From Sea to Summit
Inching gingerly towards the edge of the rock, I wonder if it’s a good time to confess my fear of heights. Five minutes later there is no need: my terror is visible. ‘You’re perfectly safe,’ soothes Christian, my guide, clipping my harness onto a metal rung bolted into the rock, ‘Just relax’. Easier said than done when you’re suspended over a plunging drop of 50m or so.I’m dangling from ‘La Traditionnelle’, a via ferrata set into the limestone cliffs above the mountain resort of Auron in the Mercantour National Park. We will use the metal cable, rungs and ladders bolted into the rock to reach the ‘Croix de la Bercha’, the highest point of La Traditionnelle. The route is a mix of rock traverses, climbs and obstacles split into seven sections and graded by difficulty as blue, red or black. We will begin at the second stage – Christian dismisses stage one as ‘too easy’ – and I mentally note the ‘exit points’ he shows me on our approach. Then, with my harness attached to the mountain by a special shock-absorbing device of two karabiners on two short slings, it’s time to climb. ‘Bon courage’ says Christian, breezily, as I summon up the nerve to slide the karabiners along the cable. My progress is slow at first, until I get used to clipping and unclipping the karabiners over the bolts fixing the cable to the rock. Gradually, I believe that I won’t fall. I even manage to lean back in my harness into the thin air behind, a technique Christian suggests is ‘easier and less tiring for your arms’. He’s right, and I can relax enough to enjoy the view as long as I look across rather than down.
Completing the traverse we reach a ‘monkey bridge’, basically three steel wires stretched across a deep ravine with one wire to clip onto, one to hold, and one to walk across. It looks as if it demands the skills of a tightrope walker, which I am not. After a false start, I shuffle my feet warily across the lowest steel cable: by contrast, Christian almost runs. I abandon all thoughts of taking a photograph for posterity, preferring to keep both my hands clenched, knuckles white, around the two wires at shoulder height.Stopping for a breather after the monkey bridge, Christian tells me a little more about via ferrate (Italian for ‘iron road’), while I devour a much-needed cereal bar. Originally constructed in the Italian Alps and Dolomites during the First World War to help soldiers move quickly and safely through the mountains, these high-level walkways are now used for adventure sport. Enthusiasts can experience exposed climbs without needing technical climbing skills. The via ferrata here at Auron was installed in the 1990s and is one of many in the European Alps.
Next up is a passerelle, a wooden bridge of planks suspended over another stomach-churning abyss. It looks easy after the monkey bridge and I’m feeling confident, until Christian confides to me that last week a freak gust of wind turned the bridge upside down. I silently pray that the gentle breeze around us will stop. We cross without incident. Less than an hour later we are scaling the vertical ladders up to the Croix. My relief at the top is palpable, a mixture of adrenaline and disbelief. I’ve done it.Back down at village level there is time to enjoy the late afternoon sun. Auron is just over an hour’s drive from the Côte d’Azur, along tight roads cut through stunning terracotta gorges. The area benefits from a Mediterranean climate with more than 300 sunny days a year. The activities on offer are numerous: there’s mountain biking, canyoning and rock climbing, as well as via ferrata.For the following day I opt to go on an accompanied hike, a gentler pastime, I hope.
The next morning I meet Aurelie, my guide. From the vantage of the cable car travelling up from the resort she points out the crête (ridge) we will follow before dropping down through alpine meadows and cool larch forests. Although I’m a keen walker I’ve done little hill walking and my breathing is irregular as we ascend the shale slope to the start of the path along the crête. It’s reassuring to be moving on solid ground and after the exposure of the via ferrata I am not fazed by the slight drop on our left, as we circuit a rocky outcrop known as Las Donnas, the highest point above the resort at 2,474 metres. Today I have no problem appreciating the stunning panorama: the barren peaks of the Parc Mercantour extend beyond the horizon into Italy. Descending from the ridge we pass through rainbow fields of alpine flowers and tall meadow grass. The air is suddenly pierced with a loud cry. The call of a marmot, Aurelie tells me. We stop to watch as one, a small, brown, furry creature not unlike a mini Ewok, scampers up some rocks nearby. On other days you may see ibex, chamois and birds of prey. Aurelie has encyclopaedic knowledge of the alpine flowers and spots edelweiss and gentian with an eagle-eye.
We keep a steady pace in appreciative silence for a couple of hours before selecting a gentle mound for our picnic lunch. Below us stretches the Ardon valley, flanked by steep-sided mountains beyond. We can’t see a single soul and the only sounds are the chirrups of crickets and the rush of the river in the valley below. It’s tempting to stretch out on the grass for an afternoon nap. This is millionaire’s hiking and I’m amazed that France’s coastal mountains are so overlooked by tourists. I remember Christian’s explanation for moving back to Auron after working as a guide in Chamonix for 40 years. ‘The Alpes Martimes aren’t as high as Mont Blanc but you can walk and climb here without worrying about glaciers, avalanches or crevasses. The mountains are more serene and the weather is better. What more do I need?’ Lying in the sun – and vertigo aside – I’m inclined to agree.
Getting there
EasyJet ( www.easyjet.com ) and BA
( www.ba.com ) fly to Nice from several UK airports. Auron is just over an hour’s drive by road from Nice airport
Accommodation
Isobel stayed at Hotel L’Ecureuil
( www.lecureuil.com ) in Auron, where half board starts at £39.50 per person in July
and August.
Activities
Summer activities include accompanied hikes, via ferrata, canyoning, mountain biking and rock climbing. Mountain guides can be booked through Auron tourist office, see www.auron.com
More info
For further information on the French Riviera, see www.guideriviera.com
Completing the traverse we reach a ‘monkey bridge’, basically three steel wires stretched across a deep ravine with one wire to clip onto, one to hold, and one to walk across. It looks as if it demands the skills of a tightrope walker, which I am not. After a false start, I shuffle my feet warily across the lowest steel cable: by contrast, Christian almost runs. I abandon all thoughts of taking a photograph for posterity, preferring to keep both my hands clenched, knuckles white, around the two wires at shoulder height.Stopping for a breather after the monkey bridge, Christian tells me a little more about via ferrate (Italian for ‘iron road’), while I devour a much-needed cereal bar. Originally constructed in the Italian Alps and Dolomites during the First World War to help soldiers move quickly and safely through the mountains, these high-level walkways are now used for adventure sport. Enthusiasts can experience exposed climbs without needing technical climbing skills. The via ferrata here at Auron was installed in the 1990s and is one of many in the European Alps.
Next up is a passerelle, a wooden bridge of planks suspended over another stomach-churning abyss. It looks easy after the monkey bridge and I’m feeling confident, until Christian confides to me that last week a freak gust of wind turned the bridge upside down. I silently pray that the gentle breeze around us will stop. We cross without incident. Less than an hour later we are scaling the vertical ladders up to the Croix. My relief at the top is palpable, a mixture of adrenaline and disbelief. I’ve done it.Back down at village level there is time to enjoy the late afternoon sun. Auron is just over an hour’s drive from the Côte d’Azur, along tight roads cut through stunning terracotta gorges. The area benefits from a Mediterranean climate with more than 300 sunny days a year. The activities on offer are numerous: there’s mountain biking, canyoning and rock climbing, as well as via ferrata.For the following day I opt to go on an accompanied hike, a gentler pastime, I hope.
The next morning I meet Aurelie, my guide. From the vantage of the cable car travelling up from the resort she points out the crête (ridge) we will follow before dropping down through alpine meadows and cool larch forests. Although I’m a keen walker I’ve done little hill walking and my breathing is irregular as we ascend the shale slope to the start of the path along the crête. It’s reassuring to be moving on solid ground and after the exposure of the via ferrata I am not fazed by the slight drop on our left, as we circuit a rocky outcrop known as Las Donnas, the highest point above the resort at 2,474 metres. Today I have no problem appreciating the stunning panorama: the barren peaks of the Parc Mercantour extend beyond the horizon into Italy. Descending from the ridge we pass through rainbow fields of alpine flowers and tall meadow grass. The air is suddenly pierced with a loud cry. The call of a marmot, Aurelie tells me. We stop to watch as one, a small, brown, furry creature not unlike a mini Ewok, scampers up some rocks nearby. On other days you may see ibex, chamois and birds of prey. Aurelie has encyclopaedic knowledge of the alpine flowers and spots edelweiss and gentian with an eagle-eye.
We keep a steady pace in appreciative silence for a couple of hours before selecting a gentle mound for our picnic lunch. Below us stretches the Ardon valley, flanked by steep-sided mountains beyond. We can’t see a single soul and the only sounds are the chirrups of crickets and the rush of the river in the valley below. It’s tempting to stretch out on the grass for an afternoon nap. This is millionaire’s hiking and I’m amazed that France’s coastal mountains are so overlooked by tourists. I remember Christian’s explanation for moving back to Auron after working as a guide in Chamonix for 40 years. ‘The Alpes Martimes aren’t as high as Mont Blanc but you can walk and climb here without worrying about glaciers, avalanches or crevasses. The mountains are more serene and the weather is better. What more do I need?’ Lying in the sun – and vertigo aside – I’m inclined to agree.
Getting there
EasyJet ( www.easyjet.com ) and BA
( www.ba.com ) fly to Nice from several UK airports. Auron is just over an hour’s drive by road from Nice airport
Accommodation
Isobel stayed at Hotel L’Ecureuil
( www.lecureuil.com ) in Auron, where half board starts at £39.50 per person in July
and August.
Activities
Summer activities include accompanied hikes, via ferrata, canyoning, mountain biking and rock climbing. Mountain guides can be booked through Auron tourist office, see www.auron.com
More info
For further information on the French Riviera, see www.guideriviera.com
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