Hiking and Cooking in the South of France

There are some easily accessed mountains at the entrance to Haut Pays from which you have a super panorama to the highest peaks of Alpes Maritimes. Le Caïre Gros (2087m) and Tête de Clans (2081m) above the village of St-Dalmas Valdeblore (1290m) and the nearby the ski resort of La Colmiane are two such summits.

Some guidebooks describing the hike to Le Caïre Gros recommend to take the trail back to St-Dalmas Valdeblore through the Bois Noir. Having done this hike previously, and lost our trail twice in the woods of Bois Noir, we suggest here a much nicer path with better views back to St-Dalmas Valdeblore. In good visibility you can easily do two summits by continuing from Le Caïre Gros to Tête de Clans. This requires practically no extra effort.

In St-Dalmas Valdeblore, park your car near the church. There is a small parking on the other side of the main road. The hike starts from the nearby signpost #78. Follow first the Grande Randonnée 5 and its red and white signs up to the Col de Deux Caïres (1910m). This first part is almost continuous and rather steep long ascent.

At signpost #99 leave the GR 5 and start ascending to the Caïre Gros (2087m). There a super panorama waits for you. You can see Mont Mounière, Argentera, Gélas…in fact many of the 3000+ summits!

After the summit, descend a little to south along the ridge. Climb a few meters to the Tête de Clans (2081m). Continue a bit more to south until you come to a nice alpine meadow, locate signpost #101 on the GR 5 trail a bit lower. Descend along the meadow to this signpost, and head north along the GR 5.

Follow the GR 5 as far as to signpost 98 after the Col du Varaire. There leave the GR 5 and take the right-hand path towards La Colmiane. This trail is marked with yellow signs. Follow this nice path, crossing twice a ski run, to signpost #94. There turn left and start first descending along a ski run, then along a stony unpaved road which will soon take you back to the starting point at signpost #78.

We did this hike in the middle of October on a warm and sunny day with just some scattered clouds.

Total ascent: about 850- 900 m.
Total hiking time: about 5h.
Map: IGN 3641 ET Moyenne Tinée

Quinoa is a gluten free grain which originates from the Andean region of South America. Quinoa has been called “Mother grain” or superfood because of its high protein content and favourable amino acid profile. Quinoa has become popular in the Western countries as there is growing interest in gluten free and vegetarian diets.

The following recipe is an old favorite in our family when we want to have a healthy and light lunch. You can boost the protein content of this lunch by adding crumbled goat cheese on the salad or by having some fromage blanc or yoghurt with berry sauce.

Even in Mediterranean countries good fresh basil is not available in winter. Here in Nice pistou is then used. Pistou is simply crushed basil leaves with salt in olive oil and is similar to the better known Italian pesto. In winter, the tasteless and pale tomatoes are traditionally replaced by sundried tomatoes packed in olive oil. For this recipe, try to find Italian sun dried tomatoes in olive oil because they have the best taste and consistence.

2 servings

120 ml uncooked quinoa
1 green bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
8 black olives
1 shallot
4 sundried tomatoes, in olive oil
A handful of chopped parsley
Baby salad leaves

For the dressing:

3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp red-wine vinegar
2 tsp pistou, Le Basilic du Provencal (or pesto)
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Freshly ground black pepper

Rinse the quinoa under running water and cook for 20 minutes in 240 ml water. Transfer to a large bowl and let cool.

Wash and dry the bell peppers. Cut them into small pieces discarding all he seeds and the inner white parts. Add to the bowl.
Peel and mince the shallot. Add to the bowl.

Finely chop the sun dried tomatoes and add to the bowl.

Remove the stones from the olives. Cut the olives into quarters and add to the bowl.

Add the chopped parsley to the bowl and mix everything.

In a small bowl, make the dressing by whisking together the olive oil, red-wine vinegar, pistou and Dijon mustard. Grind a few rounds of black pepper. Add the dressing to quinoa mixture and toss together.

Place the quinoa salad on the centre of the plates and surround with baby salad leaves.

Descending along the ridge from Mont Cima

The well-to-do and friendly village of Aspremont (parking at 490 m) is a good starting point for several nice day hikes. We have previously described the ascent to Mont Chauve (853m). Today’s goal is Mont Cima (878m) north of Aspremont.

In spite of the modest altitude, Mont Cima offers a splendid panorama and three viewpoint indicators, table d’orientation, to help you to locate the summits of Mercantour and Moyen Pays. The ascent to Mont Cima starts in the centre of Aspremont in front of the Mairie. The first part is GR5, Grande Randonnée 5, which connects Aspremont with Levens. Follow the GR5 trail marked with red and white signs as far as to the high-voltage power line. At this point, leave the GR5, turn left and start ascending along a narrow unmarked path up to a nearby clearing called collet de l’Eurier where you will find the signpost to Mont Cima. The well visible trail marked with yellow signs zigzags to the summit. After admiring the panorama start descending along the ridge to north. The trail soon turns northeast descending more steeply before joining GR5 again. At this point, turn right and follow the GR5 trail back to Aspremont.

The hike was done on a gorgeous February day. The total walking time is rather short, and the elevation gain moderate. Visiting the hilltop village of Aspremont itself is warmly recommended!

Total hiking time: about 3 h.
Total ascent: about 450m.
Map: IGN Nice Menton 3742 OT

Ascending from the upper parking of Boréon

Cime du Pisset (2233 m) is one of the lesser known summits in Mercantour National Park. It offers nevertheless a magnificent view over the higher summits nearby such as Gélas, Malédie, Caïres de Cougourde etc. In winter, the trail to the summit is one of the snowshoeing itineraries.

It takes about 1h 20 (70 km) to drive to Boréon from Nice. Drive past the reception building, turn right and continue 1,6 km to the lower parking (1610 m elev.). The upper parking is at 1660 m, but the last part of the road is unpaved with a lot of deep potholes.

Sheep flock on the way to Cime du Pisset

Walk past the cowsheds to the upper parking, where you enter the Mercantour National Park and see signposts showing several itineraries. Follow the main cobbled path a few hundred meters. Here, the trail to Cime du Pisset forks right at signpost # 421. The trail marked with yellow ascends steeply in the woods to signpost # 432 and further to Pas de la Maïris above the tree line (1h 20, 2106 m elev.). The undulating mountaintops on the ridge comprise mainly alpine meadows. The signpost # 431 is the crossroads either to our goal today, down to the next valley (Madone de Fenestre), or west to Cime de Piagu and further. For Cime du Pisset, turn left (east) and follow the well visible path that soon starts ascending. Most of the climbing is already done; the last part ascends only about 130 m or so to the grassy summit.

The gentle trail ascending to Cime du Pisset Gélas in background

If you meet a sheep flock on the trail, step aside and wait for it to pass. The shepherds have full control over the sheep dogs and will tell you when you can continue.

Even on a partly cloudy day, and in spite of the “modest” altitude, the scenery is fantastic. It is a perfect spot for a break & picnic, too. Return along the same trail.

Climb: 630 m

Duration: 3h 15

Map: IGN 3741 OT Vallée de la Vésubie

Image of trail courtesy of Google Maps

Rabbit has traditionally been as familiar on the table as chicken or duck in the Mediterranean countries. Lapin à la moutarde, rabbit with savory mustard sauce, is a very typical French recipe.

The following simple recipe is a twist of this French classic. Somehow the carrots, fresh thyme, rabbit and grainy mustard, moutarde à l’ancienne, wonderfully complement each other in this recipe.

Rabbit is very low in fat. For convenience I have used rabbit fillets which are easy to cut into smaller chunks. The recipe can also be made of skinless chicken breast cut into smaller chunks.

2 servings

About 300 g rabbit fillets, cut into about 2,5 x 2,5 cm chunks
3 carrots, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 ½ tbsp grainy mustard, moutarde à l’ancienne
200 ml chicken stock
50 ml white wine
A small bouquet of fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
Freshly ground black pepper

Slice the carrots and microwave until almost soft.

Wash and dry the thyme and remove the leaves from the sprigs.

Preheat the oven to 180⁰ C.

In a heavy casserole warm the rapeseed oil over medium heat. Cut the rabbit fillets into smaller chunks. Peel and chop the onion, peel and mince the garlic. Add the rabbit, onion and garlic in the casserole and fry for about 10 minutes stirring frequently until the rabbit chunks are golden brown on all sides. Add the white wine, carrots, mustard, black pepper and chicken stock. Add half of the thyme leaves, save the rest for the decoration. Stir and transfer the casserole to oven for 40 minutes.

Serve with new potatoes and Brussels sprouts or green beans. Decorate with fresh thyme leaves.

Col de Fenestre (2474 m), the mountain pass at the Italian border above Madone de Fenestre is ideal for spotting ibex(Bouquetin). These nearly became extinct and were reintroduced to Mercantour from Grand Paradiso on the Italian side. Every time we have visited Col de Fenestre we have seen ibexes that were half-tame and very easy to photograph.

Trails ascending from Madone de Fenestre (1903 m) are very popular. You are surrounded by the highest peaks in the region, including Cime du Gélas (3143 m). Driving time from Nice is about 1h 20/ 71 km, first to St-Martin-Vésubie from where the narrow paved road climbs to Madone de Fenestre.

Image of trail from Madone de Fenestre to Col de Fenestre

Col de Fenestre was already known by the Romans, and later became an important route between Savoy and Piemonte. Remains of military bunkers (all built by the Italians) from the early 20th century can be seen on both sides of the mountain pass. It is now at the border of the two countries. Before 1947, it belonged to Italy. It was one of the escape routes used by Jews escaping the Nazis from Nice in September 1943.

The trail from Madone de Fenestre ascends along the GR52 trail to signpost #368, then forks right and continues to Lac de Fenestre (2266 m) and further to signpost #369 just below the mountain pass. It is an easy ascent all the way. One can return along the same trail or take the trail from signpost #369 to Pas des Ladres (2448 m) to signpost # 428 then return along the GR52 trail back to the starting point.

Duration: 3 h (4 h via Pas des Ladres)
Vertical climb : 570 m (660 m via Pas des Ladres)
Map : IGN 3741 OT Vallée de la Vésubie
Info in French, via Pas des Ladres (Guide Randoxygéne)
Image of trail courtesy of Google Maps

When we recently visited Miami, our daughter-in-law served us this impressive apple dessert. She had got the recipe from a friend, who had got it from somebody’s blog…Later I saw in a French magazine a similar recipe, Roses de pommes en tartelette, in which the pastry sheet was made from scratch. It just proved that French girls are formidable pastry chefs.

Ingredients for four serving of apple rose dessert

The following recipe is my twist of the two original recipes and made from ingredients bought in our local supermarket in Nice. This elegant apple dessert will impress your guests, whether you choose to serve it with vanilla ice cream the American way, or just the tartelette the French way.

Slicing the apples for apple rose dessert

4 servings:

2 Pink Lady apples or other red apples (you don’t need to use them all)
A sheet of thin and rectangular puff pastry, pâte feuilletée
2 tbsp apricot jam plus a little water (you don’t need to use this all)
Cup cake tray
A little butter for the cup cake tray
Powdered sugar, sucre glace

Wash the apples and halve them. Remove the cores and cut the apples into thin slices. I first found this the hardest part of the recipe, but the “roses” are more decorative if the slices are really thin. Microwave the slices until they are soft but not mushy.

Preheat the oven to 180⁰ C. Butter the cup cake tray.

Roll out the puff pastry from its package. Cut out 4 strips, about 5 cm wide and 25- 34 cm long.

Warm the apricot jam with a little water in microwave and mix until smooth. Brush this mixture on the pastry strips.

Arrange apple slices on one long side of the pastry strip like a lace border placing the rounded skin side to the outside. The apple slices will overlap each other and cover about half of the long side of the pastry strip.

Turn over the other long side and roll the strips into “roses”. They look best if you can roll the “roses” so that the center will be slightly higher like in a real rose. I was not concentrating on this enough when rolling.

Place the “roses” in the cup cake tray and bake in 180⁰ C for about 30 minutes until nicely coloured. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.

Start of the trail to Cime de Pelousette just above Camp des Fourches

We have previously reported a moderate 4 hour day hike to Col de la Cavale from Camp des Fourches (2240 m) just before Col de la Bonette (2715 m) mountain pass.

Camp des Fourches and Tête de Vinaigre in distance seen from the trail

Magnificent mountaintops north of Camp des Fourches

Today’s hike to Cime de Pelousette (2757 m) and back takes about 3 h. The trail first ascends in alpine meadows followed by some rocky parts. Because of the altitude, the whole route is above the tree line. On a clear day like ours, navigation is easy. Even so, there are many man and animal made trails crisscrossing the terrain, hence follow the trail marked with yellow and cairns! Views are stunning all the way.

The barracks at Camp des Fourches were occupied all year round until the end of WWII. It is difficult to imagine the life of mountain infantrymen, chasseurs alpins, as the area is covered by snow 2/3 of the year. The road is open only during the summer months.

From signpost 41, the trail forks left (north). It is not necessary to walk as far as to Col des Fourches nearby. A grassy small mountaintop called Ventabren is passed, leaving it on the right hand side of the trail. After this, the path turns to northwest climbing more steeply in rocky terrain before it levels off slightly and turns south west for about 400 m. Another steeper climb follows, and just under the summit the trail climbs straight north again before reaching the mountain crest called Crête de la Tour. From the crest, our summit is reached in just a few minutes. During the ascent, the summit of Cime de Pelousette is not actually visible as the southern flank is round, comprising alpine meadows. The northern and western flanks are, on the other hand, very steep and rocky. Don’t go inside the fortress ruins, the structures are fragile. From the summit, you can see the RM 64 road climbing up to Col de la Bonette. Cime de la Bonette (2860 m) is clearly visible in distance, also the loop road (2802 m) circling the mountain. It is said to be the highest paved road in the Alps connecting two regions.

Road to col de la Bonette seen from the summit of Cime de Pelousette

We returned to our starting point along the same trail.

A rewarding high-altitude hike that requires little effort!

Vertical climb: 520 m

Duration: 3 h

Map: IGN 3639 OT Haute Tinée 1

Distance from Nice 102 km

Image of trail courtesy of Google Maps

Seafood paella is nowadays quite popular in the South of France. There are many adaptations of this most famous Spanish dish, and all sorts of dishes can be called paella.

Nancy Harmon Jenkins writes beautifully in her Mediterranean Diet Cookbook about the true paella: it can be made only with the round short grain bomba rice, it includes only chicken, rabbit and snails, it is seasoned only with saffron and paprika, it should be made only in a paella pan over an open fire and it should be cooked only by men for the midday meal. So my easy seafood paella recipe does not even pretend to be authentic, but I guarantee that it is healthy, tasty and easy to cook.

2 servings:

2 tbsp olive oil
½ large onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp sweet paprika, paprika doux
A large pinch of saffron
120 ml instant brown rice
250 ml chicken stock
About 10- 16 shrimp, shelled
About 10- 16 mussels

Shell the shrimps leaving tails attached and place them in the fridge. In the South of France, the shrimps are usually cooked whole in paella, but this makes a “messier” eating than most people wish. I like to keep tails intact because they are so decorative and easy to remove on the plate. If you use frozen raw shelled shrimps, defrost them in the fridge for about 8 hours and keep them in the fridge until needed.

Wash the mussels and check that they are closed. If they are slightly open just knock them so that they close. Discard those that do not close. Keep them in the fridge until needed.

Make 250 ml chicken stock from a good cube.

In a large frying pan warm 2 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Start making Spanish tomato sofrito which is a basic tomato sauce cooked from olive oil, onion, garlic and tomatoes. Add the sweet paprika and saffron in the pan and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the tomatoes have collapsed.

Add the rice to the pan and stir well so that the rice is well coated. Add 250 ml chicken stock and bring to the boil. Then reduce the heat to medium and cook for about 10- 12 minutes until the rice is tender. There should be a little liquid in the pan, but not too much. If the rice gets too dry, add a little water.

Add the reserved shrimps and mussels so that they are nicely nestled among the rice. Cover and cook for 4- 5 minutes until the shrimps are pink and opaque and the mussels have opened.

Serve with a green side salad.

This alpine hike from the Gordolasque Valley over Pas de l’Arpette (2511 m) inside Mercantour National Park also offers a direct access to the mythic Merveilles Valley. The Merveilles Valley is famous for its prehistoric engravings. These are now protected, and you have to stay strictly on the path when visiting this valley.

Start of the ascent from the Gordolasque valley

Mont Bego (2872 m) situated east of the Merveilles Valley is known to attract thunderstorms. The prehistoric inhabitants considered this mountain sacred, and the rock engravings testify of its importance.

The trail midway between Pont du Countet and Pas de l'Arpette

The hike starts from the Pont du Countet (1690 m) where the narrow paved road ascending in the Gordolasque Valley ends. The distance from Nice is 66 km by road, and the Mediterranean coast is just 32 km away as the crow flies. Pont du Countet is also an important starting point for other hikes in high terrain, such as the one going to Refuge de Nice.

From the parking, walk over the bridge where you find signpost # 412: Pas de l’Arpette 3 h and Merveilles 4 h. The trail (marked with yellow signs) starts to ascend steeply in the woods comprising mainly larches and Cembra (or Swiss) pines. Once over 2000 m, the trees disappear, and the scenery becomes more and more alpine. The trail levels off –but only temporarily. You have a good chance of spotting chamois, perhaps because this trail is less visited.

At Pas de l'Arpette with Mont Bego in background

The last push to Col de l’Arpette is again steeper but the trail is good. We reached the mountain pass in 2h 15 keeping just a moderate pace. On the day of our hike, the weather was perfect and the views were stunning. From the mountain pass, the Lac Long further down can be seen, as well as Refuge des Merveilles on its shore. For an overnight stay, the refuge offers simple accommodation and meals.

The trail winds down towards the lake. The upper part of the slope comprises alpine meadows, whereas further down the terrain becomes rockier again. The vertical descent to the lake is about 400 m. A little before the lake, there’s the main crossroads where the GR52 trail forks left (north) and enters the Valley of Merveilles proper. For most of us, exploring this trail would require another day.

Chamois crossing the trail between Gordolasque Valley and Pas de l'Arpette

We returned along the same trail to Pont du Countet.

Total hiking time: 6h 30

Vertical climb: about 1200 m

Description in French: (the Randoxygène guide)

Map: IGN Vallée de la Vésubie 3741 OT

Image of itinerary courtesy of Google Maps

Hiking and Cooking in the South of France

Caïre Gros above St-Dalmas Valdeblore

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Quinoa salad recipe

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Aspremont to Mont Cima

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Cime du Pisset above Boréon

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Rabbit with carrots

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Col de Fenestre

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Apple rose dessert

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Hiking near Col de la Bonette: Cime de Pelousette 2757 m

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Easy seafood paella

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Mercantour: The trail over Pas de l'Arpette

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