Cime de Rocca Sièra (1501 m) is an impressive peak in Nice hinterland,
located northwest of Lucéram between the Paillon and Vésubie valleys.
We attempted to hike there many years ago in May but had to turn around
as a huge sheep pen had been erected on the trail just before Col de Lobe.
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| Col de la Porte |
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GR510 after Col de la Porte
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After signpost #194
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Eastern flank of Cime du Plan Ribert
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Now it was late February with clear skies in the north of Alpes-Maritimes
while the coastal areas were mostly covered by fog and low
clouds.
We drove up to Col de la Porte (1057 m; signpost #189) by the D73
road. It was the best starting point for us. In addition, we planned to
use the same trail back thus avoiding the exposed parts between Col de
l’Autaret and the summit.
We started along a dirt road, heading northwest. It was a GR510 trail as
well. Reaching signpost #194, we left the GR trail and continued along the
dirt road, still heading northwest. After about 450 m, we forked left.
There was no signpost. We ascended along a path on the eastern flank of
Cime du Plan Ribert, heading southwest then northwest. We reached a
clearing with green grass even in winter. This is where the sheep pen
prevented our progress last time. Now the place was deserted. We did not
even see any other hikers.
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Col de Lobe crossroads
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Steep stretch to Roccasiera
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Foresummit of Roccasiera
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View north from summit trail
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Nearing Roccasiera summit
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Descent from Roccasiera summit
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We soon reached Col de Lobe (1224 m; signpost #449) at the foot of the
mountain’s northeastern flank. We continued along the left-hand steep
trail. At one point, easy scramble was needed but that stretch was quite
short. The rest of the trail zigzagged in a pine wood. Higher up, we
turned south in increasingly open rocky terrain. There were patches
of snow here and there. The trail circled west of a subsummit. On the top
there was a small cairn and a modest small wooden cross.
The panorama was majestic. To the north, the skies remained crystal clear.
Coastal clouds hit the mountain’s southeastern escarpment but mostly
stopped there.
We used the same itinerary back to our starting point, minding the steep
stretch before Col de Lobe.
Climb: 525 m
Distance: 8 km
Duration: 3h 15
Map: 3741ET Vallée de la Bévéra
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Cime de Roccasiera viewed from Crête du Férion
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This easy stew is great in autumn and winter when we crave tasty, cooked dishes after cold salads in the heat of summer.
2 servings
2 chicken breasts, cut into chunks
2 handfuls of mushrooms, champignons de Paris
3 tbsp. Olive oil
1 shallot, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
100 ml white wine
1 tsp. Dried Provençal herbs
Freshly ground black pepper
2 handfuls of baby spinach leaves
2 tbsp. pitted black olives
Warm the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Wipe clean and slice the mushrooms. Add the chicken and mushrooms in the frying pan and sauté for about 10 minutes. Stir now and again.
Add the shallot, garlic, herbs, and some black pepper. Continue sautéing for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Pour in the wine, stir. Add the spinach and olives and cook about 2- 5 minutes until the spinach is wilted.
Meanwhile cook 2 portions quinoa or brown rice.
Divide the quinoa on the plates and top with the stew.
The village of Sainte-Claire (512 m) near Levens is located at the crossroads of good hiking trails. Notably the renowned GR5 runs through it. We did a three-col loop hike from Sainte-Claire last year.
This time we followed the GR5 towards Levens. We circled a hill named Barvégaire, first descending a bit to signpost #285 where we forked right, heading north, and climbed steeply about 100 m.
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| A bit higher on GR5 |
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| Starting descent to Levens |
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| Still along GR5 near Levens |
We descended rapidly to Levens, reaching the large sports fields south of the village. We followed the GR5 a bit more along Promenade des Prés, then headed east along Route de Saint Blaise, crossed the M19 road to signpost #261. We ascended along paved streets in la Madone neighbourhood, familiar from our previous hikes. Eventually we reached signpost #265, and continued along a good trail to Col de Travail (760 m; signpost #281).
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| Large sports field in Levens |
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| Heading to Col de Travail |
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| Col de Travail again |
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| Rapid descent to Sainta-Claire |
Col de Travail is a crossroads of trails as well as dirt tracks. From here, the descent back to Sainte-Claire was straightforward along a yellow-marked path, completing the energising winter hike.
Distance: 9,3 km
Climb: 400 m
Duration: 3h 30
Map: 3741 ET Vallée de la Bévéra
In winter, it sometimes seems that he only decent vegetables for a salad are just salad leaves. Then it is a good idea to add either some cooked vegetables, like broccoli or green beans, or some from a jar. In this salad, I have added Italian artichokes and chick peas from a jar. Parmesan shavings add protein to the salad and some good country bread completes the dish.
2 servings
2 handfuls of baby salad leaves
A small jar of Italian artichokes
About 150 ml chick peas from a jar
Parmesan shavings
2 spring onions
About 10 cherry tomatoes
1 tbsp. olive oil
For the dressing:
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tsp. lemon juice
Wash and half the cherry tomatoes. Warm 1 tbsp. olive oil in a small frying pan over moderate – high heat and sauté the tomatoes. Set aside.
Wash the chick peas under running water. Drain and dry. Set aside.
If the artichokes are preserved in oil, remove them from the jar and place on a kitchen paper to remove some of the excess oil.
Wash and slice the spring onions.
Place a handful of salad leaves on each large plate. Add the artichokes and cherry tomatoes. Sprinkle with chick peas and shave some Parmesan on top. Divide the spring onions on the plates.
Whisk together the dressing and drizzle on the salads.
We are in the commune of Châteuneuf-Villevieille, only 13 km north of
Nice as the crow flies.
Having hiked to Mont Macaron from Col de Châteauneuf (626 m) many times, we
now decided to explore the opposite direction, northwest of the col. It was a
perfect winter day with blue skies.
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| Leaving Châteuneuf |
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Glimpse of coast from trail
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Trail to Terre Forte
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We crossed the main road to signpost #816 and started our climb to
Terre Forte, a sheepfold. Marked with yellow, it was a trail
itinerary as well. We headed northwest above Vallon du Fournas. The
trail ran in partly open terrain enabling good views to the south and
southwest, including parts of Nice and the sea.
Terre Forte (846 m) comprised a clearing, actually a col, with an
empty house, a few abandoned vans and some equipment suggesting that there
has at least been sheep farming.
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| Terre Forte |
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Levens Mont Vial seen from Terre Forte
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Short climb to la Grau
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| La Grau summit |
We ascended to the nearby hill named la Grau (882 m). We found
the trail easily (no yellow markings but some trail running arrows) next to
a water reservoir. The peak was party covered by vegetation but we stumbled
onto small clearing where we could admire the snow-capped peaks in the north
while enjoying our picnic.
It turned out to be a delightful short hike combining top notch views with
an easy ascent.
Climb: 250 m
Distance: 5,3 km
Duration: 2h 15
Map: Nice Menton Côte d’Azur 3742 OT
French cottage pie, Hachis Parmentier, was created in Paris. It honours the pharmacist Antoine- Augustine Parmentier who made potatoes popular in France. He thought that potatoes would end the famine cycles in France.
The original dish was based on potato purée and minced meat. Nowadays some chefs experiment with new vegetables. I twisted the recipe with sweet potato purée and used very lean minced meat for a healthier and more modern variant.
2 servings
About 350 g lean minced meat, 5% fat
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried Provençal herbs
Freshly ground black pepper
For the sweet potato purée:
2 small or 1 large sweet potato
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. bread crumbs
Peel the sweet potatoes and chop into chunks. Cook in boiling water for about 20 minutes until soft. Discard the water saving about 4 tbsp. for he purée. Add 1 tbsp. olive oil and crush into a purée.
Warm 2 tbsp. olive oil over medium- high heat in a frying pan and fry the meat until it starts to get a bit of colour. Lower the heat to medium and add the onion, garlic, herbs, and black pepper. Continue cooking for about 10 minutes stirring now and again.
Preheat the oven to 200° C. Oil a smallish gratin dish. Place a thin layer of the purée in the bottom, cover with the minced meat and top with a layer of the rest of the purée. Sprinkle the bread crumbs on top and cook in the oven for 15- 20 minutes.
Serve with a green side salad.
In search of a short hike near Valberg, we came across this nice
and relaxing loop starting from Col de l’Espaul (1749 m). We knew the
col from many previous hikes.
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Leaving Col de l'Espaul
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La Roya Haute Valberg
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Starting from the col (signpost #7), we ascended above the parking and headed
west in open terrain, climbing gently. We had great views towards Valberg. We
passed a few abandoned houses at la Roya Haute. The path descended a bit
before signpost #6 above Col des Huerris where the Valberg Golf court was
located.. We forked right (northwest) and walked through a short forested
stretch then forked sharply right. We now ascended along Crete de la Maure
with a 360° panorama. We reached an unnamed grassy summit (1913 m), then
headed northeast. After a short descent, we climbed to
Tête de Charnaye (1972 m) with a telecom mast on the summit.
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Above Col des Huerris
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Péone and Tête de Méric
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Crête de la Maure southern flank
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Crête de l'Houesti
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The trail was well marked all the way. Still heading northeast, we descended
steeply along Crête de l’Houesti, first along an alpine meadow then in a
picturesque larch forest to signpost #8. We then hiked back to our starting
point along a dirt track.
Distance: 5,7 km
Climb: 270 m
Duration: 2h 30
Map: 3640 OT Haut Cians Valberg
Fricassee is sometimes described as “halfway between a sauté and a stew”, sauté has no liquid added while a stew includes liquid. In a fricassee, cut-up meat is first sauteed , but not browned, and is then simmered in liquid.
English fricassees were usually thickened with egg yolks, like in this old recipe from countess of Ségur. She was a French writer who also cultivated good life style and eating well. The following recipe is my twist of her recipe in the French magazine ELLE.
2 servings
2 chicken breasts, cut into smaller pieces
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
Olive oil
2 handfuls of sliced mushrooms, champignons de Paris
1 egg yolk
300 ml chicken stock
100 g heavy cream
Freshly ground black pepper
Chopped parsley
Warm 2 tbsp. olive oil over medium heat in a heavy cocotte such as Le Creuset. Sauté the chicken for a few minutes. Add the onion, garlic, and some black pepper and continue sautéing for a while. Add the chicken stock, cover and let simmer for 20 minutes.
Warm 2 tbsp . olive oil in a frying pan and cook the sliced mushrooms until golden brown. Set aside.
Remove the chicken from the cocotte and set aside. Increase the heat somewhat and reduce the chicken stock by half. Then reduce the heat again to low.
Whisk the egg yolk with the cream in a bowl and pour the mixture into the cocotte. Stir on a low heat. Add the chicken and mushrooms into the cocotte and stir.
Serve the fricassee over quinoa or brown rice and decorate with chopped parsley.
The real lure of the hike from la Baumette (Péone) to
Col de Crous (2204 m) lies in the dramatic Alpine landscape higher up
in the Tuébi Valley. In the 1930s, fortifications were constructed at
the mountain pass as part of the Maginot line. Many of them were never
completed.
Today Col de Crous is also one of the gateways to the Mercantour National
Park.
After reaching Péone, we drove up to la Baumette (at 1470 m and 3,5 km to the
north) where the road ended next to Chapelle Saint Jean Baptiste. 100 m
further north, near some houses, we located signpost #94, our trailhead.
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Start from la Baumette
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North of la Baumette
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Crossing rockslides
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Easy stretch to Col de Crous
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| Large rockslide |
We first ascended in a mixed forest along a good trail. The incline was
never very steep as the path zigzagged in the terrain. After about 1700 m
elevation, the incline temporarily petered out and we hiked past Alpine
meadows before reaching Fuont Freye, a spring.
The terrain became rockier and we walked past large rockslide areas. At one
point, an alternative routing had been built as the original trail had been
cut. After some steep sections, we came to Peira Grossa with remains
of a concrete bunker. Across the Tuebi Stream in the west, the steep face of
the Maleterre Ridge and Rocamaire were particularly
impressive.
The last stretch to the col was steep but again the winding trail
helped. Historically, the mountain pass had been a trading route between the
Var and Tinée Valleys. The northern face of the col comprised vast Alpine
meadows, so different from the rocky southern side. The trail continued down
to the Valley of Roya. Among the summits in the north, we spotted las Donnas
above Auron.
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Impressive geology under Col de Crous
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| Under Col de Crous |
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| At Col de Crous |
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| Tuébi upper valley |
The col was windy and we descended a bit for our break before returning to
our starting point. It turned out to be another super hike in a tranquil
Alpine valley. We met nobody on the path in spite of the sunny early autumn
day.
Climb: 750 m
Distance: 9,8 km
Duration: 4 h 40 active
Map: 3640 OT “Haut Cians”
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