The Parc des Thermes, next to the Thermal Baths, is a pleasant place to walk. It has beautiful trees and a lake with swans and ducks. By the corner of the new building of the baths, hidden in the bushes, is a bronze bear that children love. This bear by George Guyot (Paris 1885 - 1973), is perfectly proportioned, like a large teddy. It has been polished in various places by the children (and adults!) who sit on it to have their photos taken.
Follow the alley for a few meters towards the lake and you discover one of the wonders of Bagnères-de-Luchon: Vénus. Facing the most beautiful giant cedar, this statue by French sculpter Jean-Marie Mengue, (1855 - 1949), was unveiled in 1900 under the name of "Vallée du Lis". The nudity of this pretty woman shocked the middle-class women at the time. It is a true masterpiece. Each day, depending on the luminosity of the sky, the strength of the sun, the rain or snow, it is more beautiful than the day before.
The bust of the artist is in a small square close to the church. I seldom pass in front of him without greeting him and thanking him for his work. The name of the sculpter of this bust is at the back of the statue, but is illegible. If you have any information about it, please contact me.
In this park, on the side of the mountain you can still see the "station" of the first means of transport to take you up to Superbagnères. It has two small carriages on rails connected by a cable on a pulley: one carriage went down as the other went up, worked by gravity. The carriage going down was ballasted with water in a tank and emptied on arrival at the bottom. When was this lift installed? Can anyone tell me?
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The Parc du Casino, park and gardens of the Casino, as Jacques Brel said, is also very pretty.
At the entrance to the park, by the side of the boules area, is a quite strange statue. Its called Fate, or the wheel of fortune. You can read the inscription, but do you know who the sculpter is? Ernest Christophe, 1885, is the name on the side of the base. If you have some details about him please let me know.
This statue is breathtaking, but also incredibly cruel. A mixture of horror and happiness.
This park is famous for its sequoias, beautiful giants. A small stream in the middle of the park seems to be there to emphasise another superb statue "le baiser à la source" by Coutheillai, who we cannot find any information about either. (If you find out all this for me, I can start an artist trail of Bagnères de Luchon!) If you have some, don't hesitate to contact me.
On the other side of the street which skirts the park, at the back of the statue "le baiser à la source", you can see the house once lived in by Edmond Rostand. (Cyrano of Bergerac) If you wait a while you might see Roxane on the balcony of the beautiful hexagonal tower...
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An airfield is not generally the ideal place to walk but there are exceptions.
The one at Bagnères-de-Luchon is in the middle of a narrow valley, with a superb view of the high mountains. The river, Le Pique, runs past it into a lake that borders the aerodrome. The GR10 long distance footpath passes here. You can walk round the lake, look at the ducks and sometimes some migrating birds. Sheep often act as lawn mowers on the landing strip!
The airfield is 5 minutes walk from the Hôtel Alouette. Go and see the planes and gliders landing and taking off, it can be a very exciting spectacle in this setting.
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The forest road of Herran is an excellent walk. Its starting point is on the other side of the valley from the Hôtel Alouette, a 15 minute walk away.
It is an asphalt road, but almost no traffic uses it. You will meet a lot of walkers, cyclists, and even sometimes people on roller blades or grass skis!
This road goes up, and up, from 630 m to 1420 m and more, and is approximately 9 kms long. You don't have to do the whole path, you can turn back at anytime.
Completely covered by trees, it is shaded in summer. The views are splendid, as you gain altitude, but you will have to look between the trees to see the valley below. Sometimes you can hear voices, just above your head: miracle? hallucination? No, probably two paragliders talking to each other just above the trees. The superb green woodpecker has its territory here, I have seen it many times, but it has always refused to be photographed!
In spring and summer the roadside is covered with small flowers of all colours, and wild strawberries.
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A path leaves from the corner by the Hôtel Alouette, and takes you to the ferruginous spring 30 to 52 minutes away depending on your walking speed. The area has a lot of iron rich springs. This one is a small trickle of water, but it is very ferruginous and the ground is red all around the spring. You can drink some water, but not too much! The taste is rather special, like licking a steel girder!
The walk is very pleasant, on a path that is always shaded. Squirrels sometimes play hide-and-seek with you. The spring is by a small picnic area with table and benches, and also has a belvedere with an unspoilt view off Bagnères-de-Luchon, and the high mountains of Vénasque. If you take a picnic and some water, it's a nice place to stop for a while. The descent can be done by another path which comes to the edge of the cemetery, just 100m from the Hôtel Alouette.
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The waterfall at Juzet is just 20 minutes walk from the Hôtel Alouette, and is refreshing in summer.
Follow the GR10 towards the west, skirting the aerodrome, then join the road to Sode. When you reach Juzet, the waterfall is opposite you, at the bottom of a small cul-de-sac. A handrail makes it possible to climb the rocky path that can sometimes get slippery. The waterfall is very pretty and the pool at the bottom is clear and deep. The noise is like thunder. This natural atomiser makes it an ideal walk to do on a midsummer afternoon.
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A visit to the réserve de la Pique is also a good afternoon out. It is 10 minutes on foot from the Hôtel Alouette.
You pass the bridge over la pique where you can look into the clear water, depending on the season. Then you can feel sorry for the tennis players cooking in the full sun. You can listen to the funny comments of the children playing miniature golf, or in the play-ground opposite which is for toddlers.When you get close to the fronton you can hear cries and splashes from the swimming pool. The external wall of the fronton is used as a climbing wall.
At the end of the alley is the skate park where young people jump and whirl on their skateboards, showing great skills. Just opposite you there is a large field which is the landing place of the paragliders. Take a seat in the shade and admire the graceful decent and approach to the field, which depending on the wind, the landings that are delicate and accurate. An excellent walk to see and listen to the living world of Bagnères de Luchon.