Joanna and David's Travels: 2014/5 Corsica

Our arrival in Bonifacio was not the Corsica we were expecting. It is an amazing town, impossibly situated, precariously overhanging the sea. It has a quaint old town up the hill, thronged with tourists and lined with restaurants and a modern marina at the bottom, with huge superyachts and dozens of tourist boats. Much as we enjoyed it, with a great lunch in the old town and a walk along the cliff tops,we soon discovered that it was not typical of the Corsica we were about to see. That is, not all touristy (at least in June) and flash.

We managed to cover most of the island in 2 weeks. Up the east coast to a great little campsite at Polombaggia, where we discovered a puncture. The first of a series of tyre problems. David spent a difficult few hours jacking up the van in soft ground and extracting the spare tyre from its slot under the van, with much advice and encouragement from the proprietor and his mates. However once done we were off and soon had 2 new tyres (but at Corsican prices).

Much of the SE coast is covered with holiday homes, ‘nicely’ arranged but hostile to camper vans, BUT we then discovered one of our top places to stay at San Ciprianu. Free parking behind a few shops (morning bread) and several restaurants (coffee and World Cup football) and 50m to a pleasant sandy beach. So time to explore some of the interior and a couple of days walking in the mountains around Bavella where we stayed a night in the cool mountain air. Corsica is a Mecca for hikers. The classic one is the 10 day GR20 running N to S in the centre with Gites d’Etape as basic places to stay, but there are many other options. Of course our walks were of the 4 hour variety, but crossed parts of the GR20 route.

Thence across and up the W coast. At Ajaccio we made the classic and old narrow gauge rail journey to Corte in the centre of the island. The train cuts through the mountains in spectacular fashion with a super new two carriage unit with special suspension and a diesel/electric drive. The track includes a classic vintage bridge designed by Eiffel. Corte the centre of the Corsica set in the mountains and the home of the independence movement which has just now renounced the use of arms. Besides tourists there were lots of ardent hikers, of all ages shapes and sizes all with big packs and boots (David did have a comment about groups of middle age women but it was edited out).

Further N past Porto some hair raising roads clinging to the sides of the mountain with the coast below and on the

other side rough rock face with jagged rocks about to strike the van next to Joanna’s head. Some lovely little bays, one of which – Plage d’Arone, we managed to free camp and enjoy for a couple of days. The rock formations are the scene here (colours red to green with all sorts of formations) the highlight is the Calanches near Piana. We made several great walks in this region, out to Capo Rosso with its watch tower (watch towers both Spanish and Genoan are a feature of all the coast, testimony to the troubled times). Next an old mule track and then the Spelunca gorge. The gorge was more challenging – down 620m into the gorge, along the river, a swim under a classic Genoan bridge and of course the walk back up the 620m – in the heat of the day as usual – we sweated out huge amounts (soaking wet clothes)and drank litres of water on these walks. David managed to pick up a tick on this walk – not nice and one of the troubles with the internet is you can read of all the possible resulting infections, but so far nothing. One of the great features of walking in Europe is the constant greeting of fellow walkers. Buongiorno in Italy and Bonjour in France. Not just each group of people, every person. By the end of the walk we are bonjoured out. However now we almost feel insulted if we don’t get a greeting and just assume the person isn’t French and therefore ignorant.

Then at Calvi another tyre problem with a worn front tyre, this time changing wheels is becoming a habit – no trouble - BUT more expensive Corsican tyres. To complete the Corsican experience we made a circuit all the way round Cap Corse (the headland that juts out of the NW of the island like an index finger. More narrow roads with spectacular views and some picturesque little harbours, the best being Centuri.

We were warned about the roads and the terrible driving before getting to Corsica. Well the driving was fine, but the roads were something else! Stunningly panoramic, with vertiginous drops hundreds of metres down, tight bends and overhanging rocks. Heart-stopping stuff at times. They have parts which suddenly become one lane and you have no idea what’s ahead. However, everyone seemed to feel the same and managed to slam on the breaks in time. A bit of backing had to happen. It makes me mildly panicky just to think about it. There are lots of little shrines and memorials on the sides of these roads which does not build the confidence levels. To top it off you frequently come around a bend to discover a variety of animals generally milling around. Pigs, goats, cows, sheep. It’s lucky that David’s hair is already grey. Joanna refused to drive. It makes the Amalfi Coast seem seem like a stroll around the park. Great views though.

The water, as in Sardinia, is crystal clear with beautiful colours of the rocks below. We had lots of swims in a variety of beaches, some sandy and some only pebbles. Many of the best beaches are away from the accommodation and so a car is necessary, but of course being France, there is always a cafe on hand. Our morning coffee has become a ritual.

We met a young Kiwi couple while we were waiting for the ferry at L’Ille Rousse. First we have met on this trip. Was great to have a yarn and speak a bit of New Zild.

Rosé wine has been the drink of choice lately. Corsica is good at it. They produce very pale rosés, quite strange at first, but wonderfully refreshing in the heat. Keep having to stock up! Have also acquired a taste for Muscat desert wine, (a Cap Corse speciality), quite delicious. There are lots of chestnut trees in the interior and thence chestnut jams etc and one of the most popular beers uses chestnut flour.

Communications have become easier as once back in France we were able to re-activate our ‘dongle’ but were persuaded to upgrade with a ‘hot spot’ device instead (called in French – a ‘Web Trotter’). So no trouble sending the blog – from wherever, can operate several devices online at once – cyber-heaven!

Corsica has been a great experience for us. Beautiful beaches, wonderful mountain and coastal scenery, fantastic walking opportunities, excellent food and win and they speak French. Anyone considering the overcrowded, overpriced South of France should really consider taking a 4 hour ferry across to this still relatively unspoilt island. However avoid buying tyres if you can!