June 12 - 21: Corsica is located in the Mediterranean Sea - We hiked & climbed from Calenzana to Vizzavona, the northern half of the GR20: totalling 112 km / 9239m cumulative elevation gain / highest point 2607m
Why is this called the toughest trek in Europe and at the same time one of the best treks in the world? 98% of this route has no trail so you must rely on the red & white striped waymarks. Most of the time you're walking on rugged rocky unforgiving terrain with very little flat ground. The huts + food are very basic, crowded and noisy with the exception of two locations. Don't forget your earplugs for those drunken snorners! But the reward was amazing views while high ridge climbing, and a diverse mix of colorful alpine lakes, giant pine & beech trees and rugged ridges shaped with towers, spires and slabs that are usually tackled only by mountaneers.
We did the high route which took 9 days. The northern half is considered to be more difficult because of steeper rocky and more exposed paths. Thankfully Judith knew basic French. Without that we would've been lost, as the French do not speak English.
The weather was perfect. The frequent afternoon storms did not happen. We had no rain which meant we could keep trekking. Wet rock would've been a no go. We did not have to take our heavy ice-axes + microspikes as the snow had just melted on the route, which also meant a better water supply. The temperatures were in the upper 20s, so still doable. Our heaviest item to carry on our backs (besides my Fuji-film X-T3 of course), was water. On an average day I took 4 litres (8.3 lbs).
Let my photos tell the rest of my story...
June 10: We spent 3 days in Holland first, getting over the jet lag before flying to Paris and then Bastia in Corsica with Case's sister, Judith + Thea, the mother of our son-in-law who is a neighbour to Case's other sister, Janet in the Netherlands. Case struggled with jet lag, not listening to us about avoiding taking those long naps late in the day.
June 11: Motel le Colibri, close to the airport in Bastia.
We took the train to Calvi and then a short taxi ride to Calenzana where the departure point for the famous GR20 was. This took the better part of the day.
Eucalyptus trees at the train station.
The Corsican beer; Pietra was delicious! Especially in hot sweaty weather.
6-pic slider: Campo Santo de Tedeschi 1732
Calenzana is one of Corsica's most important cultural regions, cultivating vines & olive trees, making honey and raising goats for their reknowned cheese.
1) Ocean blue Morning Glory 2) Oleander 3) Orange Tree 4) Woolly Joint Prickly Pear cactus
Humongous Prickly Pear Cactus.
1) The Romanesque Chapelle di Santa Restitua; the burial place of a Christian martyr in 303AD.
2) Swallow nests.
June 12: Day 1-- Calenzana (250m) to d'Ortu di u Piobbu (1270M) -- 14 km / 1600m gain / 1570m high point / 6:15 hours MT
All fresh, clean and rearing to go. In our go-to book for this trek: The GR20 CORSICA by Paddy Dillon, it states for our first day: "This day is a fine introdution to the rigours and the delights of the GR20- it's your baptism by fire"
Excited, apprehensive, eager; a mix of emotions as we took our first steps on a trip of a lifetime, planned 3 years ago, before Covid hit. Would we be OK? Injuries, fatigue, dehydration, strained muscles, etc. Could we do it? The uncertain immediate future lay before us.
As many as 30,000 people trek this route annually. A well worn trail.
We started 250m and hiked up to 1570m. For the remainder of the trek we would stay at around that altitude for the night, rising to higher heights (with the exception of the second day) throughout the day.
Leaving Calenzana behind.
There was an alternate lower route this day but we took the higher one which is shorter but more demanding.
1) Milk Thistle 2) Everlasting-pea 3) Golden Fleece
Charred remains of a fire in 1982.
1) Montpelier Cistus 2) Pink Rockrose
1) Queen Anne's Lace 2) Broom was the predominant blooming plant.
Laricia pines.
At the Bucca a u Saltu pass: 1250m.
The other side of the pass involved some scrambling.
Steep ups and downs on the slopes of Capu Ghiovu.
2) Common Spotted-orchid
Juniper lines the trail.
An open viewpoint.
The trail turned left onto a ridge full of broom with some alder & birch trees. Now we could also see the higher distant mountains.
Looking back.
When I first spotted the tents of camp #1, I thought, "How are we going to get there with this big deep valley between us?" But the trail wound tightly along the end of the valley. All of the huts for the first 5 days had helicopter landing pads. They transport food, supplies and injured trekkers.
Looking back from the campsite, glad to finally see the others filtering in.
The hut at this Refuge d'Ortu di u Piobbu was deliberatly burnt down in 2019. So we had to sleep in tents. Showers at all the huts were cold and a sink provided water to wash your clothes and faces in and brush your teeth. With an estimated 150 hikers at every refuge, it helped to come a bit earlier, which the Timmermanses are not so good at. But we did improve as the days went by.
The dinners were a simple pasta with not much else in it. Breakfasts were the typical white French bread with not much else (a bit of jam). It was hard enough that you could whack each other on the head with it. Prepared lunches included more French bread + granola bar + packaged applesauce.
Case making friends with a chicken. They were enjoying the food crumbs and were contained at night.
We slept in tents 2 nights. The pads were so thin and uncomfortable. I slept with my head at Case's feet because he was snoring so loud.
June 13: Trek day #2 -- d'Ortu di u Piobbu (1570m) to refuge de Carozzu (1270m) -- 13.75 km / 829m gain / 1270m high point / 5:15 hours MT
This is the only day Judith & I took the lower route, so as to stay with Thea & Case. But we decided at the end of the day to not do that again because we descended in the cool part of the morning and had to climb back up to the hut in the hot part of the day. I question if this was the easier route to take. It was 5 km longer and 80m more gain than the higher route. I missed out on the higher views and scrambling was not an issue for me. We decided to split up, since there was too much of a difference between Case & Thea's paces and ours.
Leaving our place of sanctuary for the night.
1) We saw many of these little speckled black & jade-green lizards 2) Chives
Laricio pine.
2) Red-helleborine 3) Cat Thyme 4) Sowbread
Ruisseau de Melaghia.
When I saw this I thought, "Why so many cairns so close together?" Later I learned that the tradition is that when a hiker passes a rock pile, they add a stone to it.
This wide gravel path runs alongside the Roncu river. There were rock-climbers on the cliffs across from us.
A small moment of panic/confusion when we did not see a marker pointing the way to our next hut at this boulder strewn river. There was no mention of a parking lot in the book. Would we have to backtrack in this hot weather? Then Judith found the sign by the parking lot on the other side of the Roncu river. Phew.
Now it was a relentless steep climb in the hottest part of the day.
Laricio pine gave way to maritime pine, holm oak and arbutus trees.
Ruisseau de Spasimata.
Ahhh. A chance to cool off.
Almost there. This picnic table dates back to 1938.
These horses and mules did not seem to be so sure-footed on the rocks.
The Carozzu hut is perched on the only piece of flat ground in the area at 1270m.
This flag became official when Corsica became independent in 1762. P Paoli ordered that the blindfold be lifted from the Moor's eyes and placed as a bandana on his forehead to symbolise the liberation of the island.
After seeing the long line-ups at the showers, Case & I followed Steve's directions and took a dip in a small pool hidden behind this smooth granite above the bridge.
June 14 - Trek day #3 -- de Carozzu Hut (1270) to Haut Asco hostel/restaurant ski resort(1422m) -- 6 km / 1077m gain / 5:30 hours
Tents perched on the terrace due to lack of space on the limited level ground.
A helicopter landing pad built on a cliff.
Only two people at a time were allowed on this foot-bridge because it was so wobbly.
We were aiming for the pass just left of the right hump.
Crossing the sloping Spasimata Slabs needed caution and at times the assistance of the chains.
Nice to be climbing in the shade.
The towering peak of Muvrella partly overhangs the gap.
At the Bocca Muvrella pass (1980m).
After lunch at the pass, the route did a downward horseshoe, heading first right and then left.
Heading left, we crested the ridge in the foreground.
Judith had to help that lady in the right photo. She was a bit too broad to fit through that narrow crack.