Gourette is one of the few resorts in the Pyrenees to offer a difference in altitude of more than 1,000 m (3,300 ft), having an altitude of between 1,350 and 2,450 m (4,430 and 8,040 ft), which is regularly covered in snow from November to April. The Atlantic climate of this western part of the Pyrenees is very often snowy when the north-westerly winds are blocked by the mountains of the high Pyrenees. While the Spanish Pyrenees, a few kilometres further south, suffer from dry winters, the northern French side is buried by heavy snowfall. Thaws, accompanied by foehns, can erode the surface snow for a few days. However, snowfall usually resumes quickly and the resort regains its winter aspect, even late in the winter season.
The mines and the elevated railway towards the Pic des Bécottes, circa 1910.
In 1881, the municipal council of Eaux-Bonnes, foreseeing a new source of income for the commune, authorised mining in the mountains above Gourette. The exploitation of the gold and silver ore discovered was entrusted to the Société des Mines d'Arre. During the winter of 1882–83, 33 workers wintered at an altitude of 2,100 m (6,900 ft) while mining. On 18 November 1882,[2] an avalanche swept away their barracks, killing sixteen people, including thirteen Italians. The Arre deposit was abandoned three years later in favour of the Lake Anglas [fr] deposit.
In 1890, about a hundred miners were working on mining the various deposits. A railway was built to remove the ore and an elevated railway descended for 3 km (1.9 mi) along the upper Valentin valley to the Cirque de Gourette. About forty tonnes of ore were sorted and crushed every day at the Gourette site, before being transferred to Laruns by wagon. From there, the ore went by rail to Bayonne, England and Spain. During 1888, 3,720 tons of ore were exported, which remained the best year by far. The mines continued to be exploited episodically until 1916.[3]
Skiing at Gourette
The Eaux-Bonnes Gourette ski club insignia of the 1930s
The municipality of Eaux-Bonnes saw the development of winter sports as an opportunity. On 15 and 16 February 1908, the first international ski competition in the Pyrenees was organised there. On 20 and 21 February 1909, King Alfonso XIII of Spain attended. In 1910, the commune shared the France ski championship with Cauterets. A ski slope, an ice rink and a ski jumping hill were built for the occasion.[4][5][nb 1]
1930s mountain resort
With the road being surfaced in 1930, electricity and telephone began the development of the resort. The first avalanche barriers were built, securing access and the first regular coach lines linked Gourette to Laruns, Pau and even Bordeaux. The opening of the first hotel with central heating was a significant moment. This removed the need for skiers to go to Eaux-Bonnes or Pau for accommodation. The hotel was quickly monopolised by a wealthy Bordeaux clientele who gave the resort a high profile. The Hotel de l'Aubisque, the Edelweiss and the Chalet de l'Amoulat followed.
Late twentieth century onwards
A 1960s advertising poster for Gourette
From the end of the 1960s, the resort was urbanised.[6]
On 1 February 2015, the resort experienced a major avalanche that swept away the departure station of the Fontaines de Cotch ski lift[7] as well as an electric generator.[8] As a result, three-quarters of the resort's lifts were without electricity. The disappearance of this lift, in a general context where there was a sharp fall the number of tourists to Gourette[9] has caused new consideration about the future of the resort and the development of current and new areas, such as the Anglas sector[10] and even the link with the neighbouring resort of Artouste, supported in particular by a local association.[11][12] In the heart of the village, the resort was also subject to concerns due to its ageing infrastructure. The buildings of the Valentin residences were renovated, while the tourist centre of the resort experienced rapid deterioration due to a lack of maintenance.[13]
Planned restructuring
To deal with the problems of declining attendance and the ageing of the resort, as well as those linked to climate change, the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department embarked on a restructuring project for Gourette in 2020.[14] This began with the redevelopment and reprofiling of the beginner sector of Bézou, and the dismantling of a gondola lift to open up the panorama of the meeting area at the centre of the resort. The project, which has been increased to €27 million, will restructure the resort by installing a second meeting area at an altitude of between 1,500 and 1,600 m (4,900 and 5,200 ft) in order to take into account the hazards linked to climate change, and thus allow Gourette to continue to operate with little snow. Thus, several lifts were planned to be dismantled to comply with the project, which is scheduled to end in 2025. However, in particular, the dismantling of the Cotch detachable chairlift was not unanimously accepted, as this links Gourette with the top of the resort.[15]
Sport
Woodland skiing at Gourette
Winter activities
In winter, the resort offers one of the largest skiable areas in the Pyrenean chain with thirty marked trails, and extending between 1,350 and 2,450 m (4,430 and 8,040 ft) in altitude, covering about 140 ha (350 acres) of mostly north-facing slopes. The area also hosts snowboarding and snowshoe trails. In 2005 the region spent over 50 million euros to improve its winter resort facilities, including trails, lifts, accommodation and other infrastructure.
Skiing
The resort is organized into four sectors and a meeting area.[16]
The Pène Blanque sector is at the top of the resort at 2,450 m (8,040 ft) of altitude. The Cotch sector is the second highest sector and was located at 2,124 m (6,969 ft) above sea level before the destruction of the chairlift due to the 2015 avalanche.[7] Since then, it has been located at an altitude of 2,060 m (6,760 ft). The Plateau sector is in a wooded area and located at intermediate altitude in the resort. The sector has a mountain restaurant and a snowpark. This sector is also one of the junction points of most of the ski slopes, receiving those of the Bézou, Cotch and Pène Blanque sectors. The Bézou sector is dedicated to beginners. In addition to beginner and easy slopes, there is a mountain restaurant, a sledging area, and a Nordic skiing circuit linked to the bottom of the resort.
The meeting area and the return slopes are located on the lower part of the resort, in a very wooded area where Nordic skiing and snowshoeing is possible. A beginners' route, "La balade", runs through the woods slightly away from the main routes of the resort. All the sectors of the resort converge on the main meeting area, a wide space leading to the Esplanade du Valentin and the Place Sarrière, in the centre of the resort of Gourette.
Summer activities
Gourette in summer. As soon as one moves away from the station, the cirque de Gourette is visible in its full extent.
From Gourette, short hiking routes go via the GR 10 to Lake Anglas, Lake Uzious, Lake Lavedan [fr], Lakes of Louesque [fr], and the Soussouéou Valley [fr] to the south, and to the Col de Tortes, Col d'Aubisque, Col du Soulor, and the Ouzom Valley [fr] to the north and east. Other secondary trails lead in the direction of Eaux-Bonnes, or to the ski area leading to the Col d'Anglas via the Lakes of Plaa Ségouné [fr] and the Lake Cinda Blanque [fr]. The remains of the mining facilities are visible in the Lake Anglas area.
Cycling
The resort has had many amateur and professional cycling events pass through. Whenever the Tour de France uses the western side of the Col d'Aubisque, either as an ascent or descent, the race passes through Gourette. The road through the Col d'Aubisque, cresting at an altitude of 1,710 m (5,610 ft), has gradients from 7.5 to 10% and is considered a Hors Catégorie climb in Union Cycliste Internationale race classifications. The race first passed through Gourette during the 1910 Tour de France, on a stage from Luchon to Bayonne. The finishes of Stage 16a of the 1971 Tour de France and Stage 16 of the 2007 Tour de France took place at Gourette. The finish of Stage 14 of the 2016 Vuelta a Espana was also hosted by Gourette.
Notes
^This ski jumping hill no longer exists today. It was the only one in the Pyrenees.
