Refuge de Bayssellance

The Refuge de Bayssellance is a refuge run by the Club Alpin Français (Bordeaux section) at 2,651 m on the eastern slope of the Hourquette d'Ossoue, directly below the Vignemale in the Pyrenees National Park. It is the highest managed hut in the Pyrenees and is located on the GR10 and Haute Route Pyrénéenne long-distance hiking trails, making it a classic stage and base for high-altitude tours and glacier tours in the Vignemale massif. The hut is manned from the end of May (depending on snow conditions) to mid-October; outside of this period, a simple winter room is available. Conditions and access are generally best in the summer months from June to September; in spring and autumn, snow and icy passages must be expected. The catering is geared towards mountaineers and long-distance hikers. In the evening, there is a simple communal menu with soup, hot main course, cheese and dessert, served in one or two set meals. Breakfast is offered as an early self-service buffet between around 5.30 am and 7 am, so that summit aspirants and GR10 or HRP hikers can set off early. Packed lunches with sandwiches, cheese or salad, dried fruit, sweets and fruit are prepared to order in advance, and during the day there are soups, omelettes, cheese and sausage platters, simple dishes of the day as well as hot and cold drinks and a small selection of snacks and cakes. The normal ascent begins at the Barrage d'Ossoue above Gavarnie. From there, you follow the GR10 along the reservoir and the Gave d'Ossoue for around 5 km and around 830 meters in altitude, pass the Grottes Bellevue and reach the refuge in around 3¼ hours. Alternatively, a long, high-alpine crossing leads from the Pont d'Espagne near Cauterets via Lac de Gaube, the Refuge des Oulettes de Gaube and the Hourquette d'Ossoue (around 9 km, a good 1,200 meters in altitude, around 5 hours). There is no road or cable car to the hut; it can only be reached on foot. In winter and when there is a lot of snow, all ascents are much more challenging and sometimes at risk of avalanches. The hut is a much-used starting point for the normal route up the Vignemale via the Glacier d'Ossoue, for the Petit Vignemale, the Montferrat and other peaks in the area and also serves as a stopover on multi-day crossings of the Pyrenees. Visitors should always check the weather, current conditions, possible closures and the condition of the access roads in advance and adapt their tour planning accordingly. The Refuge de Bayssellance was built in 1899 on the initiative of the Bordeaux section of the Club Alpin Français and Adrien Bayssellance, who was named after him; Pyrenean pioneer Henry Russell and engineer Henri Vallot were among those involved in the design. The hut, originally built in solid stone with an ogival vaulted structure, was extended in 1939 and extensively renovated in 2003, retaining its characteristic architectural style with a copper roof. It is still owned and operated by the Bordeaux section of the Fédération Française des Clubs Alpins et de Montagne.