Pirineus, 
Pyrénées)
The
Pyrenees mountains form chain across south-western Europe.
This chain stretches from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea to the Bay of Biscay on the Atlantic Ocean. It forms a natural barrier between the Iberian Peninsular and the rest of Europe, providing a convenient border between sovereign states. The chain also creates a climatic divide. Northern slopes receive abundant rainfall while the southern slopes have a steppe-like climate.
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The chain extends in an almost straight line 270 miles (435 km) from the Bay of Biscay on the west to the Mediterranean Sea on the east. Its maximum width is c.80 miles (130 km). The Pyrenees were formed during the Tertiary period. Exposed crystalline rock is found in the uplands. The lower slopes are composed of folded limestone. Glaciated in the past, the Pyrenees do not host any glaciers now. The permanent snowline sits at an elevation of around 6,000 ft (1,830 m). It has provided a place of refuge for centuries
- the Basque peoples speaking a non-Indo-European
language created a kingdom (Navarre) to the west.
To the east the Pyrenees provided a place of refuge
to the Cathars in the Middle Ages. The Château
of Montségur ( Notable peaks include The Pico de Aneto, Spain (the highest peak at 11,168 ft/3,404 m), Pic de Vignemale and the Pic du Midi d'Ossau (France) and Monte Perdido (Spain). The Cantabrian Mountaints are a western extension of the Pyrenees. The French Pyrenees are steeper than the southern slopes on the Spanish side. On the French side torrents, called gaves, fall in cascades. There are also natural amphitheatres or circs (French cirques), notably the famous Cirque de Gavarnie. The more important rivers (the Garonne, the Aude, and the Adour) run north into France. Spanish rivers rising in the Pyrenees include the Aragón, the Cinca, and the Segre. |
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The border between France and Spain runs roughly East-west through the Pyrenees, though this was not the case before the Treaty of the Pyrenees. The present border, unchanged since the 1659 treaty, generally follows the watershed. The principality of Andorra lies among the peaks, between the two countries. Six French departments and six Spanish provinces extend into the Pyrenees area. Important cities include Perpignan, Bayonne, and Orthez in France and Girona, Huesca, Pamplona, and Irún in Spain. Early humans lived here, as evidenced by the prehistoric cave paintings at Altamira and Aurignac. The Pyrenees are rich in timber and in pastures, and the streams are harnessed by hydroelectric power stations. Bauxite, talc, and zinc are mined there. A number of roads cross the Pyrenees. Apart from those along the low coastal strips, three of the main ones use tunnels while four thread through high passes, becoming snowbound in winter and spring. |
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Most mountain passes are high and difficult, but that never stopped them being crossed by invading armies and by medieval pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela. Some of these passes, notably The Col de Perthus (used by the Romans) and Roncesvalles (featuring in the Roland legend), are famous. The chief rail lines connecting Spain and France skirt the Pyrenees along both coasts, though two others cross the Pyrenees. The Catalan Pyrenees rise to the peaks of Canigou (2785m) and Carlit (2921m). From Canigou, you will get a panoramic view over the mountains and Mediterranean Sea. Spectacular rivers, streams and waterfalls plunge from high peaks. This region is home to brown bears, wolves, long horned sheep, izards and ibex. The mountain range appeals to climbers, skiers, walkers and anyone who enjoys nature. The lower landscape is dotted with picturesque villages, clinging to the sides of gorges beside cascading streams. |
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Houses generally cluster around Romanesque churches. In winter, 12 mountain resorts offer downhill and cross-country skiing, ski-boarding or monoskiing. You can go snowshoeing or sledging with dogs in the mountain forests. Fast-flowing mountain waters are suitable for kayaking and white water rafting, and there are the natural hot springs, where you can soak in outdoor thermal baths at temperatures near 35 degrees Centigrade.
Formation of Pyrenees
The Pyrenean mountain range was formed between 80 and 20 million years ago as a result of the Iberian landmass (what is now Spain and Portugal) colliding with the much larger Eurasian landmass in the region of what is now southwestern France. This collision occurred as a result of plate tectonic movements - relative movements of the interlocking sections, or plates, of which Earth's outer layer is composed.
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Previously, around 150 million ago, the Iberian landmass was a mini-continent on its own, situated roughly to the west of France (rather than to the southwest as it is now) and surrounded by sea. Over the next 50 million years or so, new tectonic plate boundaries formed all around Iberia effectively turning it into a small tectonic plate, which means it could move relative to other plates, such as the Eurasian plate. The new plate boundaries that formed to the west, north and north-east of the Iberian mini-continent were of a type known as seafloor spreading ridges - regions where molten material welling up from Earth's interior is turned into oceanic crust and added to the edges of plates, forcing them apart (the formation of new oceanic crust at these ridges is the driving force for all plate movements). The seafloor spreading ridge that formed to the west of Iberia was (and still is) part of an extended system of ridges that, for the past 140 million years, has had the effect of gradually widening the North Atlantic, pushing America away from Eurasia. The activity of the spreading ridge that formed to the northeast of Iberia, combined with the activity of the ridges to the north and west, forced Iberia into an anticlockwise rotational motion, with an overall movement to the southeast. At the same time, this motion opened up the Bay of Biscay, while a region of seafloor crust that had previously been situated to the east of Iberia was forced under the Eurasian plate. |
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Around 75 million years ago, in its slow anticlockwise
rotation, the southern extremity of Iberia collided with
the African landmass to its south, stopping it moving
any further in a southeasterly direction. Instead it was
now forced in a northeasterly direction, colliding with
the Eurasian landmass. As the two landmasses crumpled
up against each other, the Pyrenees were formed. By around
20 million years ago, this process has completed, Iberia
had become welded to and become part of the Eurasian plate,
and the spreading ridge in the Bay of Biscay had ceased
its activity. The present-day appearance of the Pyrenees
is the result of erosion of the original mountain chain.
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