The Renclusa refuge (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Refugio de la Renclusa'') is a refuge located in the Spanish

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

at the base of the massif de la Maladeta, at high, in the

Ésera The Ésera () is a tributary of the Cinca in the High Aragon. It is part of the valley of the Ebro and its drainage basin. Its etymology is Celtic and it is cognate with several European rivers: Isar, Jizera, Isère, Isel, IJssel, and Eisack ...

valley. It is the starting point for excursions to the summit of la

Maladeta Maladeta (3,312 m) is a mountain in the Pyrenees, close to the highest peak in the range, Aneto. It is located in the Natural Park of Posets-Maladeta in the town of Benasque in Province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. Its northern slope contains the ...

, of the monts Maudits and

Aneto Aneto is the highest mountain in the Pyrenees and in Aragon, Spain's third-highest mountain, reaching a height of . It is in the Spanish province of Huesca, the northernmost of three Aragonese provinces, south of the France–Spain border. I ...

(highest point in the

). It lies in the commune of

Benasque Benasque (; in Benasquese dialect: ''Benás''; ) () is a town in the comarca of Ribagorza, province of Huesca, (Spain). It is the main town in the Benasque Valley, located in the heart of the Pyrenees and surrounded by the highest peaks in tha ...

, north-east of

Huesca Huesca (; ) is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Aragon between 1096 and 1118. It is also the capital of the Spanish Huesca (province), ...

province,

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

(

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

History

The refuge's name comes from the Pic de la Rencluse above it. It was originally a shelter under rock, then a shepherd's hut, which was used as a shelter by Platon de Tchihatchev, Albert de Franqueville and guides Pierre Sanio, Jean Sors dit ''Argarot'', Pierre Redonnet dit ''Nate'' et Bernard Arrazau dit ''Ursule'', during their first ascension of the Aneto in July 1842. Later, engineer and Catalan pyreneeist Juli Soler i Santaló (1865-1914) built a small 4x3 m house, near its current location, which he named ''villa Maladeta'', and he draughted the future refuge. The refuge was inaugurated in 1916. It had 22 beds and was kept by Antonio Abadias. It rapidly became one of the most frequented refuges in the Pyrenees. The

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

interrupted its activity, and it wasn't until 1951 that a new refuge, restored and enlarged, came to be. After Antonio Abadias' death, Benasquan Antonio Garié succeeded him in 1966.

Access and services

Today the refuge offers around 110 places and is one of the biggest in the Pyrenees. It is kept from the end of June to the end of September and is open weekends during the skiing period. It is managed by the Aragonese Mountain Federation (FAM) and the Excursionist Centre of Catalonia (CEC). One can get there from

(about an hour's walk from Besurta car park) and from France, from

Bagnères-de-Luchon Bagnères-de-Luchon (; ), also referred to as just Luchon, is a Communes of France, commune and spa town in the Haute-Garonne Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie region of south-western France. T ...

, by the

port de Venasque The Port de Venasque () is a mountain pass in the Pyrenees. It lies on the border between France and Spain and is a popular border crossing point for mountaineers and walkers. It can be reached in about two to three hours from the Hospice de France ...

References

External links

{{Commons category
Federacion aragonesa de montanismo
Geography of Spain Mountain huts in Spain