The weather varies considerably across the Pyreneen chain. The general rule is that the West is wet, and the East is much dryer. Furthermore, the Spanish side of the
Pyreneen chain is considerably warmer than the French (as it can be thought of as one large south facing slope). As a consequence, plant and animal life
change almost as soon as you cross the border. At our base in Aulus-les-Bains, the French side has lush wooded forests of beech and oak whereas the Spanish side
is sparsely planted with low vegetation and dotted with pine trees. The desolate but beautiful nature of the Spanish Pyrenees is in part due to the destruction of olive groves several decades ago.
The climate year-round is that of temperate mountain regions, in particular short bursts of heavy rainfall can be expected in April and May, and stable
periods of high pressure between September through to November give clear blue skies. During the height of summer (especially August), short violent thunderstorms are a regular occurance mid-afternoon.
Occassionally, the onset of winter is heralded by a cold-snap at the start of November, however any snow usually melts away
below about 1000m altitude. Winter conditions are to be expected between January and March.
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