An endless queue to crown the Pica d'Estats, in the High Pyrenees.
Saving the distances this weekend we lived a situation that reminded us of the image of the traffic jam on Everest that we already talked about in Traveler.es a little over a year ago. In this case the agglomerations of mountaineers and hikers were produced in the High Pyrenees in the Pica d'Estats mountain.
At more than 3,000 meters of altitude, a long queue of people gathered to take a photo on the cross at the top. This was denounced in a tweet by the High Pyrenees Natural Park.
Apparently it is being a recurring image since the end of the confinement, as they say. Only on August 22, up to 254 people reached the top, 51% more than last year. In July a total of 2,267 went up to the Pica d'Estats, 74% more than the previous year.
Last weekend coincided with a holiday in Catalonia and hundreds of people moved to natural spaces , as has been the custom since the beginning of June when, after confinement, many people became interested in natural spaces. In fact, this has been the case in most of the natural parks in Catalonia, according to the doctoral thesis of Víctor Dorado, a researcher with the Giseafe group at the ** National Institute of Physical Education of Catalonia ** (Inefc).
The Cadí-Moixero doubled the figures of 2019, while in the Pedraforca the figures also grew: a total of 2,000 hikers more than last year (7,000 in total).
From the Alt Pirineu Natural Park it has already been common for uncivil attitudes like these to be denounced , which not only endanger their lives, but also harm the natural environment where they are found. Several tweets also made reference to people who bathed in prohibited areas around the Pica d'Estats (because they affect the fauna and flora).
The problems of this type of agglomerations are several and worrying : the spread of the virus due to not preserving social distancing, dirt, traffic jams and parking in prohibited areas, and above all, bad behavior in natural spaces that harm the native fauna and flora.
Therefore, the Federation of Hikers Entities of Catalonia (FEEC) has asked the Department of Territory and Sustainability of the Generalitat to regulate access to natural parks and areas with more affluence. A possible solution would be through paid car parks or restrictions that the municipalities would put in place. Especially in certain areas such as Pica d'Estats, Port de Sotllo, Sant Joan de l'Erm, Pedraforca, the Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park, Montserrat, Collserola or Sant Llorenç del Munt.
“As the Federation of Excursionist Entities, we defend access to the mountain for all, but we firmly believe that important measures must be taken to regulate access at certain times of the year and at specific points with constant overcrowding. The failure in environmental education and the lack of awareness and responsibility for the natural environment has been confirmed ”, they underlined in a statement last Monday.
And they added: "We want to invite the different agents involved to the urgent creation of a working group to study planning and regulation in specific points of the territory where there is danger for the safety of people practicing mountain activities or for the conservation of the environment. We ask to be able to preserve the territory and ** not be in any case the cause of damaging the mountains that we love so much ** and that will be the inheritance for the next generations ".
Meanwhile, from the Secretary of the Environment and Sustainability of the Generalitat of Catalonia, they asked for the next holiday in Barcelona to avoid crowds at these points, pointing out the 14 natural parks in the province as an alternative. And they admitted that they must control access to guarantee the balance between the right to enjoy citizenship and respect for nature. . The measures will be announced in the coming days.