Sunday 18 May
After a slow start to the day, we had a very lazy Sunday. I caught up with the blog and did some hotel reviews on the computer and Lynn read. We ate lunch outside the tent and went to the campsite restaurant for dinner. During the day, it clouded over and the sea got quite rough, we could hear it from the tent.
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Central Corsica
Saturday 17 May
We woke up fairly early again, I guess it is early to bed, early to rise whilst camping!
We bought bread from the campsite shop which opened for the season today. After eating, we headed out in the car searching for the seemingly elusive Corsican Nuthatch, Wallcreeper and Lammergeier in the mountains.
After a brief stop in Ghisonaccia for the post office and bank, we headed inland on the D344 heading toward the village of St Antoine. The road was dead straight all the way to the village but liberally peppered with speed humps which seem to infest the island everywhere you go. This may be a reflection on the driving style of the locals who seem to drive over the speed humps without slowing down anyway. No-one takes any notice of the 30kph speed limits!
From St Antoine, the read got rather twisty and started climbing into the mountains. Soon, the cliff walls started closing in and we entered the Defile de l'Inzecca. This gorge is very scenic with the river tumbling down below and sheer cliffs either side of the road. None of the birds we were looking for were seen here!
The road went through a tunnel and then the valley opened out again. After Sampolo, the cliffs closed in again as we climbed up to the village of Ghisoni. We joined another road here, the D69 and stared climbing again in amongst pine trees. We stopped at a bend in the road to look for birds, but only found Spotted Flycatchers. Eventually the road topped out at the Col de Sorba at 1311M, surrounded by mountains well over 2000M high.
From here, the road dropped down to join the main road, the N193, at Col de la Serra at a lowly height of 807M! The views from the large layby just north of the road junction was a huge panorama along the Vecchio valley. The railway line between Ajaccio and Bastia passes through here and it must be a very scenic journey as the line winds around the moutains. Still no birds!
The main road then dropped down, passing through Venaco before another pass, the Col de Bellagranajo at 723M. From there it was only about 10km to the town, or is it a city, of Corte/Corti.
Most of the places in Corsica have French placenames as well as Corsican placenames, I believe that Corsican is a version of Ligurian, spoken in Genoa. This is because between the Genoans and Pisans ruled Corsica until the late 18th century. Eventually, it became part of France, and to this date is department 2A, Corse du Sud and 2B, Haute Corse. The local separatist movement, the FLNC (The National Liberation Front of Corsica), is quite active and has therefore spray-painted over the French placenames on most signposts. This sometimes makes it difficult to navigate using a French map!
Another hazard of driving in Corsica is that farm animals graze where they want, which includes on the roads, or roadsides. So far, we have encountered innumerable cows and a large flock of goats. Today, we met a small group of cows which include a rather large bull who gave us a grumpy gaze as we slowly inched past.
We managed to park easily, close to the centre of Corte and walked to the mains square, dominated by a statue of Pasquale Paoli, who led the liberation movement in the 18th century. We found a sunny restaurant in the square and enjoyed an excellent dinner. I had a green salad followed by Canelloni Briocciu washed down with beer. Lynn had a salad and half a cow for her lunch! It was certainly a huge entrecote steak anyway. Briocciu is a pungent local sheeps cheese, one of our guidebooks describes it as 'eye-wateringly strong', but I didn't find it so. It is sold as a soft cheese, like fromage frais and also in harder, more mature 'lumps' of cheese.
After lunch, we followed the D623 up the Gorge de la Restonica. This 15km long, no-through road is very narrow and much of the road is unprotected from the gorge below; it is probably not for the faint-hearted driver. Corte lies at 440M above sea-level and the Restonica road fairly rapidly climbs to 1260M. There are places to pull off the road for the the first 11km, but the final 4km is a no stopping zone with just a few passing places. About a kilometre from the end of the road, in May 2014, the road is blocked by a huge landslide which has not only taken out the road, but the bridge crossing the Restonica river too. There is plenty of parking just before the landslide which appears to be free. Supposedly, at the end of the road is the Bergeries de Grotelle and a paying carpark (!) and a snack-bar. The snack-bar is advertised as being a 20 minute walk along rough tracks from the landslide.
The road is very beautiful with loads of wild Hellebores and Cyclamens growing everywhere. The wild flowers were very beautiful but no birds of note except for Coal Tits. We even scoured the rock faces for Mouflons, but no luck.
Once back in Corte, we decided to head back to the coast and took the main road the N200 and drove the 30km down to Aleria. The road is quite a fast road and had little traffic on it. Once back on the coast, we joined the N198 for the 15km journey back to Ghisonaccia.
After a brief stop at the supermarket to buy bread for tea, we returned to the campsite and sat outside until almost 9-o-clock.
We woke up fairly early again, I guess it is early to bed, early to rise whilst camping!
We bought bread from the campsite shop which opened for the season today. After eating, we headed out in the car searching for the seemingly elusive Corsican Nuthatch, Wallcreeper and Lammergeier in the mountains.
After a brief stop in Ghisonaccia for the post office and bank, we headed inland on the D344 heading toward the village of St Antoine. The road was dead straight all the way to the village but liberally peppered with speed humps which seem to infest the island everywhere you go. This may be a reflection on the driving style of the locals who seem to drive over the speed humps without slowing down anyway. No-one takes any notice of the 30kph speed limits!
From St Antoine, the read got rather twisty and started climbing into the mountains. Soon, the cliff walls started closing in and we entered the Defile de l'Inzecca. This gorge is very scenic with the river tumbling down below and sheer cliffs either side of the road. None of the birds we were looking for were seen here!
The road went through a tunnel and then the valley opened out again. After Sampolo, the cliffs closed in again as we climbed up to the village of Ghisoni. We joined another road here, the D69 and stared climbing again in amongst pine trees. We stopped at a bend in the road to look for birds, but only found Spotted Flycatchers. Eventually the road topped out at the Col de Sorba at 1311M, surrounded by mountains well over 2000M high.
From here, the road dropped down to join the main road, the N193, at Col de la Serra at a lowly height of 807M! The views from the large layby just north of the road junction was a huge panorama along the Vecchio valley. The railway line between Ajaccio and Bastia passes through here and it must be a very scenic journey as the line winds around the moutains. Still no birds!
The main road then dropped down, passing through Venaco before another pass, the Col de Bellagranajo at 723M. From there it was only about 10km to the town, or is it a city, of Corte/Corti.
Most of the places in Corsica have French placenames as well as Corsican placenames, I believe that Corsican is a version of Ligurian, spoken in Genoa. This is because between the Genoans and Pisans ruled Corsica until the late 18th century. Eventually, it became part of France, and to this date is department 2A, Corse du Sud and 2B, Haute Corse. The local separatist movement, the FLNC (The National Liberation Front of Corsica), is quite active and has therefore spray-painted over the French placenames on most signposts. This sometimes makes it difficult to navigate using a French map!
Another hazard of driving in Corsica is that farm animals graze where they want, which includes on the roads, or roadsides. So far, we have encountered innumerable cows and a large flock of goats. Today, we met a small group of cows which include a rather large bull who gave us a grumpy gaze as we slowly inched past.
We managed to park easily, close to the centre of Corte and walked to the mains square, dominated by a statue of Pasquale Paoli, who led the liberation movement in the 18th century. We found a sunny restaurant in the square and enjoyed an excellent dinner. I had a green salad followed by Canelloni Briocciu washed down with beer. Lynn had a salad and half a cow for her lunch! It was certainly a huge entrecote steak anyway. Briocciu is a pungent local sheeps cheese, one of our guidebooks describes it as 'eye-wateringly strong', but I didn't find it so. It is sold as a soft cheese, like fromage frais and also in harder, more mature 'lumps' of cheese.
After lunch, we followed the D623 up the Gorge de la Restonica. This 15km long, no-through road is very narrow and much of the road is unprotected from the gorge below; it is probably not for the faint-hearted driver. Corte lies at 440M above sea-level and the Restonica road fairly rapidly climbs to 1260M. There are places to pull off the road for the the first 11km, but the final 4km is a no stopping zone with just a few passing places. About a kilometre from the end of the road, in May 2014, the road is blocked by a huge landslide which has not only taken out the road, but the bridge crossing the Restonica river too. There is plenty of parking just before the landslide which appears to be free. Supposedly, at the end of the road is the Bergeries de Grotelle and a paying carpark (!) and a snack-bar. The snack-bar is advertised as being a 20 minute walk along rough tracks from the landslide.
The road is very beautiful with loads of wild Hellebores and Cyclamens growing everywhere. The wild flowers were very beautiful but no birds of note except for Coal Tits. We even scoured the rock faces for Mouflons, but no luck.
Once back in Corte, we decided to head back to the coast and took the main road the N200 and drove the 30km down to Aleria. The road is quite a fast road and had little traffic on it. Once back on the coast, we joined the N198 for the 15km journey back to Ghisonaccia.
After a brief stop at the supermarket to buy bread for tea, we returned to the campsite and sat outside until almost 9-o-clock.
Making the most of the weather
Friday 16 May
Having studied the weather forecast, we decided that we would have a lazy day at the campsite today.
We had to drive out to the local SPAR shop to buy bread for breakfast, the shop is about a kilometre away. We sat outside and ate breakfast and then organised ourselves to spend the day at the "Espace Bien Etre" or Balneo. This cost us the princely sum of 5 Euros each.
We think that this facility on the campsite is a new addition this year and consists of an irregularly shaped pool with lots of water jets. There are various bubbling water beds, bubble pools and meandering streams and bridges to swim in and sun loungers and sun shades around the pool area. The water was clearly heated too which made it rather pleasant.
The campsite also boasts a small spa with Hamman and Sauna - we subsequently found out it was 25 Euros for a brief visit - not good value for money.
At lunchtime, we returned to the tent to eat and then returned to the Balneo for the afternoon. The weather was mainly sunny and warm until mid-afternoon when is started to cloud over and a cool breeze picked up.
At around 4-o-clock, we returned to the tent for a drink and got changed out of our swimming things.
After lazing around for a couple of hours and catching up with the travel diary which may become a blog (you will know this by now), we headed up to the beach and the campsite restaurant.
The menu was fairly extensive, although the waiter explained that there were 4 or 5 things not available. Pizzas were definitely available from a wood-burning oven - yippee! The pizzas were delicious, thin base, nice and crusty and wonderful traditional toppings. We also enjoyed the dance troupe practising for their summer routine on the outdoor stage. Luckily for us, the entertainment programme doesn't start until the 24th May - after we have left!
The other entertainment was the huge numbers of swallows flying in and out of the restaurant which is open to the elements. I'm sure when architect designed this building, which is very nice, he or she had no idea it would have become colonised by swallows in the summer. You just have to hope that nothing drops into your dinner....
Having studied the weather forecast, we decided that we would have a lazy day at the campsite today.
We had to drive out to the local SPAR shop to buy bread for breakfast, the shop is about a kilometre away. We sat outside and ate breakfast and then organised ourselves to spend the day at the "Espace Bien Etre" or Balneo. This cost us the princely sum of 5 Euros each.
We think that this facility on the campsite is a new addition this year and consists of an irregularly shaped pool with lots of water jets. There are various bubbling water beds, bubble pools and meandering streams and bridges to swim in and sun loungers and sun shades around the pool area. The water was clearly heated too which made it rather pleasant.
The campsite also boasts a small spa with Hamman and Sauna - we subsequently found out it was 25 Euros for a brief visit - not good value for money.
At lunchtime, we returned to the tent to eat and then returned to the Balneo for the afternoon. The weather was mainly sunny and warm until mid-afternoon when is started to cloud over and a cool breeze picked up.
At around 4-o-clock, we returned to the tent for a drink and got changed out of our swimming things.
After lazing around for a couple of hours and catching up with the travel diary which may become a blog (you will know this by now), we headed up to the beach and the campsite restaurant.
The menu was fairly extensive, although the waiter explained that there were 4 or 5 things not available. Pizzas were definitely available from a wood-burning oven - yippee! The pizzas were delicious, thin base, nice and crusty and wonderful traditional toppings. We also enjoyed the dance troupe practising for their summer routine on the outdoor stage. Luckily for us, the entertainment programme doesn't start until the 24th May - after we have left!
The other entertainment was the huge numbers of swallows flying in and out of the restaurant which is open to the elements. I'm sure when architect designed this building, which is very nice, he or she had no idea it would have become colonised by swallows in the summer. You just have to hope that nothing drops into your dinner....
Heading north up the east coast of Corsica
Thursday 15 May
Bonifacio - Ghisonaccia
We were awoken just before 7am by bells ringing in the close vicinity of the tent. On investigation, it turned out to be a flock of sheep wandering around the campsite.
Since we were awake, we got up, showered, ate some breakfast and packed up the tent and loaded the car. There was a slight breeze, but it was sunny and relatively warm.
From the campsite, we returned to the main road the N198 via the smaller D60. Once on the main road, we crossed the impressively named Col de Permentile at a very unimpressive altitude of 45 metres! After this, we got a move on as the road is very straight for miles.
We made a detour to look at the beach at Santa Guilia just south of Port-Vecchio. It is a beautiful cove with azure water surrounded by white and beach - it looked very inviting, but as it was before 9 in the morning we decided to carry on.
Turning into Porto-Vecchio, we initially followed signs to the port, but it wasn't very impressive so continued into the old town above the more modern port. We were lucky and found a parking place very close to the town centre and from there walked in to the main town square. It is very pretty and we found a cafe to sit and enjoy a coffee - well I did! There are many small shops selling local produce and the wonderful smells coming from some of them wafted out onto the street tantalizing the nose. Mostly this was from the wonderful smoked meats hanging from the ceilings of the shops. Charcuterie is a speciality of Corsica.
Moving on from Porto-Vecchio, we continued on up the main road passing through a number of small villages and the slightly larger Solenzara before passing the French Air Force base at Travo. Not long after this, we arrived in the edge of Ghisonaccia, a fairly non-descript modern town. Here, we turned off onto the 'Rue de la Mer'and after 5 km found outselves outside the Arinella Bianca campsite.
This campsite turned out to be a very well kept and rather upmarket place, but the pitches looked good and we found one we liked and moved in!
After erecting the tent and having lunch, I had a wander around the campsite and found the sandy beach, which was almost deserted, the bar, the restaurant and 'Well-being' facility which will be described tomorrow. There was also a Sauna and Hamman which hadn't opened for the season. I also found the shop which will open on Saturday 17 May.
We then drove back into Ghisonaccia and found a large LeClerc and did a bit of shopping for an evening meal.
Although it was less windy than the last couple of day and we were able to sit outside for a while using the wifi internet, it was certainly cool by the time we went to bed.
Bonifacio - Ghisonaccia
We were awoken just before 7am by bells ringing in the close vicinity of the tent. On investigation, it turned out to be a flock of sheep wandering around the campsite.
Since we were awake, we got up, showered, ate some breakfast and packed up the tent and loaded the car. There was a slight breeze, but it was sunny and relatively warm.
From the campsite, we returned to the main road the N198 via the smaller D60. Once on the main road, we crossed the impressively named Col de Permentile at a very unimpressive altitude of 45 metres! After this, we got a move on as the road is very straight for miles.
We made a detour to look at the beach at Santa Guilia just south of Port-Vecchio. It is a beautiful cove with azure water surrounded by white and beach - it looked very inviting, but as it was before 9 in the morning we decided to carry on.
Turning into Porto-Vecchio, we initially followed signs to the port, but it wasn't very impressive so continued into the old town above the more modern port. We were lucky and found a parking place very close to the town centre and from there walked in to the main town square. It is very pretty and we found a cafe to sit and enjoy a coffee - well I did! There are many small shops selling local produce and the wonderful smells coming from some of them wafted out onto the street tantalizing the nose. Mostly this was from the wonderful smoked meats hanging from the ceilings of the shops. Charcuterie is a speciality of Corsica.
Moving on from Porto-Vecchio, we continued on up the main road passing through a number of small villages and the slightly larger Solenzara before passing the French Air Force base at Travo. Not long after this, we arrived in the edge of Ghisonaccia, a fairly non-descript modern town. Here, we turned off onto the 'Rue de la Mer'and after 5 km found outselves outside the Arinella Bianca campsite.
This campsite turned out to be a very well kept and rather upmarket place, but the pitches looked good and we found one we liked and moved in!
After erecting the tent and having lunch, I had a wander around the campsite and found the sandy beach, which was almost deserted, the bar, the restaurant and 'Well-being' facility which will be described tomorrow. There was also a Sauna and Hamman which hadn't opened for the season. I also found the shop which will open on Saturday 17 May.
We then drove back into Ghisonaccia and found a large LeClerc and did a bit of shopping for an evening meal.
Although it was less windy than the last couple of day and we were able to sit outside for a while using the wifi internet, it was certainly cool by the time we went to bed.
Bonifacio
Wednesday 14 May
The wind died down overnight and we awoke to sunny skies and it was warm enough to sit outside. We hadn't organised any bread for breakfast, so after showering, we drove into Bonifacio and found a car park up near the citadel and old town.
We walked into the old town, about 5 minutes away, and eventually found a cafe that was selling 'pain au chocolat' and went in for breakfast. The entrance was on a small street, but we walked back though the cafe to an enclosed balcony that had been constructed overlooking the sea below. When I say below, I mean directly below as the balcony was just hung on the outside wall of the cafe perched onto the top of the cliff. An interesting view and but not one for those of a nervous disposition!
Following this, Lynn when for a slow wander back to the car, whilst I went exploring the old town. It is a maze of small streets and minuscule squares with churches sprouting out of nowhere. I found very the impressive main gate, complete with drawbridge and massive doors and fortifications, the view from here down to the port is very impressive. From the there, I climbed up onto the ramparts which cost 2.50 Euros for even more amazing view. Near the top of the highest tower was an opening in wall which led down steep steps to the inside of the tower. Here had been arranged a number of diaramas describing the history of the town.
Back out in the sunshine, I followed the streets back out to the citadel which was occupied by the French Foreign Legion Parachute Regiment until they moved to Calvi in 1966. I found Lynn wandering along the road enjoying the view over the harbour. I continue on right out to the furthest point and looked down to the very narrow entrance to Bonifacio harbour and the lighthouse on the opposite headland.
We headed back in the car to the carpark down by the harbour and settled on a restaurant for lunch. We enjoyed Moules Frites and a small beer sitting in the sunshine by the port and all for 12 Euros each - not bad. We enjoyed watching the endless streams of coach trippers being led around by their guide. First onto a boat for a sightseeing tour of the cliffs and then herded off to get on the 'Noddy Train' to be delivered to the old town high about the harbour!
Back on the campsite, we sat around in the sunshine for a while, it was much more pleasant now that the wind had dropped.
Later in the afternoon, we got back in the car and headed up the coast to the Baie de Rondinara. This is a picture perfect shallow bay surrounded by sandy beaches. We settled down to sit on a blanket for an hour. There were quite a few people there, but it wasn't the least crowded but we imagine that in the season, it would be quite busy. The car-park normally charges for parking too.
When we returned to the campsite, we found that a huge motorhome had parked almost in front of our tent - we were most unimpressed. The vehicle wasn't on a marked pitch and certainly made us feel somewhat hemmed in.
The wind died down overnight and we awoke to sunny skies and it was warm enough to sit outside. We hadn't organised any bread for breakfast, so after showering, we drove into Bonifacio and found a car park up near the citadel and old town.
We walked into the old town, about 5 minutes away, and eventually found a cafe that was selling 'pain au chocolat' and went in for breakfast. The entrance was on a small street, but we walked back though the cafe to an enclosed balcony that had been constructed overlooking the sea below. When I say below, I mean directly below as the balcony was just hung on the outside wall of the cafe perched onto the top of the cliff. An interesting view and but not one for those of a nervous disposition!
Following this, Lynn when for a slow wander back to the car, whilst I went exploring the old town. It is a maze of small streets and minuscule squares with churches sprouting out of nowhere. I found very the impressive main gate, complete with drawbridge and massive doors and fortifications, the view from here down to the port is very impressive. From the there, I climbed up onto the ramparts which cost 2.50 Euros for even more amazing view. Near the top of the highest tower was an opening in wall which led down steep steps to the inside of the tower. Here had been arranged a number of diaramas describing the history of the town.
Back out in the sunshine, I followed the streets back out to the citadel which was occupied by the French Foreign Legion Parachute Regiment until they moved to Calvi in 1966. I found Lynn wandering along the road enjoying the view over the harbour. I continue on right out to the furthest point and looked down to the very narrow entrance to Bonifacio harbour and the lighthouse on the opposite headland.
We headed back in the car to the carpark down by the harbour and settled on a restaurant for lunch. We enjoyed Moules Frites and a small beer sitting in the sunshine by the port and all for 12 Euros each - not bad. We enjoyed watching the endless streams of coach trippers being led around by their guide. First onto a boat for a sightseeing tour of the cliffs and then herded off to get on the 'Noddy Train' to be delivered to the old town high about the harbour!
Back on the campsite, we sat around in the sunshine for a while, it was much more pleasant now that the wind had dropped.
Later in the afternoon, we got back in the car and headed up the coast to the Baie de Rondinara. This is a picture perfect shallow bay surrounded by sandy beaches. We settled down to sit on a blanket for an hour. There were quite a few people there, but it wasn't the least crowded but we imagine that in the season, it would be quite busy. The car-park normally charges for parking too.
When we returned to the campsite, we found that a huge motorhome had parked almost in front of our tent - we were most unimpressed. The vehicle wasn't on a marked pitch and certainly made us feel somewhat hemmed in.
Monday, May 26, 2014
To the Southern tip of Corsica
Tuesday 13 May
We were awake before seven and quickly packed up the tent and drove off the site. We stopped at the shops just outside and bought some 'pain au raisin'. Lynn was most unhappy with hers as she thought it was more like a cake.
From the campsite, we joined the N196, the main road heading south down the middle of the island heading towards Bonifacio. The road was fairly busy and immediately started climbing up into the mountains. Today, there seemed to be road-works in just about every village we passed through, the first being Suarella. Fortunately, the road had overtaking lanes on the uphill stretches so it wasn't too bad a trip to the top of the Col de St-Georges at 747M.
From here the road headed back down to the Taravo river valley before climbing again through Petreto-Bicchisano and on to the Col de Celaccia at 582M. From here, it was all downhill to the coastal town of Propriano which we didn't stop at.
Continuing over another pass, Col de Sta. Guilla at 80M we then followed the Rizzanese river for a while before the climb up to Sartene high up in the hills. Sartene is famous locally for its wine.
The road headed south through the mountains until it got down to the Gulf of Roccapina where we got views over the sea again before heading back inland through Pianottoli-Caldarello and back to the coast.
We'd noticed that although it was very sunny, the wind was getting up and we really noticed it when we stopped for a brief walk near Tonnara. The bay was beautiful, but the wind was very strong and quite cool.
We bypassed Bonifacio on the D60 and continued until it turned right and became the D58. Not far down here we found a campsite. We had a wander around, and then after asking, set up the tent on a pitch under some trees but with a view. We had great trouble getting any pegs in, and the campsite then told us the pitch was built on aa concrete slab! We moved one site over and successfully erected the tent.
Having done this, it was clearly lunchtime, so we headed into the port at Bonifacio. By now the wind was really strong and quite unpleasant, but we managed to find a restaurant where we could sit outside out of the wind. For a change, we had their 'special' which was cheeseburger in a panini with a glass of Heinekin!
We had a brief wander around and ate an icecream before returning to the campsite. We sat outside for a while, but it was very windy, in the sun it was warm enough, but out of the sun in the wind it felt quite chilly.
After dinner, we drove down to the coast to see if we could see any evening birdlife. We followed a very small road described as dangerous in the Rough Guide, towards a lighthouse on Capo Pertusato. The road went between some fortifications and we stopped in an old French fort which was derelict. We had a wander around but no birds to be seen. We carried on to the lighthouse then turned back into town.
Next, we followed the signs to Plage de Piantarella, this road had some very nice houses and also an exclusive golf course. At the end was a pretty bay and beach, but at dusk it felt distinctly chilly. The beach looked out to the Lavezzi archipeligo and Sardinia across the strait. The water her is very dangerous with odd tides, nasty shifting wind and strong currents. A troop ship sunk here en route to the Crimea with over 770 French troops drowned, perhaps the worst shipping disaster the Mediterranean has known.
We were awake before seven and quickly packed up the tent and drove off the site. We stopped at the shops just outside and bought some 'pain au raisin'. Lynn was most unhappy with hers as she thought it was more like a cake.
From the campsite, we joined the N196, the main road heading south down the middle of the island heading towards Bonifacio. The road was fairly busy and immediately started climbing up into the mountains. Today, there seemed to be road-works in just about every village we passed through, the first being Suarella. Fortunately, the road had overtaking lanes on the uphill stretches so it wasn't too bad a trip to the top of the Col de St-Georges at 747M.
From here the road headed back down to the Taravo river valley before climbing again through Petreto-Bicchisano and on to the Col de Celaccia at 582M. From here, it was all downhill to the coastal town of Propriano which we didn't stop at.
Continuing over another pass, Col de Sta. Guilla at 80M we then followed the Rizzanese river for a while before the climb up to Sartene high up in the hills. Sartene is famous locally for its wine.
The road headed south through the mountains until it got down to the Gulf of Roccapina where we got views over the sea again before heading back inland through Pianottoli-Caldarello and back to the coast.
We'd noticed that although it was very sunny, the wind was getting up and we really noticed it when we stopped for a brief walk near Tonnara. The bay was beautiful, but the wind was very strong and quite cool.
We bypassed Bonifacio on the D60 and continued until it turned right and became the D58. Not far down here we found a campsite. We had a wander around, and then after asking, set up the tent on a pitch under some trees but with a view. We had great trouble getting any pegs in, and the campsite then told us the pitch was built on aa concrete slab! We moved one site over and successfully erected the tent.
Having done this, it was clearly lunchtime, so we headed into the port at Bonifacio. By now the wind was really strong and quite unpleasant, but we managed to find a restaurant where we could sit outside out of the wind. For a change, we had their 'special' which was cheeseburger in a panini with a glass of Heinekin!
We had a brief wander around and ate an icecream before returning to the campsite. We sat outside for a while, but it was very windy, in the sun it was warm enough, but out of the sun in the wind it felt quite chilly.
After dinner, we drove down to the coast to see if we could see any evening birdlife. We followed a very small road described as dangerous in the Rough Guide, towards a lighthouse on Capo Pertusato. The road went between some fortifications and we stopped in an old French fort which was derelict. We had a wander around but no birds to be seen. We carried on to the lighthouse then turned back into town.
Next, we followed the signs to Plage de Piantarella, this road had some very nice houses and also an exclusive golf course. At the end was a pretty bay and beach, but at dusk it felt distinctly chilly. The beach looked out to the Lavezzi archipeligo and Sardinia across the strait. The water her is very dangerous with odd tides, nasty shifting wind and strong currents. A troop ship sunk here en route to the Crimea with over 770 French troops drowned, perhaps the worst shipping disaster the Mediterranean has known.
Secret Operations on the Coast
Monday 12 May
We had a bit of a lie in and then got moving around 8-o-clock. I went and bought bread from the shop just outside the campsite and we had breakfast sitting outside again.
After breakfast, we went exploring the local area. We briefly rejoined the main road, the N196 before turning off near Pisciatello onto the D302. This road, marked as a scenic route, wound its way through scrub covered hills to a small pass, the Col de Bellevalle at 465M. The road then squiggled its way all the way down to a small river and then back to the village of Bisinao before climbing up to another pass, the Col de Aja Bastiano at 600M. From here, the road was all downhill following the river Taravo down to the coast near Propriano.
The route we took from here, followed the coast back towards Porticcio. Firstly, we joined the D155 along a narrow road and then turned off down the D155a to a pretty bay at Plage de Cupabia. It was rather windy here, but it was clearly a rather nice place to spent some time on a beach. There was a memorial to a team of Frenchmen caught during WW2 trying to aid the allies.
[Internet research tells me that on 6th Feb 1943, a Royal Navy submarine, HMS Saracen P247 under the command of Lt M G R Lumby, landed 3 men, Guy Verstraete (aka Vlaminck aka Vernuge), a Belgian Naval officer and wireless operator for this mission, Antoine Colonna d'Istria and Charles Simon Andrei, at a beach near Scogliu Biancu, Cupabia Bay. Verstraete and Andrei were arrested on 12 Apr 1942 and executed on 06 July 1942. Two other people accused of assisting were deported to a prison in Italy where they were killed in a air-raid in 1944.]
After that, we rejoined the D155 and continued following the coast. There were some great views of the coast as we climbed up over headlands but nowhere to stop for a coffee which was a shame. Finally, we ended up back at Porticcio where we did manage to get a drink!
After briefly returning to the campsite, we decided to go into Ajaccio which is the current Capitol of Corsica. It is quiet a large town, perhaps a city. We managed to negotiate the traffic and some very narrow streets before finding a parking place right down by the marina. We walked up into the old town and found a cafe for lunch on Place Foch, the centre of the old town.
After lunch we had a short walk around the marina before heading to Decathalon for a look around and on to a large Carrefour where we bought an electric coolbox that runs on mains and also car battery. It will save trying to get the freezer blocks refrozen daily.
Back on the campsite we sat around and relaxed and wandered around the site bird watching in the evening.
We had a bit of a lie in and then got moving around 8-o-clock. I went and bought bread from the shop just outside the campsite and we had breakfast sitting outside again.
After breakfast, we went exploring the local area. We briefly rejoined the main road, the N196 before turning off near Pisciatello onto the D302. This road, marked as a scenic route, wound its way through scrub covered hills to a small pass, the Col de Bellevalle at 465M. The road then squiggled its way all the way down to a small river and then back to the village of Bisinao before climbing up to another pass, the Col de Aja Bastiano at 600M. From here, the road was all downhill following the river Taravo down to the coast near Propriano.
The route we took from here, followed the coast back towards Porticcio. Firstly, we joined the D155 along a narrow road and then turned off down the D155a to a pretty bay at Plage de Cupabia. It was rather windy here, but it was clearly a rather nice place to spent some time on a beach. There was a memorial to a team of Frenchmen caught during WW2 trying to aid the allies.
[Internet research tells me that on 6th Feb 1943, a Royal Navy submarine, HMS Saracen P247 under the command of Lt M G R Lumby, landed 3 men, Guy Verstraete (aka Vlaminck aka Vernuge), a Belgian Naval officer and wireless operator for this mission, Antoine Colonna d'Istria and Charles Simon Andrei, at a beach near Scogliu Biancu, Cupabia Bay. Verstraete and Andrei were arrested on 12 Apr 1942 and executed on 06 July 1942. Two other people accused of assisting were deported to a prison in Italy where they were killed in a air-raid in 1944.]
After that, we rejoined the D155 and continued following the coast. There were some great views of the coast as we climbed up over headlands but nowhere to stop for a coffee which was a shame. Finally, we ended up back at Porticcio where we did manage to get a drink!
After briefly returning to the campsite, we decided to go into Ajaccio which is the current Capitol of Corsica. It is quiet a large town, perhaps a city. We managed to negotiate the traffic and some very narrow streets before finding a parking place right down by the marina. We walked up into the old town and found a cafe for lunch on Place Foch, the centre of the old town.
After lunch we had a short walk around the marina before heading to Decathalon for a look around and on to a large Carrefour where we bought an electric coolbox that runs on mains and also car battery. It will save trying to get the freezer blocks refrozen daily.
Back on the campsite we sat around and relaxed and wandered around the site bird watching in the evening.
South to Ajaccio
Sunday 11 May
As we were moving today, we got up fairly early and got the tent packed up and ready to go. Before packing it all in the car, we got some bread for breakfast and ate before we packed the chairs and table.
Once off the camp site we headed down the D81 again towards Galeria, the route we had taken yesterday. We briefly called in at Galeria as I had lost my glasses and wanted to see if I'd left them there - no such luck.
Into new territory, we continued south down the D81 heading towards Osani. First the road wriggled and climbed up to the Col de Palmerella at 408M and then down to the Col de la Croix at 269M. Although many of these passes don't seem very high compared to Alpine passes, the Corsican ones are quite often right on the coast and 400 metres directly above the sea is very spectacular.
The views from the next stretch of road were particularly good looking towards Porto. The road winding around the cliffs and over headlands with the sea hundreds of metres below most of the time.
When we got to Porto, we drove into town, parked close to the sea and sat and had a drink at a cafe overlooking the town and the impressive fort or watchtower.
Suitably fortified, we headed back up to the cliff-tops and travelled along a section of the road known as Les Calanques, which refer to the rocky inlets below. It is very touristy and there were several coaches manouevering along the narrow winding road so we didn't stop. One cafe we passed had a long line of coach travellers standing in a queue waiting to use the toilet! The joys of coach travel.
The road continued south through Cargese and Sagone, famous for its wines. Not long afterwards we stopped on a headland near Liamone and walked to some picnic tables to eat our lunch. We had no sooner started eating than it started to spit with rain. We had seen the dark clouds but thought we were ahead of them. This very brief shower lasting for no more than five minutes exactly coincided with the time we were eating - what are the chances of that especially as it was the only rain we had encountered the whole time we had been on the island!
After lunch we climbed up to the Col de Bastiano at 411M and then the Col de Listincone at 232M before dropping down to sea-level on the approach to Ajaccio.
We managed to avoid going through town and found our campsite near Porticcio very easily and after a quick look around decided to stop. The site was very shady but had nice pitches so we set up tent.
We then set out to explore the immediate area and drove along the coast through Porticcio to Ile de Isoletta and Verghia. To us, Porticcio was a bit too touristy, like a sort of French/Italian Skegness, but with nicer restaurants. As it was Sunday, everybody was out and about so it was really crowded so we gave up and returned to the campsite.
Later, we went back to Porticcio and had a wonderful wood-fired oven cooked pizza at a restaurant right on the beach.
As we were moving today, we got up fairly early and got the tent packed up and ready to go. Before packing it all in the car, we got some bread for breakfast and ate before we packed the chairs and table.
Once off the camp site we headed down the D81 again towards Galeria, the route we had taken yesterday. We briefly called in at Galeria as I had lost my glasses and wanted to see if I'd left them there - no such luck.
Into new territory, we continued south down the D81 heading towards Osani. First the road wriggled and climbed up to the Col de Palmerella at 408M and then down to the Col de la Croix at 269M. Although many of these passes don't seem very high compared to Alpine passes, the Corsican ones are quite often right on the coast and 400 metres directly above the sea is very spectacular.
The views from the next stretch of road were particularly good looking towards Porto. The road winding around the cliffs and over headlands with the sea hundreds of metres below most of the time.
When we got to Porto, we drove into town, parked close to the sea and sat and had a drink at a cafe overlooking the town and the impressive fort or watchtower.
Suitably fortified, we headed back up to the cliff-tops and travelled along a section of the road known as Les Calanques, which refer to the rocky inlets below. It is very touristy and there were several coaches manouevering along the narrow winding road so we didn't stop. One cafe we passed had a long line of coach travellers standing in a queue waiting to use the toilet! The joys of coach travel.
The road continued south through Cargese and Sagone, famous for its wines. Not long afterwards we stopped on a headland near Liamone and walked to some picnic tables to eat our lunch. We had no sooner started eating than it started to spit with rain. We had seen the dark clouds but thought we were ahead of them. This very brief shower lasting for no more than five minutes exactly coincided with the time we were eating - what are the chances of that especially as it was the only rain we had encountered the whole time we had been on the island!
After lunch we climbed up to the Col de Bastiano at 411M and then the Col de Listincone at 232M before dropping down to sea-level on the approach to Ajaccio.
We managed to avoid going through town and found our campsite near Porticcio very easily and after a quick look around decided to stop. The site was very shady but had nice pitches so we set up tent.
We then set out to explore the immediate area and drove along the coast through Porticcio to Ile de Isoletta and Verghia. To us, Porticcio was a bit too touristy, like a sort of French/Italian Skegness, but with nicer restaurants. As it was Sunday, everybody was out and about so it was really crowded so we gave up and returned to the campsite.
Later, we went back to Porticcio and had a wonderful wood-fired oven cooked pizza at a restaurant right on the beach.
Galeria and the Fango Valley
Saturday 10 May
We had a pretty slow start to the day and worked out our rough plan for the next ten days, then set out for some more exploration.
This time, we headed south on the D81 which goes past the airfield at Sainte Catherine. At first the road was fairly flat and straight, but at Suare the road swung right and started climbing. After a short while, we reached a pass, Bocca du Narsolinu at 433M. As we dropped down into the valley it became quite agricultural and the road followed the river Marsolinu.
Eventually, we crossed quite a large bridge over the river and headed for the Fango valley. The small road heading up the valley, the D351, is very pretty. It is narrow and windy and has loads of wild flowers growing alongside it. The road also follows the river Fango which is a rocky clear river which sometimes drops into small gorges. We stopped several times to take pictures and to try and see some birds. Sadly the only birds of note were the Blackcaps.
At Baridana, we turned around and headed back down the valley, rejoined the D81 and headed toward Galeria. At the bridge we had earlier crossed, there was a turn off to the village, the D351 again.
We drove down to the port which is very small and then went slightly back up the hill and stopped for lunch at a cafe overlooking the bay. We had a salad lunch again sitting outside on the terrace.
After lunch, we headed back again to the D81, crossed the bridge and turn immediately left onto the D81b. This road, again very small, followed the coastline all the way back to Calvi. The road also crosses two small passes, the Bocca Bassa at 122M and the Bocca Serria at 146M. Mostly, the views are spectacular along the road, but one section near Argentella, runs between high hedges of maquis which restricts the view.
At one spot we stopped to look at a snake in the road which sadly had just been run over. We think it was a Whip Snake. Further down the road, we stopped to look at the view and found ourselves looking at a selection of car wrecks that had clearly not managed to negotiate the bends and had gone flying over the cliffs.
Back at Calvi, we managed to park near the citadel and walked down to the port for an ice-cream.
We had a pretty slow start to the day and worked out our rough plan for the next ten days, then set out for some more exploration.
This time, we headed south on the D81 which goes past the airfield at Sainte Catherine. At first the road was fairly flat and straight, but at Suare the road swung right and started climbing. After a short while, we reached a pass, Bocca du Narsolinu at 433M. As we dropped down into the valley it became quite agricultural and the road followed the river Marsolinu.
Eventually, we crossed quite a large bridge over the river and headed for the Fango valley. The small road heading up the valley, the D351, is very pretty. It is narrow and windy and has loads of wild flowers growing alongside it. The road also follows the river Fango which is a rocky clear river which sometimes drops into small gorges. We stopped several times to take pictures and to try and see some birds. Sadly the only birds of note were the Blackcaps.
At Baridana, we turned around and headed back down the valley, rejoined the D81 and headed toward Galeria. At the bridge we had earlier crossed, there was a turn off to the village, the D351 again.
We drove down to the port which is very small and then went slightly back up the hill and stopped for lunch at a cafe overlooking the bay. We had a salad lunch again sitting outside on the terrace.
After lunch, we headed back again to the D81, crossed the bridge and turn immediately left onto the D81b. This road, again very small, followed the coastline all the way back to Calvi. The road also crosses two small passes, the Bocca Bassa at 122M and the Bocca Serria at 146M. Mostly, the views are spectacular along the road, but one section near Argentella, runs between high hedges of maquis which restricts the view.
At one spot we stopped to look at a snake in the road which sadly had just been run over. We think it was a Whip Snake. Further down the road, we stopped to look at the view and found ourselves looking at a selection of car wrecks that had clearly not managed to negotiate the bends and had gone flying over the cliffs.
Back at Calvi, we managed to park near the citadel and walked down to the port for an ice-cream.
Cap Corse and the North
Friday 09 May
We got up fairly early and had breakfast outside the tent. After this, we headed out to go and explore the north of Corsica.
At first, we followed the main road, the N197, along the northern coast through L'Ille Rousse and Lozari to a small village, Monetta, where we turned off onto the D81. The road wound up through scrub to a small pass, Bocca di Vezzu, at 311M. The road heads inland here into an uninhabited area known as the Desert des Agriates. It is a very wild area and at this time of year covered in wild flowers. There were one or two houses by the side of the road, but mosty it was free of human inhabitation!
Eventually, the road started descending into greener valley as we headed into St Florent. This large village has a port and is rather pretty, so we stopped for a cup of coffee in the town square.
We then continued on the D81 up the western coast of Cap Corse. At Barbaggio, the road became the D80. The road climbed up above the sea and followed the line of hills inland from the sea. Many of the villages have remanants of watch towers built either by the Pisans or Genoans when they ruled the island. Nonza was very pretty, but had nowhere to park. Many of the villages have large, elaborate, family mausoleums on the roads just outside the village. Rounding one corner on a narrow section of the road on a sheer cliff, we came across a large flock of goats. Two of the males put on a head-butting display in front of the car.
We stopped at a hillside village called Pino and found a very pleasant place for lunch and had a Corsican Salad which consisted of local cheeses and meats with salad, accompanied by olives and candied figs.
From here, we had a choice to continue around the north of the cape or cut across a mountain road to the east coast. We chose the cut across and followed a small road, the D180, over a pass, the Col de Ste Lucie at 381M. From the pass the road dropped down to the village of Piazza where we stopped for the post office. At Santa Severa, we rejoined the D80 and headed south down the west coast towards Bastia.
The road was fairly busy and we got stuck behind a coach for miles all the way into Bastia. Just south of the town, we stopped at a large supermarket for dinner supplies. The journey back to Calvi was done on the main road and took about an hour and a half.
Back at the campsite, we enjoyed the antics of the new arrivals on site whilst having a cool drink and eating dinner.
We got up fairly early and had breakfast outside the tent. After this, we headed out to go and explore the north of Corsica.
At first, we followed the main road, the N197, along the northern coast through L'Ille Rousse and Lozari to a small village, Monetta, where we turned off onto the D81. The road wound up through scrub to a small pass, Bocca di Vezzu, at 311M. The road heads inland here into an uninhabited area known as the Desert des Agriates. It is a very wild area and at this time of year covered in wild flowers. There were one or two houses by the side of the road, but mosty it was free of human inhabitation!
Eventually, the road started descending into greener valley as we headed into St Florent. This large village has a port and is rather pretty, so we stopped for a cup of coffee in the town square.
We then continued on the D81 up the western coast of Cap Corse. At Barbaggio, the road became the D80. The road climbed up above the sea and followed the line of hills inland from the sea. Many of the villages have remanants of watch towers built either by the Pisans or Genoans when they ruled the island. Nonza was very pretty, but had nowhere to park. Many of the villages have large, elaborate, family mausoleums on the roads just outside the village. Rounding one corner on a narrow section of the road on a sheer cliff, we came across a large flock of goats. Two of the males put on a head-butting display in front of the car.
We stopped at a hillside village called Pino and found a very pleasant place for lunch and had a Corsican Salad which consisted of local cheeses and meats with salad, accompanied by olives and candied figs.
From here, we had a choice to continue around the north of the cape or cut across a mountain road to the east coast. We chose the cut across and followed a small road, the D180, over a pass, the Col de Ste Lucie at 381M. From the pass the road dropped down to the village of Piazza where we stopped for the post office. At Santa Severa, we rejoined the D80 and headed south down the west coast towards Bastia.
The road was fairly busy and we got stuck behind a coach for miles all the way into Bastia. Just south of the town, we stopped at a large supermarket for dinner supplies. The journey back to Calvi was done on the main road and took about an hour and a half.
Back at the campsite, we enjoyed the antics of the new arrivals on site whilst having a cool drink and eating dinner.
Exploring Calvi
Thursday 08 May (Public Holiday)
The frogs didn't disturb us too much and we woke to clear skies. After buying bread for breakfast from the campsite shop we ate outside.
After breakfast, we headed out to explore the local area and initially followed the D151 to the village of Calenzana. After the village, the road got narrower and less busy and we were able to drive slowly enjoying the views and looking for wildlife. The road was very windy and climbed up into the hills to a village called Zilia. We stopped for a while looking at the wild flowers and at the numerous Red Kites which, to be honest, seem to be as common as muck in Corsica.
We continued along the D151 as the road got more wild and we saw Tawny Pipits by the roadside. The other bird seen almost everywhere is the Hooded Crow.
When we got to the village of Cateri, we turned off onto the D71 and initially headed for Muro. The road winds through the hills with view of the sea to one side and high mountains to the other, some of the mountains are more than 2300M high and still have snow on them.
Eventually, the road reached Belgodere and we rejoined the N2197, the main road between Bastia and Calvi. We rapidly dropped back to sea level and after refuelling, drove into the middle of L'Ille Rousse. We found a parking space on the town square and went for a wander towards the port. There are loads of restaurants here and we were drawn to one with a good menu where we had lunch. Mussels, seemed to be the best choice, so Moules Frites were ordered and duly dispatched.
After lunch, we wandered back down another street to the square and found it full of men involved in a 'boules' tournament. There was quite an atmosphere in town and we'd forgotten that it was a public holiday in France. We sat and watched for a while whilst we ate ice-creams.
After that we headed back to the campsite, stopping briefly to look at the beach near the campsite. After a few domestic chores, I decided to take a walk into Calvi. The route was on a boardwalk almost all the way and ran alongside the railway which is next to the beach.
The walk took 20 minutes and ended at the railway station which is located right on the marina. The port area is very similar to that at St Tropez and filled with the same sort of huge boats and expensive bars and restaurants. It is very pretty, but very expensive. I walked up to the Citadel, once besieged by Nelson, to take in the views across the bay to the campsite and the snow capped mountains behind it.
Back at the campsite, we had some salad for dinner and looked at the maps to plan tomorrows excursion.
The frogs didn't disturb us too much and we woke to clear skies. After buying bread for breakfast from the campsite shop we ate outside.
After breakfast, we headed out to explore the local area and initially followed the D151 to the village of Calenzana. After the village, the road got narrower and less busy and we were able to drive slowly enjoying the views and looking for wildlife. The road was very windy and climbed up into the hills to a village called Zilia. We stopped for a while looking at the wild flowers and at the numerous Red Kites which, to be honest, seem to be as common as muck in Corsica.
We continued along the D151 as the road got more wild and we saw Tawny Pipits by the roadside. The other bird seen almost everywhere is the Hooded Crow.
When we got to the village of Cateri, we turned off onto the D71 and initially headed for Muro. The road winds through the hills with view of the sea to one side and high mountains to the other, some of the mountains are more than 2300M high and still have snow on them.
Eventually, the road reached Belgodere and we rejoined the N2197, the main road between Bastia and Calvi. We rapidly dropped back to sea level and after refuelling, drove into the middle of L'Ille Rousse. We found a parking space on the town square and went for a wander towards the port. There are loads of restaurants here and we were drawn to one with a good menu where we had lunch. Mussels, seemed to be the best choice, so Moules Frites were ordered and duly dispatched.
After lunch, we wandered back down another street to the square and found it full of men involved in a 'boules' tournament. There was quite an atmosphere in town and we'd forgotten that it was a public holiday in France. We sat and watched for a while whilst we ate ice-creams.
After that we headed back to the campsite, stopping briefly to look at the beach near the campsite. After a few domestic chores, I decided to take a walk into Calvi. The route was on a boardwalk almost all the way and ran alongside the railway which is next to the beach.
The walk took 20 minutes and ended at the railway station which is located right on the marina. The port area is very similar to that at St Tropez and filled with the same sort of huge boats and expensive bars and restaurants. It is very pretty, but very expensive. I walked up to the Citadel, once besieged by Nelson, to take in the views across the bay to the campsite and the snow capped mountains behind it.
Back at the campsite, we had some salad for dinner and looked at the maps to plan tomorrows excursion.
Leaving Livorno, Ferries and Frogs
Wednesday 07 May
We were up really early at 05.45 as we wanted to leave the hotel before 07.00. Having showered, we were downstairs with the car packed by 06.20. The hotel had said we could have an early 'small' breakfast, but they had laid almost everything on for us, fresh rolls, fruit juice, coffee and all the trimmings.
We left the hotel before seven and followed the satnav into the middle of Livorno and found our way straight the port. The signposts for the ferries were almost non-existant, so the satnav was a real help. We lined up in the queue and a man appeared, checked our reservation number and stuck a small sticker on the windscreen. Unbeknownst to us, he also stuck an advertising sticker on the rear screen!
We started loading at around 07.45 and we were fairly near the front of the queue. Top tip, do not think that getting to this port early will be of any advantage, if anything, I'd suggest arriving almost at the last minute - more on this subject later. We drove onto the main vehicle deck and then drove down a ramp to a lower deck, and then down another ramp to an even lower deck. The cars were all just crammed in as close to as they could.
This proved to be a problems as we then had to climb stairs back up six decks to a level where there was seating - no lifts just very steep steps.
The facilities were quite good, it was possible to get breakfast, a juice, a croissant and a coffee for 3.90 Euros. The seating was quite comfortable and as the ferry was fairly empty, plenty of room.
The crossing was very smooth and took 4 and a half hours. When we arrived at Bastia, we decided to start heading down all the stairs so the we didn't have to hurry, but 3 decks down were halted by a member of staff. We then stood in the corridor for 25 minutes whilst they unloaded the rest of the ferry. Finally, we were allowed down the last 5 flights of stairs to the car. Here lies the problem, first on the ferry, and very definitely last off - not a great idea. Arrive as late as you can and you will get off the ferry way quicker than those that arrived in good time.
Once off the ferry, we followed the Calvi signs through Bastia, quite a large and busy town. The suburbs of the town seemed to go on for ever following the coast south. Eventually, we reached the town of Borgo and turned west to cross the island. The road gradually climbed up the hills through countryside covered in wild flowers until we could see the range of mountains in the middle of the island, still covered in snow. Eventually we crossed a col and started descending down to the western side of the island. Suddenly, we found ourselves back at sea-level closely following a rocky coast.
Staying on this road, we passed through the town of Ille d'Rousse and continued the last 20km to Calvi. We easily found the campsite 'La Pinede' well signposted about 2-3 km before Calvi.
On arrival, we wandered around the site to choose a pitch, then returned to collect a car pass and let them photocopy my passport.
We set up in the shade of eucalyptus trees, the campsite is called 'The Pines' I think it should have been named 'The eucalyptuses'. It was quite warm and it didn't take us long to erect the tent, pump up the lilo, assemble the kitchen and connect the gas.
We drove into Calvi to find a supermarket having been uninspired by the shop on the campsite. To say it was heaving would be an understatement. We bought some essentials, some wine, some olives and some more wine and returned to the campsite and ate fish fingers with rice and sweetcorn - the simple pleasures of camp life!
We seem to have camped next to a small watercourse, which as I type, is clearly full of frogs. I suspect we may curse them later as we settle down to sleep.
We were up really early at 05.45 as we wanted to leave the hotel before 07.00. Having showered, we were downstairs with the car packed by 06.20. The hotel had said we could have an early 'small' breakfast, but they had laid almost everything on for us, fresh rolls, fruit juice, coffee and all the trimmings.
We left the hotel before seven and followed the satnav into the middle of Livorno and found our way straight the port. The signposts for the ferries were almost non-existant, so the satnav was a real help. We lined up in the queue and a man appeared, checked our reservation number and stuck a small sticker on the windscreen. Unbeknownst to us, he also stuck an advertising sticker on the rear screen!
We started loading at around 07.45 and we were fairly near the front of the queue. Top tip, do not think that getting to this port early will be of any advantage, if anything, I'd suggest arriving almost at the last minute - more on this subject later. We drove onto the main vehicle deck and then drove down a ramp to a lower deck, and then down another ramp to an even lower deck. The cars were all just crammed in as close to as they could.
This proved to be a problems as we then had to climb stairs back up six decks to a level where there was seating - no lifts just very steep steps.
The facilities were quite good, it was possible to get breakfast, a juice, a croissant and a coffee for 3.90 Euros. The seating was quite comfortable and as the ferry was fairly empty, plenty of room.
The crossing was very smooth and took 4 and a half hours. When we arrived at Bastia, we decided to start heading down all the stairs so the we didn't have to hurry, but 3 decks down were halted by a member of staff. We then stood in the corridor for 25 minutes whilst they unloaded the rest of the ferry. Finally, we were allowed down the last 5 flights of stairs to the car. Here lies the problem, first on the ferry, and very definitely last off - not a great idea. Arrive as late as you can and you will get off the ferry way quicker than those that arrived in good time.
Once off the ferry, we followed the Calvi signs through Bastia, quite a large and busy town. The suburbs of the town seemed to go on for ever following the coast south. Eventually, we reached the town of Borgo and turned west to cross the island. The road gradually climbed up the hills through countryside covered in wild flowers until we could see the range of mountains in the middle of the island, still covered in snow. Eventually we crossed a col and started descending down to the western side of the island. Suddenly, we found ourselves back at sea-level closely following a rocky coast.
Staying on this road, we passed through the town of Ille d'Rousse and continued the last 20km to Calvi. We easily found the campsite 'La Pinede' well signposted about 2-3 km before Calvi.
On arrival, we wandered around the site to choose a pitch, then returned to collect a car pass and let them photocopy my passport.
We set up in the shade of eucalyptus trees, the campsite is called 'The Pines' I think it should have been named 'The eucalyptuses'. It was quite warm and it didn't take us long to erect the tent, pump up the lilo, assemble the kitchen and connect the gas.
We drove into Calvi to find a supermarket having been uninspired by the shop on the campsite. To say it was heaving would be an understatement. We bought some essentials, some wine, some olives and some more wine and returned to the campsite and ate fish fingers with rice and sweetcorn - the simple pleasures of camp life!
We seem to have camped next to a small watercourse, which as I type, is clearly full of frogs. I suspect we may curse them later as we settle down to sleep.
Sunday, May 18, 2014
Cinque Terre and Livorno
Tuesday 06 May
We were awake before 08.00 and got up and got ready for breakfast. Despite our relatively early start we were clearly the last guests in for breakfast.
After settling up we left with Lynn driving. We headed back down to Albenga and joined the A10 motorway heading towards Genova (Genoa). It was about 80km and the motorway alternately dives into tunnels or crosses huge viaducts. Genova is always busy it seems with several motorways joining going to Turin, Milan and Livorno.
We escaped fairly easily and headed south on the A12 towards Livorno. At Sestri Levante, we left the motorway and headed for the coastal road.
The first part of the road followed the route of the old single track railway line right by the sea. Almost immediately, we were halted by traffic lights. After a few minutes the lights turned green and the line of traffic set off on the single-lane road. After a few hundred metres we plunged into a very narrow tunnel. For the next 4-5 km we drove in and out of these narrow tunnels until we came out into a more open area where we found traffic waiting to go the other way. Not long after that we headed back into the tunnels until we came out at Moneglia. These tunnels were part of the original railway route around the coast. Now disused by trains, they are a very convenient way of driving between costal villages.
Here, the railway line, now a road, ran between the town and the beach on a low viaduct. At the far end, we turned off into town, parked and went for coffee. We sat on the front, with the viaduct in front of us. The arches of the viaduct were being turned into shop units with some of the arches providing access to the beach. The station had been turned into shops and bars. A really nice little town.
After coffee, we headed back onto the line, and arrived just as the traffic lights were turning green for another excursion into a series of tunnels to the town of Deiva Marina.
Here, the road headed up into the hills paralleling the coast but high up above it. The views were spectacular. There were several roads leading down to small villages but we stayed up high following the signs for 'Cinque Terre' a series of small villages further south. Unfortunately, we came to a sign that said the road was closed between Vernazza and La Spezia, so we detoured into the edge of La Spezia and came back to the 'Cinque Terre' coast from the southern side.
The road, again, was spectacular and we thought we'd drop down into Manarola, for lunch. We quickly realised you had to park and walk down into the town. After several hundred metres down the road, we found no restaurants and realised that it was too far and too steep for Lynn to walk so we returned to the car.
We headed back towards La Spezia rather disappointed, but found a snack bar high in the hills overlooking the sea and stopped for a very pleasant, if simple, lunch. The owners spoke quite a bit of english and were very welcoming.
Suitably fortified, we got back in the car, got the satnav fired up and headed towards Livorno. The route took us right through the middle of La Spezia, a very busy Naval port. Once through the city, we rejoined tha A12 motorway heading south.
The journey was only about an hour and we passed Carrera, of marble fame and Pisa en route. Eventually, we got into the edge of Livorno and following the satnav started climbing up Monte Nero to the Santuario della Madonna di Montenero. Following some very narrow winding and steep lanes we finally found our hotel 'La Vedetta' an old palace overlooking Livorno.
Our room, on the first floor on the corner of the building was quite large and well equipped and had a view of the sea from one of the windows.
We were awake before 08.00 and got up and got ready for breakfast. Despite our relatively early start we were clearly the last guests in for breakfast.
After settling up we left with Lynn driving. We headed back down to Albenga and joined the A10 motorway heading towards Genova (Genoa). It was about 80km and the motorway alternately dives into tunnels or crosses huge viaducts. Genova is always busy it seems with several motorways joining going to Turin, Milan and Livorno.
We escaped fairly easily and headed south on the A12 towards Livorno. At Sestri Levante, we left the motorway and headed for the coastal road.
The first part of the road followed the route of the old single track railway line right by the sea. Almost immediately, we were halted by traffic lights. After a few minutes the lights turned green and the line of traffic set off on the single-lane road. After a few hundred metres we plunged into a very narrow tunnel. For the next 4-5 km we drove in and out of these narrow tunnels until we came out into a more open area where we found traffic waiting to go the other way. Not long after that we headed back into the tunnels until we came out at Moneglia. These tunnels were part of the original railway route around the coast. Now disused by trains, they are a very convenient way of driving between costal villages.
Here, the railway line, now a road, ran between the town and the beach on a low viaduct. At the far end, we turned off into town, parked and went for coffee. We sat on the front, with the viaduct in front of us. The arches of the viaduct were being turned into shop units with some of the arches providing access to the beach. The station had been turned into shops and bars. A really nice little town.
After coffee, we headed back onto the line, and arrived just as the traffic lights were turning green for another excursion into a series of tunnels to the town of Deiva Marina.
Here, the road headed up into the hills paralleling the coast but high up above it. The views were spectacular. There were several roads leading down to small villages but we stayed up high following the signs for 'Cinque Terre' a series of small villages further south. Unfortunately, we came to a sign that said the road was closed between Vernazza and La Spezia, so we detoured into the edge of La Spezia and came back to the 'Cinque Terre' coast from the southern side.
The road, again, was spectacular and we thought we'd drop down into Manarola, for lunch. We quickly realised you had to park and walk down into the town. After several hundred metres down the road, we found no restaurants and realised that it was too far and too steep for Lynn to walk so we returned to the car.
We headed back towards La Spezia rather disappointed, but found a snack bar high in the hills overlooking the sea and stopped for a very pleasant, if simple, lunch. The owners spoke quite a bit of english and were very welcoming.
Suitably fortified, we got back in the car, got the satnav fired up and headed towards Livorno. The route took us right through the middle of La Spezia, a very busy Naval port. Once through the city, we rejoined tha A12 motorway heading south.
The journey was only about an hour and we passed Carrera, of marble fame and Pisa en route. Eventually, we got into the edge of Livorno and following the satnav started climbing up Monte Nero to the Santuario della Madonna di Montenero. Following some very narrow winding and steep lanes we finally found our hotel 'La Vedetta' an old palace overlooking Livorno.
Our room, on the first floor on the corner of the building was quite large and well equipped and had a view of the sea from one of the windows.
Gap to Albenga - Another day (of) passes
Monday 05 May
We left the hotel at Gap and headed to the nearest supermarket, Leclerc where we bought some pain-au-raisin and refuelled the car. As usual in France, it seems impossible to use the automatic petrol pumps if you have anything other than a French bank card so we had to choose a fuel station with an attendant who is happy to take any credit card!
We had decided that we would head east from Gap and go over a fairly low pass into Italy, follow the border and then cross the Col de Tende back into France before re-entering Italy near Ventemiglia and joining the motorway to get to Albenga. This plan went out of the window when we got closer to the town of Barcelonette when we discovered that the Col de Cayolle was open. We had assumed it would be closed as usually it is blocked from November to June by snow.
We decided to give it a go and joined a fairly narrow road, the D902, that started climbing from the very start. Two things happened, it got steeper and even narrower, much of the road was single carriageway on the side of a cliff. Luckily, there was almost nothing on the road apart from a few cyclists. As we got higher, we started to see odd patches of snow at first and then it progressed to a full covering of snow except on the road. The higher we got, the higher the banks of snow either side of the road became.
We stopped briefly after Lynn spotted a Marmot sitting by the side of the road. It didn't seem to fussed about us taking pictures and just sat quietly on a heap of pine needles.
As we neared the top of the pass, the snow on either side of the road was often 2-3 metres high and we were just driving through a snow-lined corridor. At the top, at 2326M, there was a space to park so we got out and took a few photographs. Amazingly, it was 12C at the top despite all the snow.
At the top of the pass, the road number changed to the D2202 and rapidly descended, first to the source of the river Var and then following the river valley down to the pretty village of Guillaume. Not satisfied with our mountain climbing, we started to head east on the D28.
This proved to be another wriggly road that climbed up to a ski resort at Valberg before dropping down to Beuil. Here, we joined the D30 and climbed up to the Col de la Couille at 1678M before plunging down the vertiginous road to St Saveur-sur-Tinee. Eager for more narrow and steep roads, we continued east on the D2665 over the Col St Martin at 1500m and down to St Martin Versubie. Here the road joined the river Versubie down to La Bollene Versubie where we turned off onto the D70/D2566 and up to the Col de Turini at 1607M and again down to the very busy and pretty town of Sospel. As a final fling to the Alps, we then turned off again onto the D93, a very minor road heading to the Italian village of Olivetta. The road crossed another minor pass on top of which we crossed into Italy. From here, we headed down toward the coast at Ventimiglia.
We joined the motorway near Ventemiglia and followed it as far as Albenga a distance of about 45km. We paid our motorway toll of 13 Euros and followed the satnav directions to the village of Ortovenga and our hotel for the night a Restaurant with rooms called, Borgo Fasceo.
The hotel looked very nice and was set in pretty gardens in a very peaceful location. We had some minor problems with the room, but it was not a bad room, just lacking bedside lights. We decided that the menu for the hotel was rather expensive, so drove back into Albenga, parked in a square and found a pizzeria called Bella Napoli. Despite the fact that we were early for dinner, at 19.30, the restaurant welcomed us in and cooked us two delicious pizzas and provided us with two large beers.
After dinner, we had a wander around the old part of Albenga. Their annual fair had just finished and the streets clearly had been decorated with lots of flowers. It was a very pleasant old town with lots of historical buildings. After walking off dinner, we returned to the hotel for a peaceful nights sleep.
We left the hotel at Gap and headed to the nearest supermarket, Leclerc where we bought some pain-au-raisin and refuelled the car. As usual in France, it seems impossible to use the automatic petrol pumps if you have anything other than a French bank card so we had to choose a fuel station with an attendant who is happy to take any credit card!
We had decided that we would head east from Gap and go over a fairly low pass into Italy, follow the border and then cross the Col de Tende back into France before re-entering Italy near Ventemiglia and joining the motorway to get to Albenga. This plan went out of the window when we got closer to the town of Barcelonette when we discovered that the Col de Cayolle was open. We had assumed it would be closed as usually it is blocked from November to June by snow.
We decided to give it a go and joined a fairly narrow road, the D902, that started climbing from the very start. Two things happened, it got steeper and even narrower, much of the road was single carriageway on the side of a cliff. Luckily, there was almost nothing on the road apart from a few cyclists. As we got higher, we started to see odd patches of snow at first and then it progressed to a full covering of snow except on the road. The higher we got, the higher the banks of snow either side of the road became.
We stopped briefly after Lynn spotted a Marmot sitting by the side of the road. It didn't seem to fussed about us taking pictures and just sat quietly on a heap of pine needles.
As we neared the top of the pass, the snow on either side of the road was often 2-3 metres high and we were just driving through a snow-lined corridor. At the top, at 2326M, there was a space to park so we got out and took a few photographs. Amazingly, it was 12C at the top despite all the snow.
At the top of the pass, the road number changed to the D2202 and rapidly descended, first to the source of the river Var and then following the river valley down to the pretty village of Guillaume. Not satisfied with our mountain climbing, we started to head east on the D28.
This proved to be another wriggly road that climbed up to a ski resort at Valberg before dropping down to Beuil. Here, we joined the D30 and climbed up to the Col de la Couille at 1678M before plunging down the vertiginous road to St Saveur-sur-Tinee. Eager for more narrow and steep roads, we continued east on the D2665 over the Col St Martin at 1500m and down to St Martin Versubie. Here the road joined the river Versubie down to La Bollene Versubie where we turned off onto the D70/D2566 and up to the Col de Turini at 1607M and again down to the very busy and pretty town of Sospel. As a final fling to the Alps, we then turned off again onto the D93, a very minor road heading to the Italian village of Olivetta. The road crossed another minor pass on top of which we crossed into Italy. From here, we headed down toward the coast at Ventimiglia.
We joined the motorway near Ventemiglia and followed it as far as Albenga a distance of about 45km. We paid our motorway toll of 13 Euros and followed the satnav directions to the village of Ortovenga and our hotel for the night a Restaurant with rooms called, Borgo Fasceo.
The hotel looked very nice and was set in pretty gardens in a very peaceful location. We had some minor problems with the room, but it was not a bad room, just lacking bedside lights. We decided that the menu for the hotel was rather expensive, so drove back into Albenga, parked in a square and found a pizzeria called Bella Napoli. Despite the fact that we were early for dinner, at 19.30, the restaurant welcomed us in and cooked us two delicious pizzas and provided us with two large beers.
After dinner, we had a wander around the old part of Albenga. Their annual fair had just finished and the streets clearly had been decorated with lots of flowers. It was a very pleasant old town with lots of historical buildings. After walking off dinner, we returned to the hotel for a peaceful nights sleep.
From the Creuse to the Alps
Sunday 04 May
We left Prondessagne at 1100 and headed towards Clermont Ferrand. After days of low cloud and rain, we had the sun out today.
At Bromont-Lamothe we joined the A85 motorway as it is the quickest way through Clermont. As it was the last day of a four day weekend for the French, the road was really quite busy. After climbing up to the bridge over the river Sioule, we dropped down into the valley and joined the A71 into Clermont.
We continued south through Clermont and the motorway changes it name to the A75, for reasons I can't explain. About 20 miles further down the road, south of Issoire, we turned off the motorway and headed towards Puy-en-Velay on the N102.
Before we reached Puy, we turned off on the D906 and then the N88 towards Montelimar and climbed up into the Massive Central passing some fabulous scenery. As we drove into the Ardeche, the road crossed the Col de la Chavade and plunged down a huge gorge toward the the town of Aubenas. The river in the gorge is the Ardeche. From Aubenas, we turned north-east to the town of Privas on the N304/D104
From there, we headed toward the Rhone valley, crossing the river at Loriol sur Drome. Our route from here followed the river Drome, appropriately in the department of Drome. Not long after crossing the Rhone, we could see the Alps in the distance as we headed first towards Crest, then on the D93 to Die and finally on the N75 and D994 to Gap. Lynn kindly told me that I should follow the signs to Crest and then I was going to Die. Not what I wanted to hear really.
As an afterthought, I am now concerned that I have now followed the adage, "See Naples and Die". What happens next? Does the capital 'D' have any significance? Another random thought, if you have picnic spot or motorway rest area in the Drome, does it become an 'Aire au Drome?
The road between Die and Gap crossed the Col de Cabre at 1180M and then threaded its way down to Apres-sur-Buech and then along the valley to Gap.
Arriving in Gap, we easily found the Ibis hotel and checked in to room 312. We were amazed at the soundproof glazing - the busy main road below is inaudible from the room.
We ate dinner at the hotel, the buffet was good and we followed it with a Provencal omelette with salad (lettuce).
We left Prondessagne at 1100 and headed towards Clermont Ferrand. After days of low cloud and rain, we had the sun out today.
At Bromont-Lamothe we joined the A85 motorway as it is the quickest way through Clermont. As it was the last day of a four day weekend for the French, the road was really quite busy. After climbing up to the bridge over the river Sioule, we dropped down into the valley and joined the A71 into Clermont.
We continued south through Clermont and the motorway changes it name to the A75, for reasons I can't explain. About 20 miles further down the road, south of Issoire, we turned off the motorway and headed towards Puy-en-Velay on the N102.
Before we reached Puy, we turned off on the D906 and then the N88 towards Montelimar and climbed up into the Massive Central passing some fabulous scenery. As we drove into the Ardeche, the road crossed the Col de la Chavade and plunged down a huge gorge toward the the town of Aubenas. The river in the gorge is the Ardeche. From Aubenas, we turned north-east to the town of Privas on the N304/D104
From there, we headed toward the Rhone valley, crossing the river at Loriol sur Drome. Our route from here followed the river Drome, appropriately in the department of Drome. Not long after crossing the Rhone, we could see the Alps in the distance as we headed first towards Crest, then on the D93 to Die and finally on the N75 and D994 to Gap. Lynn kindly told me that I should follow the signs to Crest and then I was going to Die. Not what I wanted to hear really.
As an afterthought, I am now concerned that I have now followed the adage, "See Naples and Die". What happens next? Does the capital 'D' have any significance? Another random thought, if you have picnic spot or motorway rest area in the Drome, does it become an 'Aire au Drome?
The road between Die and Gap crossed the Col de Cabre at 1180M and then threaded its way down to Apres-sur-Buech and then along the valley to Gap.
Arriving in Gap, we easily found the Ibis hotel and checked in to room 312. We were amazed at the soundproof glazing - the busy main road below is inaudible from the room.
We ate dinner at the hotel, the buffet was good and we followed it with a Provencal omelette with salad (lettuce).
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