I used to start a lot of blog entries with something along the lines of “We woke up to another beautiful day on the Cote d’Azur…”, and would follow up with a description of a hike. Well, this year we’ve been rather lazy on that front, I reckon a couple of months have passed since the last time we took out the dusty hiking boots.
So we figured there was no excuse this weekend not to go, as the weather was glourious indeed, and we had nothing else planned for the day (having spend the previous day in Nice shopping, we were both in the mood for a bit of nature, as well). We opted on a walk around the village of Coursegoules; which is not too far away from Cagnes-sur-Mer. Half an hours driver later, we arrived. Coursegoules is a typically pretty Provencal village (I use that expression quite a lot on this blog, I think?), refreshingly un-touristy, built at an respectable altitude of 1020 meters.
We set off for the walk; le Circuit de Viériou, watching the steep ascent towards the Viériou peak with a certain trepidation. But surprisingly, considering our lack of practice over the recent months, the ascent proved rather swift and easy. A good half an hour later we found ourselves at the Baisse de Viériou, at an altitude of 1356 meters. Having caught our breath, and admired the views for a bit, we carried on with the hike, following a ridge up to the highest point of the walk, at 1424 meters. Couldn’t really fault the views; with the peaks (some still partly snow-covered) of Mercantour greeting us one way, and the beautiful Mediterranean opening up beyond the pretty hilly landscapes the other way. And not a soul in sight…
The rest of the walk back to Coursegoules was a breeze, all downhill, briefly pausing to have a look at the recently restored, 11th century chapelle Saint-Michel. A really great day out in the wild – really must get back into this hiking business, seriously!
So we figured there was no excuse this weekend not to go, as the weather was glourious indeed, and we had nothing else planned for the day (having spend the previous day in Nice shopping, we were both in the mood for a bit of nature, as well). We opted on a walk around the village of Coursegoules; which is not too far away from Cagnes-sur-Mer. Half an hours driver later, we arrived. Coursegoules is a typically pretty Provencal village (I use that expression quite a lot on this blog, I think?), refreshingly un-touristy, built at an respectable altitude of 1020 meters.
We set off for the walk; le Circuit de Viériou, watching the steep ascent towards the Viériou peak with a certain trepidation. But surprisingly, considering our lack of practice over the recent months, the ascent proved rather swift and easy. A good half an hour later we found ourselves at the Baisse de Viériou, at an altitude of 1356 meters. Having caught our breath, and admired the views for a bit, we carried on with the hike, following a ridge up to the highest point of the walk, at 1424 meters. Couldn’t really fault the views; with the peaks (some still partly snow-covered) of Mercantour greeting us one way, and the beautiful Mediterranean opening up beyond the pretty hilly landscapes the other way. And not a soul in sight… The rest of the walk back to Coursegoules was a breeze, all downhill, briefly pausing to have a look at the recently restored, 11th century chapelle Saint-Michel. A really great day out in the wild – really must get back into this hiking business, seriously!
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