Brèche de Roland

Gavarnie-Gèdre

At the top of the wall that closes off the Cirque de Gavarnie, a rectangular notch 40 m wide and around a hundred metres high cuts through the border ridge at 2,807 m: the Brèche de Roland, one of the few natural passes into Aragon. Legend attributes it to Roland, nephew of Charlemagne: having survived the rout at Roncevaux, and unwilling to let his sword Durandal fall into enemy hands, he is said to have tried to break it by striking it against the rock. The blade held, but the mountain gave way and split open in a single stroke. Unable to destroy it, Roland is then said to have hurled the sword with all his strength toward the north; it is said to have lodged in the cliff face at Rocamadour, some three hundred kilometres away, where a blade set into the rock above the Notre-Dame chapel can still be seen today. The tale continues the Song of Roland, in which the hero dies at Roncevaux after vainly trying to break his sword on a stone step. The place, austere and often swept by fog, remains one of the great mountaineering objectives of the Pyrenees, on the French side of the UNESCO World Heritage site of Pyrénées – Mont Perdu.

Wikipédia — Brèche de Roland ↗

Getting there : High-mountain hike starting from the Col des Tentes / Col de Boucharo, above Gavarnie: about 10 km round trip, 3 h to 3h30 climbing, passing the Refuge des Sarradets (2,587 m), from where the breach is reached in 45 min for just over 200 m of elevation gain. A demanding route: snow patches often persist into summer on the final pitch, crampons and an ice axe are often needed, fog can roll in quickly; check conditions before setting out.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound