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GAVARNIE-GÈDRE
Cirque de Gavarnie
Characteristics: The Cirque de Gavarnie is a natural glacial cirque, part of the Pyrenees National Park and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997 as part of the Pyrenees-Mont Perdu complex. The grey, ochre and pink limestone terrain rises to 3,000 metres. Quaternary glaciers have shaped the Pragnères, Gèdre and Gavarnie basins, creating "narrows," including the Saint-Sauveur gorge. In the middle of the cirque, slightly on its eastern slope, stands the 422-metre-high Gavarnie waterfall, source of the Gave de Gavarnie, feeding into the Gave de Pau. Several relict glaciers remain: Brèche, Casque, Épaule, Cascade, and western Marboré glaciers. The cirque is accessible from the village of Gavarnie or via the Sarradets ladder. It is considered a natural wonder and one of the most visited sites in the Pyrenees.
Listed as: UNESCO World Heritage Site, 1997.
Gavarnie Festival
Created: 1985 (no longer organised since 2023)
History: A theatre festival held at the Cirque de Gavarnie. Classical or contemporary plays were performed in the open air in summer. Created by François Joxe with his Parisian theatre company Chantier-Théâtre, it combined artistic creation and nature in the first twenty editions. The festival resumed in 2006 with the theatre company Il est une fois and was later managed by Théâtre Fébus. Weather in 2023 prevented the festival from taking place, and its future is uncertain.
Special feature: Held on the Courade plain at 1,450 metres altitude, making it the highest festival in Europe, about half an hour's walk from the village.
Notre-Dame du Bon-Port Church
Construction: 12th to 19th century
Style: Romanesque
History: Originating from the monks of St John of Jerusalem (hospice mentioned in 1257). Enlarged in the 14th century, major works were carried out in the 19th century. The church collapsed in 1820 and was rebuilt from 1851 to 1878. Stained-glass windows by Louis-Victor Gesta were installed in 1910.
Characteristics: Broken barrel vault and gallery with side galleries, mostly from the early 19th century. Some 14th-century remains remain in the north chapel, and the base of the old square tower supporting the bell tower is still visible.
Listed as: Part of the Santiago de Compostela pilgrimage route, World Heritage Site since 1998.
Gavarnie Cemetery (Pyrenean mountaineers' cemetery)
Characteristics: Features the "Pyrenean mountaineers' square," dedicated to guides and mountaineers who died pursuing their passion. Burials include Henri and Célestin Passet, François Bernat-Salles (1855–1934), Georges Ledormeur (1867–1952), Ludovic Gaurier (1875–1931), Jean Arlaud (1896–1938), Georges Adagas (1920–1987), Raymond d’Espouy (1892–1955), Jean Prunet, and Diego Calvet (1898–1922).
Listed as: Listed building since 1998.
Statue of Count Henry Russell
Construction: 1952 (copy of 1911 bronze by Gaston Leroux)
History and characteristics: Located on the road to Gavarnie near Pont de Cumia. Original 1911 bronze melted during the war; new statue unveiled on 20 July 1952. Russell was a Franco-British explorer who made around thirty "first ascents" in the Pyrenees between 1858 and 1885. He was known for his eccentric, contemplative character and romantic approach to mountaineering. Pic Russell (3,206 m) is named after him.
