Salau Port. Route 03 of Persecuted and Saved. You will be passionate!

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We will know the route of the Port of Salau. Route 03 of Persecuted and Saved.

During the years of World War II (1939-1944) thousands of Jews crossed the Pyrenees fleeing the persecution to which they were subjected in Nazi-occupied Europe. The Holocaust affected six million European Jews. Many of those who managed to flee, originating from Germany, Austria, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium or France, crossed the mountain passes of the Lleida Pyrenees in epic evasions, defying vigilance on both sides of the border, the weather, perpetual snow and the hardness of the route. Their goal was to seek refuge away from Europe. Until 1943 the evacuees were basically refugee families in France escaping from the persecution initiated by the Vichy government.

The “Persecuted and Saved” project highlights the values ​​of cross-border spaces and paths as cultural and memorial itineraries with the aim of disseminating their role as flight places for those persecuted during the Second World War. At the same time, it extols the values ​​of aid and solidarity that the residents of this territory expressed towards the refugees. One of the busiest escape routes was the one that communicates the French department of Ariège with Pallars Sobirà, through the port of Salau.

The route started from the Valle du Salad, in the vicinity of Saint-Girons (Ariège) and, once crossed the port of Salau, descended to the Bonabé Valley, in the Àneu valleys. Later, they continued towards Alós d’Isil. The port of Salau was secularly the epicenter of communications between the area of ​​Ariege and Pallars Sobirà.

In May 1938, he facilitated the exile of the Republicans after the occupation of the country by the Francoist army. We offer you 2 options to discover Route 3 of Persecuted and Saved that will depend on the time you have and the desire to walk:

1-We will leave Sort towards the Àneu valleys, discovering all the surroundings and towns through which we pass until we reach the Refugio del Fornet, where El Valle de Bonabé begins and the road ends. Here the route will begin on foot, linear, that is, going up and down the same path, with the following characteristics:

Total length: 8.00Km (round trip)

Starting point Refugio del Fornet: 1371m

Maximum height of the port of Salau: 2086m

Positive difference: 715m

DEMANDING category

Estimated time: 3h35min (round trip)

From the top of the port we will be able to contemplate the mountains and descent of the neighboring country, France.

2-We also leave Sort and we will make the same route to the Fornet Refuge and up to the top of the port, but this time we will go down the road to France, a route made by people who during the Civil War fled to the neighboring country and who did conversely later, from there to here those who fled from Nazism during the Second World War. The unevenness on the French side is greater and the route longer so we propose it in this sense so that it is more accessible. We will arrive at the first town that we find on the French slope, which is also called Salau, where the vehicle will wait for us to return to Sort, contemplating the wonderful landscapes and French towns that were also part of this history, during a journey of about 3 hours. long, until arriving at approximately dinner time.

The characteristics of this walking route are:

Total length: 13.70Km

Starting point Refugio del Fornet: 1371m

Maximum height of the port of Salau: 2086m

Final elevation, Salau town: 884m

Positive difference: 715m

Negative difference: 1202m

VERY DEMANDING Category

Estimated time: 5h 45min + stop time.

We also offer the option of managing accommodation in the French Pyrenees to more fully enjoy the other side of the border and return the next day. If you are interested we will inform you!