On the occasion of the very first world day of glaciers, we go on an expedition in the Pyrenees, on the French side, to the Ossoue glacier, a giant of the ice on the way.
On the border between France and theSpainon the Vignemale massif, the highest peak of the French Pyrenees, clings to the Ossoue glacier, this Pyrenean patriarch which makes the identity and beauty of these altitude places. The Ossoue glacier is therefore the highest glacier in the French Pyrenees, but it is also a sick giant, whose ice tongue goes from 2,800 to 3,200 meters above sea level; Which is little compared to the alpine heights, moreover, in a Europe that warms up quickly, too fast.
Up there, often far from looks, the rise in temperatures is even stronger than in against: about two degrees and the landscape changes radically, the ice giving way to a large desert of stones, scree and moraines. Thus, since 1850, the glacier Pyrenean lost 90% of their volume and the phenomenon continues. But for 20 years, this phenomenon has been measured, examined, scrutinized by Pierre René, founder of the Pyrenean association of “Moraine” glaciology and all his team of volunteers.
On March 21, the very first world day of glaciers took place in this year 2025, also devoted “International Year of the Preservation of Glaciers” by United Nations. This initiative aims to make the world aware of the crucial importance of these ice giants, placed in the forefront of global warmingand whose protection depends the survival of our planet and our ecosystems. So to talk about it, we decided to set in motion and go on an expedition to the Ossoue glacier, in bivouac at the top, in the company of Pyreneist enthusiasts, members of the Moraine association, in order to take stock of the state of the glacier …
A report by Orgeval Sibylle.
Find out more:
– On The Moraine AssociationPyrenean association of glaciology founded by Pierre René
– On the photographer Grégoire Eloy collective Fuzzy trend. His “third nature” work is in exposure at the Champs Libres, in Rennes, from March 7 to September 21, 2025, and a book is published at Textual editions
– on the Pyreneism and Henry Russellinventor of exploration pyreneism
– On World Glacier Day of which the first edition takes place on March 21, 2025.