Alpes-Maritimes. 24 Clue d Aiglun. 48 Alpes-Maritimes 49

Transcription

1 Alpes-Mritimes A lnd of brillint-white cnyons nd clues (nrrow slot cnyons), qumrine pools nd wild mountins, ll just short drive from the busy Côte d Azur. 48 Alpes-Mritimes Clue d Aiglun

2 Alpes-Mritimes 24 clue d iglun Pure white rocks nd plunge pools with qumrine wter. A swimmers nd dventurers prdise. 24b clue de pierrefeu Secluded gorge with little pools nd slides tht re perfect for children, nd sufficiently tucked wy for nked dip. 25 clue du rioln This tributry of the Esteron hs crved intricte cves, tubs nd tuf-lined wterflls. A mgicl plce to explore nd swim. Colmrs d d-2202 b Vlberg Vlbergd-30 d-28 Le Boréon Le Boréon d-2565 d-2565 d-171 Roquebillière Roquebillière 20km 33 d c d e d c 33 b d-6204 d-6204 ITALY ITALY 26 pont de l cerise Secluded swimming loction beneth bridge in the hert of the Esteron vlley. A deep long pool leds down into the gret white gorges below. 30 ruisseu de plnfé Superb tuf-lined wterflls in remote mountinous country behind Nice. 30b rvine de redebrus A perfect set of plunge pools beneth mossy wterfll with cler wter nd gret jumping plce. Idyllic nd perfect for children. Cstellne n-202 St-Aubn 28 d-2211 d-2 35 Entrevux d-17 Sigle d-6202 d b 26 d-2 34 d-17 d-2205 d-2565 d-19 d-17 d b d-2565 d-19 d-15 d b d-2204 d-15 d-2566 L Escrene L Escrene d-2204 d-2204 d-2204 Breil-s-Roy Breil-s-Roy Sospel Sospel s-20-8 b 31 s l infernet, le suquet This drmtic nrrow gorge leds to deep pool in huge cve chmber, with long slide into the wter from bove. 33b lc des merveilles High in the mountins with mysterious prehistoric runes crved into the rocks. 35 brec, entrevux Superb lke with bech br, cmpsite nd mountin views on the bnks of the river Vr. d-21 d-6085 d St-Cézire d-3 Grsse d-3 d-6185 Gourdon CANNES -8 ANTIBES NICE Drguignn d-562-8

3 24 Clue d Aiglun Clues of the Esteron The gorges downstrem In the mountins behind bustling Nice re some of the most spectculr cnyons in Frnce. If you re re creful nd tke few bsic precutions, these mzing nd chllenging envrionments re gret fun to swim nd explore. A combintion of wether nd geology hs formed this extrordinry lndscpe. Wter flowing down from the Alps, high in the Prc Ntionl du Mercntour, hs crved the soft, brillint-white dolomite rock into smooth pools, chutes nd spectculr rock formtions. In plces the rivers hve eroded deep chnnels into the rock creting nrrow slot cnyons known s clues. Perhps the most drmtic in the re is Clue d Aiglun 24, off the Route des Crêtes. Here, the Esteron river hs cut gret silvery cleft in the mountins nd emerges in string of jde 24 clue d iglun lt long: , wlk in: 20 mins, moderte The most impressive of the Nice clues. Here, the Esteron hs sliced white slot cnyon with gret mrble pools through the centre of the mountins. Mny opportunities for swimming, including n explortion of the chsm. From the fortified villge of Sigle (D17), Aiglun is 7km W on the D10. Prk in the villge, find the cnyoning signbord, nd follow the cnyon return pth for 1km down to series of pools, bout 200m upstrem of the rod bridge. From here dventurers will find the clue itself, strting 300m upstrem. There re nrrow enclosures nd incredible rock formtions nd you cn swim bout 200m into its hert. The river is lso ccessible directly vi nrrow pth from the rod bridge, 1.5km beneth the villge, nd there re pools beneth the bridge, too. 25 clue du rioln lt long: , wlk in: 20 mins, moderte Nrrow cnyon cut out of soft, chlky limestone with cves nd slides. Access is from the D10 rod bridge, 5km E of Aiglun, nd 1.3km fter the turning for Vscognes. Descend from bridge (downstrem, to river s R bnk) nd scend the cnyon (swim nd scrmble) bout 300m, beyond the dm nd old let, climbing smll wterflls, to rech the cves. Pont du Coude 200m E of the previous bridge turning on R leds down to bridge with pebble bech on the Esteron ( , ). b Clue de Pierrefeu On the D17, 14km E of Sigle nd 5km W of Vescous. 1km W of the junction with Pierrefeu (D217) find fire sttion nd bridge nd follow the let pth upstrem (river s L bnk). After 5 mins descend to the river to find shllow, pretty pools nd smll slides, idel for children ( , ). 26 pont de l cerise lt long: , wlk in: 30 mins, moderte A mgicl setting on the bnks of the Esteron with bubbling river pools nd medievl bridge spnning lrge, deep tub. Below the gorge, strong swimmers cn explore the cnyon, but extreme cre is needed. E of Pierrefeu on D km E of turning for Vescous nd 700m W of Colle Belle find lrge trck descending on R, signed Pont de l Cerise. Wlk 1.7km (25 mins) down to river, bridge nd lrge pool beneth. Downstrem gorges strt bout 300m below bridge but do not swim into them unless you re confident you will be ble to swim bck out ginst the current. The gorge continues for bout 1km until n exit pth is found on the R bnk (when the clue ends nd the river turns hrd L). The trek bck over the hillside is 2km. The sfest wy to explore this gorge is to trek to the exit point first nd swim bck upstrem to the bridge. 52 Alpes-Mritimes 53

4 25 clue du rioln The chnnel below the let 25 clue du rioln Inner cves 25b pierrefeu 26 pont de l cerise Lower gorge 54 Alpes-Mritimes 55

5 27 Gorges de Loup Pedlos with wter slides pools nd white rock ledges. These re perfect for plunging nd sunbthing, but continue upstrem into the hert of the nrrow clue itself nd you will find yourself in the bowels of the mountin. Here, blue wter gushes nd thunders round nd shfts of light filter down from the high roof bove. As the wter deepens nd churns, you cn lmost imgine how Jonh must hve felt s he climbed through the ribbed chnnels nd cvities of the Gret Whle. This is very qutic experience. Tht first night in the lnd of the clues we wlked with bckpcks down long dirt trck to wild cmp by the Esteron t the Pont de l Cerise 26. On wrm, str-filled night, surrounded by mountin peks, we cooked supper nd bivoucked on the flt rocks by the river. The next dy begn with morning bthe in the deep pool under the stone bridge, then we explored the gorge downstrem, swimming bck out ginst the current. Further long the mountin rod you come to Clue de St- Aubn 28, which hs lovely plunge pool with good jumps nd there re shllower pools in fern-filled woodlnd t Clue de Pierrefeu 25b, which re idel for children. On the Rioln river is, perhps, the most sublime of the clues. Inside, produced over millions of yers by wter running over the Ner Grsse & Cnnes 27 gorges de loup lt long: , wlk in: 5 mins, moderte The rod through the gorges is drmtic nd populr. The river below offers some gret pools nd jumps. From Pont-du-Loup the best pools re 2km N, just s the first rod tunnel emerges nd 300m before the Cscde de Courmes on R. Prking is tricky, but drop down L to find populr cliff jump nd the whirlygig pool tht spins you round. To explore the river thoroughly follow the riverside tril N from Pontdu-Loup insted. The Sut du Loup flls further on (entrnce fee) hve no ccess to the pools. Gours du Ry is little known cnyon on the upper Loup. Continue N on D3 then L t D2. 3km beyond Gréolières find prking lyby on R nd wide trck on L. Descend 500m to cnyoning signbord nd continue on level pth (old queduct) below. Follow this for 250m to smll bridge with blck box, then descend R 250m to river nd find excellent pools up into cnyon ( , ). 28 clue de st-ubn lt long: , wlk in: 5 mins, moderte A lrge jde-green pool with ruined mill building lies t the bottom of this populr cnyon. Clue de St-Aubn is the most western of the Esteron clues, 18km W of Gours du Ry on D2/D5 vi Col de Bleine. (Also 23km W of Aiglun, see Swim 24). Prk ner Esteron bridge on D2211, 3km N of (below) villge of St-Aubn. Tke the trck downstrem for bout 300m to where cnyon meets the Esteron. Cross the river on stepping stones (lterntive route vi the footbridge nd let is possible in high flow) to find lrge pool with ledges bove for jumps. 29 lc de st-cssien lt long: , wlk in: 3 mins, esy Beutiful, lrge lke for swimming close to utoroute. Minor rod round the whole lke lso offers mny beches. 28 Clue de St-Aubn Just off A8 (J39), 12km W of Cnnes, or off D562, 17km W of Grsse. We swm in the little by 800m before the bridge. There is lso fun outdoor wter-prk on fr side of bridge, plus pedlos with slides. Pont des Tuves is Romn hump bridge over lrge blue pool on the Signe, below St-Cézire, off D562 8km W of Grsse. From St-Cézire villge squre, pss the church nd find gp in houses on R (on Rue d Eglité). Drop down into the vlley on good pth, pst the old wshhouse, bering right t the fork (dir Pont de Tuves), pst the cnl. As you pproch the river go under wterfll before the bridge nd pool (3km, 30mins, , ). For circulr wlk, cross the bridge, bering R t the ruined building nd follow riverside pth for 3km, pssing severl beches nd n iron footbridge until nother stone bridge is reched ( , ) leding bck up to St-Cézire. 56 Alpes-Mritimes 57

6 30 ruisseu de plnfe Tuf-lined wterflls 31 ruisseu d udin 31 fnghetto 58 Alpes-Mritimes 59

7 31b Gorges de Crlev b limestone dolomite rock, is series of crved river cves nd striking green tuf wterflls. Mosses tht hve grown on the rocks hve extrcted crbon dioxide from the wter vi photosynthesis nd produced deposit, like eggshell, on the surfce of the wterflls. This region hs beutiful mountin villges, strtegiclly positioned to defend key routes nd territories. Sigle is fortified villge, set high over the junction of the Rioln. Remnnts of the ncient fortifictions include two medievl towers nd the 19th-century Tour de l Horloge, squre bell tower tht stnds high bove the villge on the southern edge, overlooking the vlley. More gorges cn be found in the busy Rivier hinterlnd of Cnnes. The most fmous, the Gorges du Loup 27, which hs numerous cscdes rushing down its sheer sides, is reched vi winding rod tht psses through through thick forest. There re mny ccess points to the pools below or you cn wlk the riverside pth from Pont-du-Loup. West of the fmous perfume town of Grsse there re riverside wlks long the Signe between two Romn bridges below St-Cézire, while beutiful Lc de St-Cssien hs severl beches for more trditionl swimming s well s pedlos nd wter slides. Around Sospel 30 ruisseu de plnfé lt long: , wlk in: 10 mins, difficult A series of spectculr, tuf-lined wterflls nd pools in remote, wooded nd mountinous re. About 7km N of pretty mountinside villge Corze (D15), nd 800m fter turning for L Engrvin (L), find bridge over Pillon de Contes. Prk, descend to river s R bnk nd follow riverbed 10 mins to the first smll pool nd wter fll. A further 300m of flls nd pools follow. Rech the best by climbing little wy bove the strem to the R. There re more pools nd flls downstrem. Gorge de Cuous Continue nother 11km (D15, D2566) then turn R (D21) nd continue 5km to the flt plteu below Col de l Orme. 150m before the bend follow signed footpth on L 30 mins to Pont de Suglet. 150m downstrem you will find pretty plunge pool ( , ) nd flt rocks bove high wterfll. The gorge below is ccessible by bushwcking down to R. b Rvine de Redebrus Descend on D km, through Lucérm, to D2204. Turn L nd scend to Touët-del Escrène. At N end of villge, by villge sign, tke grvel footpth on R 5-10min to bridge. Continue on pth upstrem, beyond green fence, to find pretty pools nd flls on L within 10 mins ( , ). Populr with fmilies. 31 fnghetto lt long: , wlk in: 2 mins, moderte Pools nd flt rocks on the Roy below Romn bridge. A plesnt wlk leds to well-hidden Audin gorges feturing deep pots filled with qumrine wter, overhung with tropicl folige. The bridge t Fnghetto mrks the Itlin-French border, ccessed vi D6204 S of Breil-sur-Roy or N off A10 t Ventimigli in Itly. Prk t bridge nd descend on R bnk to rocks nd pool beside bridge. Ruisseu d Audin Continue up rod (dir Fnghetto) nd fter three bends find footpth to L by chpel (yellow wymrks, dir Briel-sur-Roy; Sentier Vlléen/Vi Libri). After 500m ber L (dir Breil) nd 200m before the stone footbridge tke L pth with steep descent to strem. Follow it upstrem to queduct, continuing nother 300m to first of mny pools ( , ). b Gorge de Crlev hs severl pools nd forms mgnificent junction pool with the Roy. On entering Breil-sur- Roy from S by rod, turn R immeditely fter bridge nd follow pedestrin street (Rue de l Plce Rousse) 200m until the rod becomes n old wlled footpth to Chpel St-Antoine (yellow wymrks). Continue nother 1km downstrem bove the Roy (interesting river cves below) bering R t ech junction (dir Hmeux de Libre/Fnghetto) until you rech stone bridge ( , ). Find smll qumrine pools upstrem or hed down 200m to junction pool on the Roy ( , ), blighted somewht by view of queduct pipe. 60 Alpes-Mritimes 61

8 30 gorge de cuous The wlk from Col de l Orme 30 gorge de cuous The plunge pool 62 Alpes-Mritimes 30b rvine de redebrus 63

9 32b Pools on the Vesubie 32 L Infernet The Alpes-Mritimes deprtment ws originlly colonized by the Romns in 14BC nd hs been in nd out of Itlin rule over the centuries. You will need to cross into Itly t Fnghetto 31 to ccess Frnce s most southesterly cnyon on the Audin 31 beutiful strem with series of tourmline bsins overhung with verdnt folige, deep in cleft of the mountinside. Similrly beutiful plunge pools cn be found round the pretty villges of Sospel, Lucérm nd Corze bove Monte-Crlo, in the rvines of Cuos 30, Plnfe 30 nd Redebrus 30b. If you wnt to climb higher, just follow the big rivers. The Vesubie offers route, vi the twisting D2565, into the north-estern mountins of the Prc Ntionl du Mercntour, one of Frnce s lest visited nd most spectculr res. The route leds close to the impressive, mossy cliff-wterfll t the bse of L Peïr ner St-Jen-l-Rivière 32 nd the drmtic chsm of L Infernet ner Le Suquet 32, cthedrllike vult tht you cn swim into. Continue on nd up, high into the Gordolsque vlley, for the gint Cscde du Ry 33 nd number of low-level lkes 33b. But if you yern for rel lpine lkes, tke to the mountins nd visit the Vllée des Merveilles (Vlley of Wonders) on the western flnks of Mont Bégo 33d. First described by lost, bedrggled Vesubie to the mountins 32 l infernet, le suquet lt long: , wlk in: 15 mins, moderte Exciting gorge with cves nd slide nd smller pools below in shdy woodlnd. Le Suquet is on the D2565 (Vesubie vlley), 14km N of D6202 (Vr vlley) nd 4km N of St-Jen-l-Rivière. The Infernet river gorge joins the Vesubie 350m upstrem of bridge, bove the weir. Continue 250m beyond the Auberge du Bon Puits (opp! Les Merveilles) nd, just fter footbll pitch, follow trck on R 300m to river. If sfe (it s usully very shllow), ford the Vesubie vi grvel bnks nd enter the wooded creek of the Infernet. Pretty woodlnd pools (200m) grdully nrrow until you rech bse of cnyon (400m further) with underground pools nd gret rock slide in the second chmber. Cscde de Pier is 400m S of St- Jen-l-Rivière on D2565. Turn L on to D19 (dir Durnus), continue 800m to the bridge nd tke footpth on L. Climb 200m to find shllow pool beneth gint mossy wterfll cliff ( , ). b Confluence of Vesubie nd Tueis is 2km N of St-Jen-l-Rivière. Find picnic nd prking re next to the rod on R, just fter two bridges. Wlk 600m further long rod to find vi ferrt with metl steps descending to river below the dm. Good pools 200m downstrem 200m ( , ) or swim nd scrmble 800m downstrem to find exit t the second bridge (check exit first). Note EDF wrnings. 33 gordolsque lkes lt long: , wlk in: 1 min, esy To journey higher up into the mountins follow the rod into the Gordolsque vlley. It ends ner peceful lke, surrounded by medow, with bechy shore. The wter is firly brcing. Follow D171 E from D2565, vi Belvédère. After 12km you rech the end of the rod nd lke is on R. Cscde du Ry cn be found on the sme rod, 10km beyond Belvédère. A deep pool sits beneth thundering fll one for the brve ( , ). b Lc de St-Grt is R fter nother 2km, 500m beyond the gîte, though the no swimming or gmes sign suggests discretion ( , ). c Lc Autier is 4km wlk (600m scent) to 2275m ( , ) from rod end. d Lc des Merveilles cn be found in the mgicl Vllée des Merveilles (2268m, , ) fmous for their mysterious prehistoric stone crvings. Ascend vi Le Ps de l Arpette, with equipment nd guide. There is mountin refuge nd over 15 wonderful lkes of vrying sizes to explore. e Lc de Trecolps is superb mountin lke (2163m) with smll islnd ( , ), 5km E of Le Boréon, 30km to the N on D Alpes-Mritimes 65

10 35 Tlon Rvine, Dluis 35 Cmping du Brec cnyon sfety Swimming right into the hert of mountin nd coming into close contct with the beutiful shpes formed by time nd erosion is moving experience, but ber in mind tht clues nd cnyons cn be dngerous plces. Avoid climbing down into cnyon nd not being ble to complete the descent, owing to the drop-off nd wterflls being too steep, or being forced to climb bck up becuse the current is too strong nd the wterflls re impssble. Alwys explore cnyons from the bottom up nd mke sure you check the depth of lnding pools to ensure they re sfe to jump into on your return. Also check the wether conditions. Sudden thunderstorms cn crete huge increse in wter flow, sometimes vi wtershed some distnce wy, nd cuse the wter in cnyons to rise rpidly. This is especilly true in long cnyons where hedwters re ffected by storms high in the mountins. Finlly, becuse most cnyons re surrounded by high cliffs, rocks cn get dislodged nd fll. Although the chnces of being struck on the hed by flling rock re mybe one in million, it mkes sense to wer bicycle helmet in cnyon or, better still, join one of the hundreds of orgnized cnyoning groups nd treks. nd terrified 15th-century trveller s n infernl plce with figures of the devil nd thousnds of demons scrtched on the rocks. Little is known bout the prehistoric origins of these ncient crvings on the vlley s rocky outcrops nd wht the bstrct nd figurtive shpes represent. To climb into the mountins of the north-west, follow the route of the river Vr, long the D6202. For thousnds of yers this ws one of the region s key trnsport routes: the fbulous medievl villge of Entrevux 35 gurds the entrnce to the nrrow pss by mens of drwbridge high bove the river, nd its wlled wlkwy zig-zgs up through fortified doorwys to 17th-century citdel. To the north, the Vr nrrows into the dmtic red-stone gorges of Dluis, which re both formidble nd remote. Down in the vlley bottom we found the remins of n old, rusty cble system for trnsporting people nd goods cross the gorge when the river ws impssble 35 nd long- bndoned workers encmpment. Futher on, steep pth led down to the depths of the drmtic, red Cscde d Amen 35b. This lndscpe the frontier between the high psses ner Colmrs 36 nd Lc d Allos 36 with its soring egles nd wild-wter rivers, seemed million miles wy from the hevily developed Côte d Azur. River Vr to the mountins 34 gorges de tinée lt long: , wlk in: 10 mins, moderte Plesnt pool on river Tinée or explore up Crmssouri creek 100m to find wterfll pool (nd pools bove for those who cn climb up). Tke the D2205 (Tinée vlley) from the min D6202 (Vr) rod. After bout 4km, nd 1.2km before the bridge nd junction to L Tour (D32), find smll lyby on river side. Descend on rough pth to river Tinée, where cnyon Crmssouri joins from the opposite slopes. 35 brec, entrevux lt long: , wlk in: 1 min, esy Superb swimming lke with pontoon t! Cmping du Brec ( E ) just outside beutiful citdel of Entrevux. The little lkeside br mkes gret plce to wtch the sun set. Open to non-cmpers. Hed 40km W from river Tinée on D6202/D4202/N202. 5km W of Entrevux on N202, turn R just fter the bridge to find cmpsite nd lke. A pretty riverside footpth leds from here 2km downstrem to the fortified villge with rpids nd shllow pools in the Vr. Good for mud fights! Gorges de Dluis Turn R onto D902 nd fter 10km, s the gorge begins to deepen nd the rod rises, prk t the picnic re Aire Rou. 150m further up rod, by the gorge sign, go through gp in the brrier on R, nd descend on switchbck footpth to the river Vr below (15mins). Notice the rusting remins of n old cble-cr system for crrying people cross the river in times of flood. Cross the river plin to where the Tlon rvine joins on opposite side ( , ). After 50m you cn climb up wterfll to deep, redcoloured pool just bove. Or continue up the min Vr 200m to find deep chnnel for swimming nd splshing. b Cscde d Amen Continue 4km further to the Amen sign, with prking, picnic tble nd wterfll views. If you re very fit, venture down nd bthe in the plunge pool ( , ) by continuing 50m to find the very steep pth on the R, 20m before the bridge. The pth is used by cnyoners nd bseilers exiting the gorge. 36 cscde de l lnce lt long: , wlk in: 15 mins, moderte Drmtic double wterfll in strited rock rvine with deep, cold plunge pool. 1km S from the mgnificent fortified villge of Colmrs, then 700m wlk. 20km W of D2202 vi D18 /D2 (Col des Chmps). Lc D Allos t 2,225m is superb with lkeside chpel ( , ). 9km N of Colmrs on D908, then turn R t Allos. Prk t rod end then wlk 1.5km to lke side. Wter is on the cold side. 66 Alpes-Mritimes 67