The Ordesa valley floor and the Faja trails — narrow paths cut along the cliff faces high above the valley — are the classic walk, and the ledges are where Pyrenean chamois are most easily seen, often at close range.

The cliffs and thermals hold the raptors the Pyrenees are known for: griffon vultures in numbers, Egyptian vultures in summer, golden eagle, and the bearded vulture — the lammergeier that drops bones onto rock to break them — which has one of its European strongholds here.

The high limestone above the treeline holds alpine marmot, snow vole, and the alpine accentors and wallcreepers that birders climb for. Wallcreeper on the canyon walls is one of the park's prizes.

The beech and fir forest lower down holds roe deer, wild boar, black woodpecker and, very rarely seen, the Pyrenean desman — a bizarre aquatic mole-relative in the mountain streams.

The Añisclo and Escuaín canyons are the quiet alternatives, narrower and wilder, with the same species and almost no one on the paths.

June to September is the walking season; snow closes the high routes for much of the year. Autumn brings the deer rut and the best colours.

Practicalities

Torla is the gateway for Ordesa, and in the busy summer months private cars are banned from the valley road — a shuttle bus runs from the village instead. Book accommodation in Torla or Broto well ahead for August.

The weather turns fast at altitude and the canyon walks have serious exposure in places. The Brecha de Rolando and the routes onto Monte Perdido are mountaineering rather than hiking.