11 minute read
Corsica
It seems strange for me to be reporting on a mere long distance walk, but Corsica GR20 is no mere walk in the park, believe me.
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I’d promised my brother I’d go with him on a mountain trip this year. Because of work commitments, he hasn’t been out on the hill for a while and was in desperate need of doing something apart from work. He was scheduled to come on our 2010 Alps trip, the one when we eventually got to the top of the Matterhorn, but unfortunately (especially for him), work got in the way too and Tom Thorne filled his place instead.
A few options were talked about but Corsica won out. Cheap Easy Jet flights from Bristol to Bastia helped, but Bastia isn’t the best airport to land at. The GR20, also labelled as the toughest long distance walk in Europe, runs diagonally across Corsica starting or finishing in the north west of the island. Bastia is in the north EAST corner. The northern section of the route should take about 10 days with an additional 5 days for the easier southern section. As we only had a week, we were hoping to ‘double up’ a couple of days and complete the whole of the northern section. This meant we had to do the first day’s 6½ hour route with 1,300 metres of ascent from Calenzana on the day we arrived.
The first problem was getting 110km across the top of Corsica to the start. The best and probably only solution was to hire a car at Bastia airport and drop it off 2 hours later at Calvi airport. This still left us 15km short of the start but that was covered by taxi, shared with a French couple. They had more sense than starting off a tough ascent at the hottest time of the day and headed for the local Gite d’Etap. The climb out of Calenzana was one of the toughest things I’ve ever tried to do. A month of physical inactivity (normally called work), extreme heat and rough terrain and I was suffering….
The best advice was to travel light but this was the end of August and the huts were supposedly full (some were). We needed a week of day rations, tent, sleeping bags, mats and cooking equipment. As I was taking the tent, I ditched every luxury but still couldn’t keep the weight below 14kg including water. The ascent was as hard as hell! Andrew’s boots started falling apart after two hours. The sole peeled right off the front of one boot and started coming off the other (Not what you’d expect from Scarpa’s). Repairs were performed with various bits of string and webbing but how long would that last?
My 2 litres of water was disappearing fast so when we came across a tiny stream, I scooped it up in my hat and drank as much as I could. Bugger the consequences! After 5 hours we reached a lovely col and both my legs seized up with excruciating cramp. With great relief, we decided to stop here and wild camp. Its not allowed, but who was going to stop us? Too dehydrated to chew any food, I collapsed into my sleeping bag. As tired as I was, I couldn’t help appreciating what a wonderful spot we were at and the sunset was incredible.
Dawn the next day was just as good and delightfully cool. We packed in short order and headed on along the trail. Two hours later and we were eating breakfast and drinking coffee at the Refuge d’Ortu di u Piobbu. We got talking to an Irish lad called Connor who had been working on a farm on Corsica for 6 months. He told us that too many people took huge packs on the GR20 and how unnecessary this was, before shouldering a BIG pack himself and heading out!
One of the big surprises I had on this trip was that you tended to meet up with the same group of people at each stop and started to get to know them. Why this should surprise me I don’t know as everyone is following a similar hut-to-hut schedule. What really surprised, though, me is how much I enjoyed catching up with my new friends each evening. Another notable feature is that at no time are you out of sight of a red and white marker. It’s almost impossible to get lost because as soon as you realise you can’t see one, you just back track until you pick them up again.
We topped up with food, cake, coke, coffee and water before continuing on our intended second ‘leg’ to the Refuge de Carozzu. This was pretty hard going again and took an additional 7 hours, making it a 9 hour full-on day in total. The terrain was rugged and the distance was much more than I’d anticipated, but we eventually descended into a lovely wooded valley. We set up the tent in the thick forest, had a delightfully refreshing cold shower and tucked into a generous meal at the refuge before watching another perfect sunset while drinking plenty of good local (and cheap) red wine. Bliss!
The following morning and we headed out on section no 3 over the Spasimata slabs.
A cable bridge added a bit of interest before the 800m ascent to the Col de Stagni. Still not properly ‘trail fit’ meant it was hard work but the constantly expanding scenery made up for that. Not far from the col, we stopped at a tiny lake and basked in the sun as it broke over the rim of the higher mountains, enjoying the distant glimpses of the beaches on the coast.
Once over the col, the old path continues on to the old refuge, destroyed by fire a decade ago. You now have little option but to descend to Haut Asco, a failed ski centre, or carry on and ‘double up’ to the next refuge. The burning of the refuge is supposed to have been perpetrated by the ski centre to generate more summer business! After a steep descent, however, the hotel at the bottom turned out to be a god send. Not only did they provide the best meal we’d eaten since we arrived, they also sold lightweight boots! What’s more, the largest pair they had in stock, fitted Andrew’s feet like a glove. Eureka!
We had intended to ‘double-up’ on the previous day’s route but the lure of a good meal instead of a potential wild camp was too much. The next section also included the Cirque du Solitude, the hardest part of the whole route. We’d lost a fair bit of height dropping down to Haut Asco but the climb back up again was at an easy angle. We looked for the remains of the burnt out hut but couldn’t locate it. The Cirque certainly is impressive but isn’t difficult in dry conditions at about grade 1 scramble territory and well provisioned with chains. I guess it could be difficult if it was wet. The route takes an oblique route down into the cirque then follows a broad terrace up the other side, goes round behind a pinnacle and finishes up a loose slope. It certainly isn’t anything to be worried about as some of our fellow walkers seemed to be. Thankfully, it’s in the shade and nice and cool too.
Some lovely glacier smoothed terraces then take you down the angular looking Refuge de Tighjettu, which is built on stilts. It’s a fine looking refuge with a jolly warden. There were spoof signs to the wall directing you to the discothèque and piano bar! We opted to carry on and camp at the Auberge Du Vallon instead but, apparently, we missed quite a party in the refuge that night as some of our German friends had bad hangovers on the trail the next day.
The Auberge was great: Family run with hot showers and superb food, especially the soupe de Corse, usually made with whatever comes to hand. Andrew was still talking about it the next day!
An easier day was promised for the next day with a mere 607 metres of ascent. My legs were starting to get used to the rigours of the GR20 and didn’t feel quite as stiff but the ascent to the Col de Reta was still pretty punishing. Coming over the top, the landscape changed to rolling grass covered slopes. In the distance was the Refuge de Ciottulu di i Mori and behind that a huge rock face with a window near the top. As we approached the refuge we could see several people scrambling down from it so, after a cup of coffee, we headed up the track to see if we could find the route. What appeared to be a sheer face had a series of narrow terraces that could be strung together into what turned out to be a great scramble route with a stunning view of the far coast through the window.
Descending from the refuge in the building heat, we came across a deep pool with a water slide. Connor and a German called Alec were in the process of launching themselves down the slide. It looked so inviting, we joined them to cool off a bit. An hour later and back on the trail, more and bigger pools appeared with many more people in them. They had walked up from a car park an hour or two walk from below. This last section of path through the forest was quite a trial: hot, humid, easy to get lost and seemingly never ending. Eventually we emerged onto a road and soon arrived at the Hotel Castel di Vergio where four beers were quickly dispatched! This is an active ski centre, complete with drag lifts opposite the Hotel – strange in such a hot place! We’d heard rumours of foxes or pigs trashing tents in the campsite next door so opted to stay in the bunk rooms in the basement of the hotel. A mattress sounded like luxury too. Showers were hot and the food was excellent.
Continuing through the forest the next day was much more pleasant in the fresh cool morning air. With most of the trees being Beech, it had a ‘New Forest’ feel about it for a while, before the slope steepened and we headed for another steep climb.
Over the top and the landscape changed again to a pretty grassy plateau with a perfect little lake in the middle, the Lac de Nino. Following the course of the river that emptied from the lake, another dip in another pool was needed before we headed for the Bergerries de Vaccaghja. The farmers in these summer residences take advantage of the passing walkers by selling food and drink including the cheese they make themselves. 10 Euros buy’s a great big slab of very good cheese and half a crusty loaf.
Another hour in baking heat and we arrived at the Refuge de Manganu. We’d brought some dehydrated meals as a back up and as the next day was our last on the GR20, we decided to eat those instead of eat at the refuge. Yum Yum: orange gloop that was supposed to be curry followed by brown gloop supposed to be chocolate pudding…. At least the cheese course was good. Shame some thieving nocturnal beast nicked what was left in the middle of the night! We retired to the terrace outside the refuge to catch up with all the people we’d met, drink lots of red wine and watch another stunning sunset.
Our final day involved crossing the highest section on the GR20 and getting all the way back to the airport so a pre-dawn start was needed. Today’s 1,000 metre ascent was pretty easy and we popped out into the sunshine on the Breche de Capitellu at 2,225 metres not long after dawn.
Our route now took us away from the GR20 down to the two lakes below. Backed by the huge rock amphitheatre of the Capitellu, the upper lake is supposedly frozen for 8 months of the year. We’d a bet running on whether there would still be snow present at the end of August. Andrew said there would be snow and won the bet!
Another couple of hours and we were at the Bergerries de Grotella eating breakfast but facing a 15km walk down the pretty Restonica valley to the town of Corti. We hitched one lift that saved us about 6km and arrived in Calvi by mid afternoon. As the bus wasn’t due until 6pm, we went to several bars for several beers.
Camping L’Esperanza was our final destination, which needed a taxi ride from the bus stop. It’s about a 45 minute walk from there to Bastia airport terminal so it’s well placed for the morning flight out. We got another taxi instead and were back in Bristol by late morning. After eating all my food and with no water, my pack was down to 7.7kg when I checked it in. It’s a pity it hadn’t been on that tortuous first day.
If I went again, I still wouldn’t try to double up the days. It would spoil the enjoyment too much but I would go for two weeks, start the first day very early and have a few days on the beach at the end. From the top of Corsica, they look lovely!
Alan Turner Andrew Turner
Main picture
Gorges-de-la-Restonica
Far left bottom
Busted-boots.
Middle left
First night camp
Middle right
Cirque-du-Solitude
Below left
Lac-de-Nino.
Above top
Cheese!
Above middle
Refuge-de-Manganu
Above
Hotel-Castel-di-Vergio.
