snow is hard, crampons should be used.
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STEP 27

When we reach a height of around 2,470m, we leave the main channel of La Coma and turn off towards the NW, towards some landings located under the wall of the Amitges peak. We end up in a very deep secondary channel located just between the Amitges peak and the Tuc de Saboredo. We ascend this channel until we reach the Amitges pass (5:00 - 2,760m). The views from here are immense and wonderful!
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STEP 28

We rest for a moment before tackling the two ascents that we will make from the Amitges pass: first the Amitges peak and then the Tuc de Saboredo. To climb the peak of Amitges, we discard the thread of the ridge, which is quite aerial, and we progress along the south face following some milestones.
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STEP 29

The climb is demanding and sustained and takes us without loss to the top of the Amitges peak (5:30 - 2,848m), an extraordinary viewpoint of the Aigüestortes and Estany de Sant Maurici National Park and the highest point of our route.
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STEP 30

To the north we can see the beautiful Gerber valley, of which the Bassiero peak and the Amitges peak are the headwaters. We return to Col de Amitges (5:50 am) and now tackle the second peak of the day: Tuc de Saboredo. Some milestones lead us along the north edge of the mountain, overcoming a first projection that leads us to the 2,775m level.
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STEP 31

We advance close to the thread of the crest and we reach a second projection, a very straight chaos of blocks in which we need to help each other with our hands to overcome it. Thus we arrive at Tuc de Saboredo (6:20 - 2,829m), technically more demanding than the Amitges peak. We find ourselves again in an exceptional viewpoint! To the southeast we see the impressive pyramid of Peguera peak and the Morto and Subenuix peaks. To the west we see the peak of Ratera, quite isolated. To the southwest stands the monumental Gran Tuc de Colomers. And to the northwest, at our feet, the deep valley of Ruda extends.
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STEP 32

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STEP 33

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STEP 34

After enjoying the extraordinary views -and recovering our strength- we begin our descent, which we will follow a slightly different itinerary from the ascent. We undo the last, more technical, bump and then, instead of going back towards Col de Amitges, we begin to go down the channel (E) that we used earlier in a section of our ascent (before turning towards Col de Amitges). . We descend almost along the bed of the canal, pass a plateau and reach a small pass at an elevation of 2,619m (7:05 - 2,619m) which is located right between the southeast buttress of Tuc de Saboredo and Agulles de Amitges.
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STEP 35

If we want and have time, from this point we can divert to a canal with an unexposed I+ wall that, if we overcome it, takes us to another pass from where we can access the slender Aguja Gran de Amitges (2,663m). We return to the pass at elevation 2,619m and continue our descent through a great chaos of granite blocks. We have to be very attentive to the milestones and we can take the Munyidera lake as a reference, where we are heading. We leave the chaos of rocks behind and finally arrive at the shore of the lake, at its natural strait and at the small bridge (2,638m) over which we have climbed.
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STEP 36

Once we have crossed the bridge, we follow a path that goes halfway up the slope along the south shore of the Gran de Amitges lake and that takes us to its outlet, from where we head to the Amitges refuge (8:05 a.m.). We undo the track where we have climbed before. We discard the path of the Ratera waterfall where we have climbed and continue the descent along the track, which is a little longer but much more comfortable. At the Sant Maurici lake (9:35 a.m.) we connect with the path of the valley of the Escrito river. We pass by the hermitage of Sant Maurici and go down through forests and meadows to the Prat Pierró car park (11:00 - 1,634m), where we finish this great day in the high mountains.
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