Men's Lacrosse Trip - Andorra
October 18, 2022 | Men's Lacrosse
The Princeton men’s lacrosse team has hiked up a mountain and tobogganed down another. The Tigers have walked across a suspension bridge at nearly 7,000 feet up, and they have walked across an international border.
It’s been a pretty good first three days of this current trip. The Andorran leg of the trip has been extraordinary, with a mix of local culture, spectacular mountain scenery and team-bonding experiences that none of those here are likely to forget any time soon.
Day 1 – Sunday
The Tigers took an overnight flight from Philadelphia to Barcelona, arriving in the pre-dawn darkness. The first leg of the trip required a three-hour ride into the tiny country of Andorra, an independent state since 1278. The country is known mostly as a winter ski haven, but it’s still pretty amazing in October, before the snows begin. In fact, the weather has been perfect, with sunshine and temps mostly in the 60s.
The country sits in the Pyrenees Mountains, with an average elevation of 6,549 feet. Princeton’s first experience with that elevation came on arrival Sunday, when the Tigers went straight to Naturland (no "e") before ever going to their hotel. The first two hours in the park were spent doing the various attractions, all under the watchful eye of the Pyrenees, with their spectacular views.
Those attractions included a zipline, archery and a tall structure that was sort of like a 10-meter diving platform, only into a giant fluffy landing mat. The highlight, though, was the Tobotronic. This was something special.
It's basically a one- or two-person rollercoaster, one that winds and turns and loops around and down the mountain. It's a 12-minute ride to the top, and then the driver controls the how fast or how slow you go as you take off back down, which takes about five or so minutes, depending on the driver.
Day 2 – Monday
This time, the main attraction was a suspension bridge that sits at about 6,000 feet of elevation. It’s a 2,000 meter walk across from one side to the other, on a walkway that is an open grate metal, with side rails that were maybe five feet or so off the ground. It also is about 1,000 feet above a gorge.
After the team had crossed the bridge and then returned, it was off to a small town called Pas De La Casa, which has two impressive facts about it. First, it’s the starting spot for a stage of the Tour de France, which heads up the very mountains that the team has been exploring.
Then, after lunch, the team found out the other really cool part of the town. It sits directly on the border of Andorra and France. In fact, after lunch, the team made its way down a small alley with a wooden walkway at the end, followed by a very, very narrow stream and then a field leading up to the mountain. The walkway is in Andorra. The field is in France.
Day 3 – Tuesday
The highlight of the day was a hike up one of the mountains of the Pyrenees. Eventually, Princeton would climb more than 1,500 feet up (it was the equivalent of 147 stories) the winding paths of rock and dirt, reaching a final elevation of 7,972 feet.
Along the way the team passed by three different lakes, called First Lake, Middle Lake and Highest Lake. Despite the fact that the water was freezing, it didn’t stop most of the team from jumping in at some point.
It was an arduous climb, but the scenery was well worth it.
The rest of the day was spent exploring Escaldes-Engordany, the town where the hotel is located. The team was to leave early Wednesday for the second half of the trip, in Barcelona.