During the second half of June, from Sant Antoni to Sant Pere, the main festivals and pilgrimages take place in different villages of the Val d’Aran. On the 13th in Bossòst they celebrate a pilgrimage up to the Porth d’Eth Portilhon, where the Capèla de Sant Antoni is located, one of the six that surround the village. A mass and traditional dances are held there.
This is followed by the local festival of the Val d’Aran on the 17th, which commemorates the re-establishment of the current Conselh Generau d’Aran. An institutional ceremony is held at the headquarters of the Conselh Generau d’Aran and a parade to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Mijaran, with a religious ceremony and a performance of Aranese dances.
A week later, it is San Juan, in whose vigil the central acts of the Hèstes deth Huec take place, in La Crèma deth haro in Les and la Crèma deth taro in Arties, the Aranese peoples who preserve this ancient tradition so deeply rooted in the Pyrenees. Thanks to their designation by UNESCO as Intangible Heritage of Humanity, the Hèstes deth huec 2017 have become one of the main attractions of the Aranese summer.
The celebration has an ancestral origin, closely linked to the agricultural and solar cycles. It is related to the primitive rites of regeneration of natural life, of fecundity and gratitude to the gods for the success of the harvest and the arrival of the good weather.
Finally, on the 29th, through San Pedro, the “Quilha deth haro”, that is, the planting of the new Haro, took place in Les. The newlyweds have the honor of distinguishing it with a wreath of flowers, as a rite to ask for fertility. This tree presides over the old square of Les for a year, until the next night of San Juan. Around the same time, the towns of Escunhau and Gessa also celebrate their main festivals.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator