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.
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