Tuesday 21st June: Blue skies and warm, 16°C to 26°
Sospel to Moulinet: 19k walk: 9.20am to 4.50pm, 7hrs 30mins
Accommodation: Villa Le Beau Site Moulinet
Across the bridge, into the bush
Jenny clawing through overgrowth
Cuppa coffee on shady rock
Wild country in Mercantour Park
Cone de Penas at end of track
Magnificent view point
Jenny and Graham on the way up
Not a well used track
The wild Mercantour National Park
Very dry and rocky Mercantour
Host Simone at Villa de Beau Site
Magnificent entre Grain de Sel
Our first day in the Mercantour National Park was a magnificent but long 19k day instead of the planned 11k as we took one look at the climb to Cime a Codolis and took the long way which added 6k. The highlight was our Villa de Beau Site in Moulinet and being greeted by our friendly hosts Georges and Simone Mallory, an elderly French couple who live in this huge villa and rent out 3 rooms as a gite.
Our day started at 6am with a cup of Jetboiled tea, chatting home to family, then a quick trip to the Spar and Boulangerie to buy bread, cheese and tomatoes for a picnic lunch. We say goodbye to Tim who has owned Auberge Vieux Pont for 10 years since he and his wife left Chipping Norton in England to avoid the massive developments in his village and chose Sospel which is surrounded by mountains.
It's an easy uphill walk on a country road 3k to Faissalonga where the road ends and the GR52A sign points down hill on an overgrown track – well sign posted but not well used. At the bottom, the track crosses the main road, the D2566, and the overgrown track becomes an impassable forest of thorny vines. We make a collective decision to go another 100 metres before deciding whether or not to turn back to the main road which is busy and narrow, winding up the steep Gorges du Piaon - and there's no shoulder for hikers. After 15 minutes hopping through thorny bush, we reach a farm house where the track turns into a stony path covered in cow plops - we can't win. But it gets better. And after an hour we've reached a beech forest where there's little overgrowth, no cow plops and beautiful views across the valley.
By 11.30am it's time for a coffee break before tackling the 500 metre climb. It's a cool 22°C sitting in the shade but hot and thirsty walking in the sun and we fill up our water bottles from the only running water we've seen in 2 days. A ridge walk ends abruptly at the Cone de Penas and we turn sharply left down the other side. There’s beautiful views all round. At 1.30pm, Ian and Jenny spy a shady spot for lunch by a running stream - it's very dry in the southern part of the French Alps, and the snow melted months ago. Fresh bread, tomatoes and cheese with cold water is refueling and refreshing.
Another 15 minutes down the track, there's a signpost to Cime a Codolis at 1022 metres. It's very steep and rocky up an almost vertical 300 metre. No thanks. We take a vote and decide to walk the long way around via the Granges du Cuous then on to the Pas de Capelette. It's still a 300 metre climb, but spread over about 6 k it’s an easy grade. Once at the Col, it's a cool forest walk around the contours until we meet a gravel road, and the village of Moulinet comes into sight 200 metres below us.
Down the road for 30 minutes to a steep track leading to Moulinet and we enter the village via the Public Washing basins – a huge water trough where villagers washed in earlier centuries. Up the road, someone tells us that the only shop won't be open til 5,30pm and it's now only 5pm. About 500 metres on, we recognise Villa de Beau Site from photos. Georges and Simone greet us and take us up 3 flights of stairs to a sun room. They’re a lovely elderly couple and we sit and share a beer with them. It's an interesting chat as they speak almost no English and I speak almost no French, but enough to get by and indicate yes, we'd like them to make a Reservation at the restaurant Grain de Sel which we passed on the way in. Our rooms are basic but clean with a small kitchenette, disposable sheets and a hot shower - all we need.
A quick shower then down to the Epicerie that's now open and serves as the local bar, to buy yoghurt and fruit and bread and tomatoes for the next 2 lunches - the shop is closed on a Wednesday so we can't stock up in the morning. The little restaurant is in the middle of town and we are the only customers. The food is absolutely beautiful. We all choose the 19 euro, 3 course deal. Entre is green salad, basil tomatoes and ricotta cheese. The main is egg plant and half a chicken - a tiny chicken half the size of our halves in Oz. Dessert was a choice of chocolate cake, pannacotta or lemon tart. One of the nicest meals we've had. A walk back to the villa at 9pm and bed after a long warm day.