Oh yes . . . the view. Yes, it is very nice . . .
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Monday, September 13, 2010
Where are we going?
Julien shows us the way . . . .
All you have to do is follow the red & white painted stripes on the rocks. . . which are everywhere.
And the piles of rocks. How could anyone get lost?
OK - so I only went the wrong way once . . . ok twice . . . but I would have found my way back. I kept asking "why are the stripes yellow and not red & white?". OK . . . maybe I was saying it to myself and not outloud. I was going to figure it out . . . eventually . . .
Animals along the GR20 . . .
No fences . . . no sign of anyone attending to the animals . . . just roaming around free. One day we stopped for lunch next to a little pond and the entire hour we were there, a cow was walking around, ringing his bell which was hanging around his neck. He never stopped moving. He must have been nuts!! How could he handle having that bell contstantly ringing, so close to his ears? I know it was driving all of us crazy and we wanted him to stop moving.
Lots of flies on the horses!! Weren't the flies bugging them??
Lots of flies on the horses!! Weren't the flies bugging them??
The GR 20 - Grand Randonne
The GR 20 (or fra li monti) is a GR footpath that crosses the Mediterranean island of Corsica running approximately north-south, described by the outdoor writer Paddy Dillon as "one of the top trails in the world".[1] The GR 20 is marked regularly with distinctive red and white waymarks, which in good weather are simple to follow, yet in the early and late season when the ground is usually still covered in snow, or when walking in cloud, the path may become harder to follow. In some of the more exposed scrambles, ladders and steel ropes have been fixed into the rock surface to aid walkers (though this is only for a very short section in the "Cirque de la Solitude"). Although the northern section of the route requires some moderate scrambling, the majority of the GR 20 is a well worn footpath and its main challenge comes not from its ruggedness, but from its length. Being at high altitude, some snow can come late and early in the year and fog can bring a bitter chill and make it difficult to find one's way also some of the ridges are prone to very high winds. Despite the main path being marked by waymarks and being well worn, there are also routes that lead down from the main path into villages, or up from the path to peaks. Walkers should be aware of these routes as they not only provide variation to the route, but also could prove vital in a survival situation where it is required to get an injured walker off the path for example.
The whole trail is about 180 km long, clearly waymarked throughout, the walk for most people takes around 15 days. The trail is usually considered as two parts: the northern part, between Calenzana and Vizzavona and the southern part, between Vizzavona and Conca.
Vizzavona is considered the middle as there is a train station, and therefore is an accessible point for walkers beginning or ending a walk consisting of half the route. From Vizzavona, the train can be taken to Bastia or Ajaccio as well as many smaller towns and villages such as Corte. The northern part is considered by some the more difficult part, because of the steep and rocky paths, though this could be an effect of many walkers beginning in the north and not being as fit for this section. The southern part of the trail is often considered easier though the lower altitude may give rise to higher temperatures in summer and so provide more difficult walking conditions.
Along the trail there are mountain huts described as "refuges" or gîtes. The standard and price of accommodations and food varies from refuge to refuge. One can sleep in tent nearby the refuge, but it is not permitted to pitch tents along the trail.
The GR 20 is an advanced trail. Of the less difficult but beautiful trails on the island two Mare e monti (from sea to mountain) and three Mare a mare (from sea to sea) trails are the best known.
The whole trail is about 180 km long, clearly waymarked throughout, the walk for most people takes around 15 days. The trail is usually considered as two parts: the northern part, between Calenzana and Vizzavona and the southern part, between Vizzavona and Conca.
Vizzavona is considered the middle as there is a train station, and therefore is an accessible point for walkers beginning or ending a walk consisting of half the route. From Vizzavona, the train can be taken to Bastia or Ajaccio as well as many smaller towns and villages such as Corte. The northern part is considered by some the more difficult part, because of the steep and rocky paths, though this could be an effect of many walkers beginning in the north and not being as fit for this section. The southern part of the trail is often considered easier though the lower altitude may give rise to higher temperatures in summer and so provide more difficult walking conditions.
Along the trail there are mountain huts described as "refuges" or gîtes. The standard and price of accommodations and food varies from refuge to refuge. One can sleep in tent nearby the refuge, but it is not permitted to pitch tents along the trail.
The GR 20 is an advanced trail. Of the less difficult but beautiful trails on the island two Mare e monti (from sea to mountain) and three Mare a mare (from sea to sea) trails are the best known.
Corsica - The Mountain in the Sea
Corsica . . . ."Une ile souvent conquise, jamais soumise."
"Often conquered . . . never subdued"
Where is Corsica?
Corsica (French: Corse, IPA: [kɔʁs]; Corsican: Corsica; Italian: Corsica) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia. It was once briefly an independent Corsican Republic, until being incorporated into France in 1769. Napoléon Bonaparte was born in Ajaccio; where his ancestral home, Casa Buonaparte, is also located.
Corsica has been occupied continuously since the Mesolithic era. It acquired an indigenous population that was influential in the Mediterranean during its long prehistory. After a brief occupation by the Carthaginians, colonization by the ancient Greeks and an only slightly longer occupation by the Etruscans it was preempted by the Roman Republic and became with Sardinia a province of the Roman Empire. In the 5th century, the Roman Empire collapsed and the island was invaded by the Vandals, the Visigoths, the Saracens and the Lombards. Pepin the Short, king of the Franks and Charlemagne's father, expelled the invaders and granted Corsica to pope Stephen II through the exarchate of Ravenna (756), which was the starting point of the temporal power of the papacy.
The Genoese took possession of the island in 1347, and governed it until 1729 - interrupted only by a brief occupation by forces of a Franco-Ottoman alliance in the Invasion of Corsica (1553).
In Corsica, vendetta was a social code that required Corsicans to kill anyone who wronged the family honor. It has been estimated that between 1683 and 1715, nearly 30,000 out of 120,000 Corsicans lost their lives to vendetta,[2] and between 1821 and 1852, no less than 4,300 murders were perpetrated in Corsica.
The Genoese took possession of the island in 1347, and governed it until 1729 - interrupted only by a brief occupation by forces of a Franco-Ottoman alliance in the Invasion of Corsica (1553).
In Corsica, vendetta was a social code that required Corsicans to kill anyone who wronged the family honor. It has been estimated that between 1683 and 1715, nearly 30,000 out of 120,000 Corsicans lost their lives to vendetta,[2] and between 1821 and 1852, no less than 4,300 murders were perpetrated in Corsica.
Corsica was formed as an island through volcanic explosions. It is known as the most mountaineous island in the Mediterranean. Corsica is 183 kilometres (114 mi) long at longest, 83 kilometres (52 mi) wide at widest, has 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) of coastline, more than 200 beaches, and is very mountainous, with Monte Cinto as the highest peak at 2,706 metres (8,878 ft) and 20 other summits of more than 2,000 metres (6,600 ft). Mountains comprise two-thirds of the island, forming a single chain. Forest comprises 20% of the island.
Approximately 3,500 km2 (1,400 sq mi) of the total surface area of 8,680 km2 (3,350 sq mi) is dedicated to nature reserves (Parc Naturel Régional de Corse), mainly in the interior.[4] Corsica contains the GR20, one of Europe's most notable hiking trails.
The island is 90 kilometres (56 mi) from Tuscany in Italy and 170 kilometres (110 mi) from the Côte d'Azur in France. It is separated from Sardinia to the south by the Strait of Bonifacio, a minimum of 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) wide.[4]
Approximately 3,500 km2 (1,400 sq mi) of the total surface area of 8,680 km2 (3,350 sq mi) is dedicated to nature reserves (Parc Naturel Régional de Corse), mainly in the interior.[4] Corsica contains the GR20, one of Europe's most notable hiking trails.
The island is 90 kilometres (56 mi) from Tuscany in Italy and 170 kilometres (110 mi) from the Côte d'Azur in France. It is separated from Sardinia to the south by the Strait of Bonifacio, a minimum of 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) wide.[4]
Corsican Flag
The Flag of Corsica was adopted by General of the Nation Pasquale di Paoli in 1755 and was based on a traditional flag used previously. It portrays a Moor's Head in black wearing a white bandana above his eyes on a white background. Previously, the bandana covered his eyes; Paoli wanted the bandana moved to above the eyes to symbolise the liberation of the Corsican people.
It was used by the ill-fated Corsican Republic and was practically banned after 1769, when France bought the island to settle a Genoese debt and put down the endemic rebellion on the island. During this period under French rule, 1769–1789, Corsican patriots again used the version of the flag with blindfolded eyes, as a mark of protest.[1]
The unblindfolded version, quartered with the British coat of arms, was used as the official flag during the Anglo-Corsican Kingdom of 1794-1796.[2] It then fell into official disuse until 1980, when it was re-adopted as a regional flag.
The Moor's Head is also used on the Coat of Arms of Corsica.
It was used by the ill-fated Corsican Republic and was practically banned after 1769, when France bought the island to settle a Genoese debt and put down the endemic rebellion on the island. During this period under French rule, 1769–1789, Corsican patriots again used the version of the flag with blindfolded eyes, as a mark of protest.[1]
The unblindfolded version, quartered with the British coat of arms, was used as the official flag during the Anglo-Corsican Kingdom of 1794-1796.[2] It then fell into official disuse until 1980, when it was re-adopted as a regional flag.
The Moor's Head is also used on the Coat of Arms of Corsica.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Corsica - GR 20 - Aug 22 - Sept 5, 2010
A few pictures from my Corsica trip trekking the GR20.
I'll try to get this organized and post more later.
I'll try to get this organized and post more later.
Our leader, Julien . . .
The group at the end of the trek . . . 13 days of trekking, up and down everyday. We started the trek with 11 hikers and finished with 9.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
gr20 stuff - edit this . . .
The GR20 is a 15-day, 200km [124 mile] hike across the island of Corsica, France. It has a reputation as a tough hike ("the toughest in Europe" according to some - the Corsican Tourist Board, for one). In June/July, 2010 a mate and I set out to have a crack at it. Here's what we learnt...
The first, and to my mind most important, thing we learnt was that it is a tough hike. In fact I would go so far as to say that toughness is its raison d'être. It is an Endurance Event; a Physical Challenge; the hikers equivalent of a marathon. The French Foreign Legion use it as a training exercise. We hadn't fully appreciated what this all meant beforehand, and really wish we had. It would have significantly changed the way we prepared for this hike, as it is very different from anything either of us had done previously. So why was it so 'tough'? Not for the reasons we had expected: distance; ascent/descent; duration (although these did play their part). The two things that knocked us for six were: the heat; and the conditions underfoot.
The Heat...
Below 1000m [3281'] the typical daytime temperature surpassed my comfort levels for hiking by around 8:30am. I have done a good bit of hiking in Australia, and the heat we experienced in Corsica easily rivalled anything I'd experienced in Oz. The heat also powered some exciting thunderstorm action - around a third of our afternoons were punctuated with a storm. And you seriously don't want to be caught in high places when these storms roll in (I've read that the leading cause of death on this track is lightning strike - not sure if that's true, but it does give one pause for thought). We got caught out twice before we learnt what not to do. The lesson here is: start your day early! Up at 5:00am, and on the track no later than 6:00am is a good rule of thumb. That way you're likely to be above 1000m [3281'] before 8:30am, and at your destination before any thunderstorm rolls in (these mostly hit between 2:00pm and 4:00pm, but can roll in as early as 1:00pm). During our preparations for the hike we had read about this 'early start, early finish' rule, but had dismissed it as the preserve of people desperate to get a place in the refuges before they filled up. We wanted to be much more relaxed about our day. By day three we had learnt our lesson.
The Conditions Underfoot...
... are just awful! Loose rock and stone is all you ever see . Picture walking along a dry river bed, or bottom of a quarry, six to eight hours a day, for 15 days, and you get the idea. In the whole hike we found a single spot that was level and had no rocks - it was about 10m [33'] long, and was worthy of a photograph . It was hard work, and very hard on one's body. It also meant that you had to spend most of the time looking at your feet instead of the scenery. Walking poles were a life-saver in these conditions - literally! I'm not really sure how you would train/prepare for these conditions, either - one misstep and your hike could be over, no matter how fit you are.
So, now that we've returned, what would we do differently next time? How would we prepare?...
When To Go?
'When to go?' is a balancing act between snow, heat and crowds. I would strongly recommend beginning and ending your hike inside one of these two windows: 7th June - 7th July; 7th September - 7th October. Obviously the beginning of the former and the end of the latter has increased risk of snow, and the end of the former and the beginning of the latter has increased risk of heat and crowds. Heat and snow are self explanatory risks. The 'crowds' factor is about pressure on resources at the refuges, particularly food and the pre-erected tents (see 'What To Take' for more about this).
What To Take?
In short, as little a possible - this is not a normal hike, and you should not take what you normally take hiking. If I'd fully and truly appreciated this up front I would not have been forced to ditch quite as much (valuable) gear on the first day as I did. The only things necessary to complete the GR20 are: the clothes you hike in; a water bladder; money; and a sleep system (sleeping bag/mat/liner). Everything else is a luxury and should be treated as such (i.e. not necessarily left at home, but only brought along for very good reasons). Let me explain...
Shelter: as hard as it may be to do, don't bring a tent. All the refuges have plenty of pre-erected tents, with plenty of spares should these fill up. These two-person tents can be pre-booked, and cost the same as a bare tent site for two people. If you walk during the recommended time slots, you will not miss out on these. You may want to bring a super-light-weight bivvy sack to round out your sleep system (if you're the cautious type). Seriously, don't bring a tent.
Sleep system: a summer-weight sleeping bag is sufficient. I had a 13°C (comfort)/10°C (limit) bag plus liner, which was just about OK. I'd go a 10°C (comfort) bag next time. The pre-erected tents mostly came with a foam mat, but they looked a bit skanky to me...
Food/Drink: don't bring in any food, nor any cooking/eating gear. We only had difficulty getting a cooked meal at one refuge on the whole track, and DIY food supplies were readily available everywhere. I can recommend skipping the refuge breakfast, and always having a full day's supply of food in your pack (in case the dinner and/or supply situation has an unexpected outage one day). The cooked meal each night cost between €9 and €20 and was always substantial (we never experienced the kind of mean portions that people have talked about in the past). The only eating gear worth bringing is a light-weight plastic cup and spoon/spork, plus a small knife for hacking up cheese/salami/etc. I left the Swiss Army Knife at home and didn't miss it (it's shite for cutting up food, anyway - too hard to keep clean). With regards to your water bladder, a 3-litre capacity is useful sometimes, but you'll only need 2-litres most of the time. If you walk during the recommended time slots, you will find at least one water source midway along each track stage (i.e. in addition to the start and finish).
Clothing: two sets - one to walk in, and one to lounge/sleep in. Both sets should be light-weight, quick-drying and include full-length arm/leg cover. I don't usually hike in trousers, but I would on this track - the sun is fierce, as is the marquis (thorny undergrowth that grows about calf-height). Shade at the refuges is non-existent, and my only post-hike cover was my far-too-warm fleece. Washing and fully drying your walking clothes each afternoon is always doable (sun/heat/wind are never in short supply). A wide-brimmed hat, a medium-grade fleece, and an ultra-light-weight raincoat are the only other clothes you might require (I only used my raincoat once).
Boots: these take quite a hammering on this track, so bring a pair you're very happy with. They need to provide good underfoot protection/support, but also have the kind of sole that can friction-grip on a 60° slab of granite.
Route-finding: track markings were excellent and extremely regular. Leave the maps at home. A GPS and/or guidebook is a luxury, but could be useful if you get into trouble and/or want to make a non-standard entry to/exit from the track. Do keep your eyes open for the track markings - if you've not seen one for more than 50m [164'] then you've probably gone wrong. This usually occurs at a switch back or where the track switches to the other side of a ridge. It's remarkable how quickly a track-like path emerges once a few people make the same mistake...
Torch: don't need to bring one as you'll be getting up with the sun and in bed before it sets.
Sundry: toilet paper; toothbrush+toothpaste; small towel/flannel.
Everything else is a luxury. Keep that pack weight under 10kg, including water, if at all possible - your knees and feet will thank you for it. I repeat: this is not a normal hike, and you should not take what you normally take hiking!
The first, and to my mind most important, thing we learnt was that it is a tough hike. In fact I would go so far as to say that toughness is its raison d'être. It is an Endurance Event; a Physical Challenge; the hikers equivalent of a marathon. The French Foreign Legion use it as a training exercise. We hadn't fully appreciated what this all meant beforehand, and really wish we had. It would have significantly changed the way we prepared for this hike, as it is very different from anything either of us had done previously. So why was it so 'tough'? Not for the reasons we had expected: distance; ascent/descent; duration (although these did play their part). The two things that knocked us for six were: the heat; and the conditions underfoot.
The Heat...
Below 1000m [3281'] the typical daytime temperature surpassed my comfort levels for hiking by around 8:30am. I have done a good bit of hiking in Australia, and the heat we experienced in Corsica easily rivalled anything I'd experienced in Oz. The heat also powered some exciting thunderstorm action - around a third of our afternoons were punctuated with a storm. And you seriously don't want to be caught in high places when these storms roll in (I've read that the leading cause of death on this track is lightning strike - not sure if that's true, but it does give one pause for thought). We got caught out twice before we learnt what not to do. The lesson here is: start your day early! Up at 5:00am, and on the track no later than 6:00am is a good rule of thumb. That way you're likely to be above 1000m [3281'] before 8:30am, and at your destination before any thunderstorm rolls in (these mostly hit between 2:00pm and 4:00pm, but can roll in as early as 1:00pm). During our preparations for the hike we had read about this 'early start, early finish' rule, but had dismissed it as the preserve of people desperate to get a place in the refuges before they filled up. We wanted to be much more relaxed about our day. By day three we had learnt our lesson.
The Conditions Underfoot...
... are just awful! Loose rock and stone is all you ever see . Picture walking along a dry river bed, or bottom of a quarry, six to eight hours a day, for 15 days, and you get the idea. In the whole hike we found a single spot that was level and had no rocks - it was about 10m [33'] long, and was worthy of a photograph . It was hard work, and very hard on one's body. It also meant that you had to spend most of the time looking at your feet instead of the scenery. Walking poles were a life-saver in these conditions - literally! I'm not really sure how you would train/prepare for these conditions, either - one misstep and your hike could be over, no matter how fit you are.
So, now that we've returned, what would we do differently next time? How would we prepare?...
When To Go?
'When to go?' is a balancing act between snow, heat and crowds. I would strongly recommend beginning and ending your hike inside one of these two windows: 7th June - 7th July; 7th September - 7th October. Obviously the beginning of the former and the end of the latter has increased risk of snow, and the end of the former and the beginning of the latter has increased risk of heat and crowds. Heat and snow are self explanatory risks. The 'crowds' factor is about pressure on resources at the refuges, particularly food and the pre-erected tents (see 'What To Take' for more about this).
What To Take?
In short, as little a possible - this is not a normal hike, and you should not take what you normally take hiking. If I'd fully and truly appreciated this up front I would not have been forced to ditch quite as much (valuable) gear on the first day as I did. The only things necessary to complete the GR20 are: the clothes you hike in; a water bladder; money; and a sleep system (sleeping bag/mat/liner). Everything else is a luxury and should be treated as such (i.e. not necessarily left at home, but only brought along for very good reasons). Let me explain...
Shelter: as hard as it may be to do, don't bring a tent. All the refuges have plenty of pre-erected tents, with plenty of spares should these fill up. These two-person tents can be pre-booked, and cost the same as a bare tent site for two people. If you walk during the recommended time slots, you will not miss out on these. You may want to bring a super-light-weight bivvy sack to round out your sleep system (if you're the cautious type). Seriously, don't bring a tent.
Sleep system: a summer-weight sleeping bag is sufficient. I had a 13°C (comfort)/10°C (limit) bag plus liner, which was just about OK. I'd go a 10°C (comfort) bag next time. The pre-erected tents mostly came with a foam mat, but they looked a bit skanky to me...
Food/Drink: don't bring in any food, nor any cooking/eating gear. We only had difficulty getting a cooked meal at one refuge on the whole track, and DIY food supplies were readily available everywhere. I can recommend skipping the refuge breakfast, and always having a full day's supply of food in your pack (in case the dinner and/or supply situation has an unexpected outage one day). The cooked meal each night cost between €9 and €20 and was always substantial (we never experienced the kind of mean portions that people have talked about in the past). The only eating gear worth bringing is a light-weight plastic cup and spoon/spork, plus a small knife for hacking up cheese/salami/etc. I left the Swiss Army Knife at home and didn't miss it (it's shite for cutting up food, anyway - too hard to keep clean). With regards to your water bladder, a 3-litre capacity is useful sometimes, but you'll only need 2-litres most of the time. If you walk during the recommended time slots, you will find at least one water source midway along each track stage (i.e. in addition to the start and finish).
Clothing: two sets - one to walk in, and one to lounge/sleep in. Both sets should be light-weight, quick-drying and include full-length arm/leg cover. I don't usually hike in trousers, but I would on this track - the sun is fierce, as is the marquis (thorny undergrowth that grows about calf-height). Shade at the refuges is non-existent, and my only post-hike cover was my far-too-warm fleece. Washing and fully drying your walking clothes each afternoon is always doable (sun/heat/wind are never in short supply). A wide-brimmed hat, a medium-grade fleece, and an ultra-light-weight raincoat are the only other clothes you might require (I only used my raincoat once).
Boots: these take quite a hammering on this track, so bring a pair you're very happy with. They need to provide good underfoot protection/support, but also have the kind of sole that can friction-grip on a 60° slab of granite.
Route-finding: track markings were excellent and extremely regular. Leave the maps at home. A GPS and/or guidebook is a luxury, but could be useful if you get into trouble and/or want to make a non-standard entry to/exit from the track. Do keep your eyes open for the track markings - if you've not seen one for more than 50m [164'] then you've probably gone wrong. This usually occurs at a switch back or where the track switches to the other side of a ridge. It's remarkable how quickly a track-like path emerges once a few people make the same mistake...
Torch: don't need to bring one as you'll be getting up with the sun and in bed before it sets.
Sundry: toilet paper; toothbrush+toothpaste; small towel/flannel.
Everything else is a luxury. Keep that pack weight under 10kg, including water, if at all possible - your knees and feet will thank you for it. I repeat: this is not a normal hike, and you should not take what you normally take hiking!
The GR20 is not a hike down a country lane.
No, this wasn't just a little hike down a country lane . . . these pictures are from the first day . . . about an hour into the trek.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Nightly Lodging - how many stars?
Our first night of the trek was spent in Yurts. Our leader described to us the different lodging we would encounter during the trip . . . camping - 1 star; gite - 2 stars; refuge - 0 starts; and Yurt - 5 stars! See below for pictures of our various lodgings during the trip:
Gite - 2**
Yurt - 5***** ???
Refuge - 0 stars
Camping - 1 *
Gite - 2**
Yurt - 5***** ???
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