Peak Bagging and Long Distance Walking in the UK and Spain: Pico Collarada

Walk Summary

Refugio del Cubilar de Espata

Paid my €5 online (Search for "Collarada Track Circulation Permit" or "Permiso de Circulación Pista de Collarada") to give me authorisation to drive up private mountain road from Villanúa to Refugio del Cubilar de la Espata and the confidence to drive beyond “No Unauthorised Vehicle” sign at 42° 41’ 14”N, 00° 30’ 49”W. You could arguably drive to this point but the written sign “ Pista de Collarada Prohibida La Circulacion” at 42° 41’ 00”N, 00° 31’ 33”W was enough to deter me. The road is somewhat rutted in a number of places but is just about suitable for a road vehicle if you go slow. It took me 50 minutes to drive the 10km past numerous switchbacks to the Refugio. Money well spent, no way would I have managed this summit in a day otherwise.
Head west from the refugio for a very short distance and branch of right at what is shown as a dead end track on the map but is little more than a well established path that is easy to follow through woodland to the base of a cliff with an access route to the top assisted by a couple of short lengths of fixed rope at 42° 41’ 33”N, 00° 28’ 40”W. Once at the top the going gradually improves still able to follow a vague path marked by cairns that does disappear on occasion until you get to the first substantial cairn and post arrangement near El Boso at 42° 41’ 40”N, 00° 28’ 37”W.

Another cairn/post guiding route. Head off to right
of picture and aim for Collarada de Ip on distant saddle

Continue NE for about 1000m you come to the final cairn & post (I saw one other, but there may be more) at 42° 42’ 10”N, 00° 27’ 59”W. From here you get the first real sight of Pico Collarada and the route to take through rocky crags and outcrops to it’s right towards El Paso. Beyond El Paso takes you up a scree slope to Collado de Ip and first view, beyond the azure blue Ibón de Ip, of the French Pyrenees and rugged ridge heading east towards Balaïtous, the most westerly 3000m summit. Turning to the left at Collado de Ip you will also see the route ascending through rock up to a good sized scree slope and beyond what looks to be a climb to Pico Collarada summit. Well it usually looks harder from a distance.

The final scramble (climb) to Pico Collarada

Having negotiated the scree slope you could indeed find more difficult routes up the rock face, however I chose the easiest way I could see resulting in a sustained scramble. The temperature had been dropping along with the wind increasing throughout the entire ascent resulting in adding mid layer and finally summer coat on the summit crown.
The wind was very cold and gusty making me take extra care to not be blown to the left and over what looked a precipitous edge. With the effort to get this far it crossed my mind that if there had been any rain mixed in with this lot I would have seriously considered turning back without going for the summit across the final 100m of rocky ground and 20m – 30m of ascent.

Might have set off from van in a T-shirt
reckon with wind chill temp close to 0°C on summit.
Much colder than experienced on trip so far

Conditions did not bode well for good photos or hanging around so after essential summit rituals of logging on peakhunter and peak bagger along with summit pics and a selfie I set off back. It did occur to me the futility of this endeavor but on the other hand it is the reason you keep coming back for more. Not surprising I came down the climb a different way. Not any easier to ascend but just different. The rest of the descent to Collado de Ip was not too difficult though it would have been easier had I remembered my trek poles. Still cold, but with slightly less wind, but enough to keep on my coat. Stop for a spot of lunch out of the wind just before Collado de Ip was enough to reinvigorate me to head down through the rocks (tending to the left) and back on the gentle slope marked by the cairns with posts. Half way down I realised it was not cold anymore, in fact it was decidedly warm back to the T-shirt weather I had been used to up to now on this trip.
So after de-layering and further refreshments it was a straight

Looking back at pre-fixed rope assisted descent down crag
just before tree line and path
back to van at Refugio del Cubilar de Espata

forward return to the top of the roped descent and amble through the woods back to the Refugio and van. Without doubt, the toughest summit attempted and reached so far, not being made any easier by forgetting my trek poles. I managed but hips and quads were definitely singing at the extra workload they had to take on. Now all that remained was the 50 minute drive back down the 10km mountain road. But what a satisfying day. Thoroughly recommend it but don’t forget to buy the authorisation to drive to the Refugio.

Walk Statistics

Walk Date - 02 October 2018
Walkers - Steve Smith

Accommodation - Camping Aín, Jaca

Start Point - Refugio del Cubilar de Espata (N42°41'18" W0°28'30")
Start Time - 09:38

Finish Point - Refugio del Cubilar de Espata (N42°41'18" W0°28'30")

Finish Time- 15:25

Total Duration - 5hrs 47mins
Overall Average pace - 0.92mph
Total Distance Walked - 5.30 miles
Total Height Ascended - 1166.00metres

Peaks visited
Spain/Portugal 600m Prominence Peaks (168S - 185S&P - 2165E)

Pico Collarada (23S - 24S&P - 53E)

Pyrenees Top 50 by Prominence (50)

Pico Collarada (7)

Spain/Portugal 300m - 599m Prominence Peaks (1000+)