The long Crête du Férion stretches about 8 km south of the summit,
offering many interesting hiking opportunities, and both marked and unmarked
itineraries.
We wanted to explore the southernmost part of the ridge, with a loop
comprising both sides of the crête.
Parts of our hike turned out to be a bit more adventurous than expected.
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Leaving Col de Châteauneuf
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Châteauneuf-Villevieille
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Starting from Col de Châteauneuf (627 m ; signpost #774), we
descended along a good yellow-marked trail to the village of
Châteauneuf-Villevieille where we forked left at signpost #775 (512
m). We followed the main road a bit to signpost #776 where we continued
along a paved footpath to signpost #777 and crossed the D815 road again.
After the last few houses, we climbed along a narrow path (fading yellow
markings), heading northwest. During the ascent, we had good views to the
northeast with the Mercantour peaks further away. Nearer us, the impressive
peak of Cime de Roccasiera dominated the landscape. As we approached the
eastern side of Col du Férion, the incline gradually levelled out. In the
woods, we reached a trail (red arrow on the map) marked with an interrupted
black line on the map, and forked left. The main marked trail continued
north to Colla Bassa.
Above
Châteauneuf-Villevieille
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Towards Col du Férion
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We ascended a bit more near Col du Férion (902 m ), then turned
south. This trail was actually quite good, and had trail itinerary markings.
Approaching Terre Forte, familiar from one of our winter hikes, we heard
that a sheep flock had arrived there. The guarding dogs were barking a lot
as there was somebody on the main trail.
We forked left (south) and found the trail leading to la
Croix du Midi. There were no signposts, just cairns here and there as
well as faded blue dots on the rocks.
From the site (white arrow on the map), we had good views down to the valley
(Contes etc) and beyond to the east.
We returned a bit to a large cairn. Not wanting to return all the way back
to Terre Forte for obvious reasons, we searched for any trails descending
directly down (west) to Vallon du Fournas and the main trail. We soon saw
that there were cairns below us, in the steep incline. In places, the path
was just visible. Surefootedness was needed as there was rolling unstable
pebble. We proceeded carefully and reached the main hiking trail. There was
a cairn at the intersection here as well. When using this option, it would
have been easier to climb than to descend. In other words, do the hike
clockwise.
The last stretch back to our starting point was fast and easy.
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Cime de Roccasiera seen from trail
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| Near Col du Férion |
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Cairn marking steep descent from Croix du Midi
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Distance: 8,3 km
Climb: 427 m
Duration: 3h 50
Map: 3742 OT Nice Menton Côte d’Azur
This is a winter version of the popular tomato burrata salad.
2 servings
50 ml green lentils
2 medium red onions
2 handfuls of mixed winter salads, such as rocket, mache, radicchio
1 avocado
1 burrata
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
Cook the lentils in a small saucepan for 30 minutes until soft. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 220° C. Peel and cut the onions into thick slices. Place in a small oiled oven- proof dish and drizzle with 1 tbsp. olive oil, 1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar, and 1 tbsp. runny honey. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
In a large bowl, whisk together 1 tsp. Dijon mustard, 1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar, and é tbsp. olive oil. Add the lentils and onion slices and toss.
Arrange the salad leaves and chopped avocado on the plates and divide the lentils and onions among them.
Drain the burrata and half it. Place a burrata half in the middle of each plate and serve with some good country bread.
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
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