Les Pyrenées-Orientales

The Pyrenées-Orientales are located in the south of France and I had the pleasure of exploring them as part of a road trip I took last summer from Munich to Bilbao. It's the southern part of the Pyrenees in France next to the Spanish border. While the region is really alpine at the peak of the Pyrenean main mountain range, I was surprised to find some interesting rock formations in the backcountry with a rather Mediterranean flair.

As we got higher, the Mediterranean vibes faded and I found it looked more like I'd imagine Canada (haven't been yet - it's on the list :D): lots of lakes and forests, open spaces, and high mountains as a backdrop.