Abandoned mine

Today's walk was a less arduous one starting at the abandoned fluorite mine of Escaro which was the largest in Europe.  The open quarry was built on the ancient iron ore mine that was exhausted in the 1950's. The upper village was demolished to allow for the exploitation but when the company stopped working the site was abandoned and became dangerous due to landslips. It is another sad story of the rape of a wonderful natural area where the company takes its profits without responsibility shown to the local inhabitants or environment. The rest of the walk was through woods and open countryside with wonderful views of Canigou and the massif.