Ibón de Cregüeña
✓ Verified against the agency · AEMETOut-and-back day hike to the largest natural lake in the Pyrenees, roughly 1.5km long, from the Baños de Benasque road. No technical terrain — a straightforward, steep valley walk.
Safety classification
Roughly late June to September, once the snow has gone — the ficha warns snow can persist until early summer and tells you to check its state with the nearest refuge before going. Not safe: while snow covers the upper slopes (steep frozen terrain plus buried cairns), in fog (navigation depends entirely on cairns), or in afternoon storms — there is no shelter on the route.
- ▲Unmarked route ('senda no balizada'): navigation by stone cairns only — serious in fog
- ▲Chaos of large granite blocks and boulder fields on the upper section; hands needed for balance
- ▲Relentless 1,200 m gain in under 4.5 km of ascent; 6h25 round trip
- ▲Snow patches until early summer
- ▲No shelter and no vehicle access for evacuation anywhere on the route
One of the biggest lakes in the Pyrenees (2,632 m), below the Maladeta south face. The agency grades it MIDE 3/3/3/4 — severity, orientation and displacement 3, effort 4 of 5 (6-10 h of effective walking): a hard, unmarked high-mountain hike, not a stroll to a lake. Guide 'recommended' is about navigation and self-sufficiency on unmarked blocky terrain, not technical climbing. Poles and stiff boots always; traction gear whenever old snow lingers. Only one agency source documents this route; the Senderos Turísticos registry returned no ficha for it.