Cauterets (; in Occitan Cautarés, in Catalan Cautarés, in Aragonese Cautarès) is a spa town, a ski resort and a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department and the region of Occitanie in south-western France. Geography Cauterets is located southwest of Lourdes and borders the Pyrenees National Park. Surrounded by the high mountains of the Pyrenees, the commune of Cauterets spreads in the narrow valley of the , a mountain stream extending from the and the and their tributaries, the and the . The village gives access to many hiking trails serving natural sights, such as the Pic de Péguère at . Meanwhile, Gaube Lake is approximately 1hr and 30 minutes walk from Cauterets or can be accessed by a chairlift from the Pont d'Espagne, a settlement on a mountainside crossed by a waterfall. Also nearby is Petit Vignemale at , and the small Massif de la Fruitière. The is also accessible by cable car from where there are panoramic views over the Pyrenees. Cauterets is also a regular stopover for walkers travelling on the coast to coast Pyrenean GR10 walking route. The minimum altitude, , is located in the north, where the Gave de Cauterets leaves the communal area and enters that of Soulom. The maximum elevation of corresponds to the highest point of the French Pyrénées, Vignemale, marking the . Other summits in the neighbourhood include the Monné at , the Cabaliros at and the Pic de Chabarrou at . Neighbouring Communes The extensive commune of Cauterets is bordered by Spain to southwest and fourteen communes in France. Springs Cauterets is well known for its copious thermal springs. They are chiefly characterized by the presence of sulphur and silicate of soda, and are used in the treatment of diseases of the respiratory organs, rheumatism, skin diseases and many other maladies. The main thermal baths, Thermes Cesar, were opened in 1843 and continue to offer treatments today. Climate Cauterets has a oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb). The average annual temperature in Cauterets is . The average annual rainfall is with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Cauterets was on 18 August 2012; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 11 February 1956. Toponymy Key information can be found in the Dictionnaire toponymique de communes des Hautes Pyrénées