Corsica - a little bit of the Caribbean in the Mediterranean

<h1>Corsica - a little bit of the Caribbean in the Mediterranean</h1> <h5>While swimming in the sea along the Corsican coast one could easily imagine they were in the Caribbean with the warm calm turquoise waters, white sandy beaches, and backdrop of lush vegetation. But Corsica is much more than just a costal destination, travelling inland through beautiful old villages you can be amid spectacular mountains within an hour, mountains that afford great hiking opportunities, rivers studded with natural pools perfect for swimming and canyoning, or simply magnificent views. </h5>

<h3>The geography of Corsica</h3> Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea, located closer to Italy than to France, but politically part of France. It is the fourth largest island in the Mediterranean, stretching 35 miles (56.km) from Calvi in the east to Vescovato in the west, and 72 miles (113 km) from Bastia in the north to Bonifacio in the south. Corsica has a population of only 322,000 residents, mainly because for the most part, the terrain of Corsica is mountainous. About two-thirds of Corsica consists of an ancient crystalline massif that divides the island on a northwest to southeast axis, with a cluster of 20 peaks exceeding 6,500 feet (2,000 metres) - the tallest peak is Mount Cinto with an elevation of 8,890 feet (2,710 metres).  As a travel destination Corsica can roughly be divided into the north and south. Our trip, starting at Ajaccio, featured the South of the island. The North takes in Bastia and the Cap Corse, Calvi, the Gulf of Porto and Corte. The climate is typically Mediterranean with warm dry summers and mild wetter winters  (PS clicking on the maps below enlarges the images, clicking on other images reveals the location).

<h3>Ajacchio - the capital </h3> Our 9-day trip started with a flight to Ajaccio. Only a few airports in the UK fly to Corsica, which has its downsides, but on the plus, it prevents mass tourism, indeed Corsica remains a favourite holiday destination of the French. Ajaccio is famous as the birthplace of Napoléon Bonaparte. The old town with its pastel-coloured houses is pleasant but not spectacular, however, well worth a visit. Three of the principal areas of interest in the region are the beautiful beach Mare e Sole that is south of the town (blog cover image), and the Point de la Parata (below), an attractive headland to the North that can be found along the D111 road. The third is the Scandola Natural Reserve, a World Heritage Site that can only be accessed by boat.

<h3>Getting around - here's hoping you don't suffer from travel sickness!</h3> It takes longer to get around Corsica then at first glance as the roads are often slow and winding. On the third day of our trip we headed from Ajaccio to our main destination Porto-Vecchio, the perfect base for exploring the south. There are three possible routes to Porto-Vecchio all of which non-stop take about 2 1/2 hours by car, we opted for the most direct route through the more mountainous terrain and were rewarded by beautiful vistas.  There is a narrow-gauge railway that began operating in the 1850s (The Trinicellu). Centred on the town of Ponte Leccia, the railway only serves the north of the island with three main lines radiating to Ajaccio, Bastia, and Calvi.

<h3>Porto-Vecchio</h3> During our stay in Porto-Vecchio we stayed in a <a href="http://www.locationportovecchio.sitew.com/#Accueil_sommaire.A">beautiful villa</a> with outstanding views of the bay and mountains. The rather up-market old town of Porto-Vecchio is perched on a small hill overlooking Salina Bay. Although it is possible to park within a few minutes of the old town we parked at the marina and took the small ‘train’ up the hill to the centre. The compact old town is full of chic bars, restaurants and boutiques set amongst charming old buildings. If you want to save money there are several particularly good and better value restaurants in the surrounding area, which can easily be tracked down using TripAdvisor.

<h3>The Alta Rocco</h3> While in Porto-Vecchio a must do is the circular route that takes in the stunning mountains of the Alta Rocco. While the vistas are perhaps best seen by heading north to Solenzara and then east to the village of Col de Bavella, from an activity perspective it is perhaps preferable to take the route the other way in a clockwise direction, which we choose to do.  Our trip to the Alta Rocco took us Northwest along the D368 to the beautiful village of Zonza, from where the vistas really start to pick up as you head east to the village of Col de Bavella. The views from the village are spectacular, and there are several hikes, directions for which can be obtained from the small hut at the bottom of the car park. We choose to do the 2-hour Trou de la Bombe walk that started at the top of the car park, the route of which is marked along the way in red paint. The hike is relatively easy and the views at the top of the walk rewarding, although the optional final scramble to the ‘hole’ in the rock is moderately challenging. The views from the hole are impressive although care must be taken as it can be windy and there is a sheer drop at the other side of some 600 metres. Back in the car, we carried on through the village of Bavella for about 15 minutes until we came to a clearing with a splendid view back over the valley, the only slight downside is that by the time we reached the vista at 2 pm the sun was shining towards us making the view slightly less impressive. As the road started to head down the mountains, we noticed cars parked either side of the road from which people were hiking to the natural pools that are dotted along the rivers coming off the mountains. If you don't fancy a hike, then continue driving for a further 15 minutes until you see a moderately sized car park that gives easy access to some such pools at which spent a lovely hour cooling off in the refreshing waters. The road carries on east to the coastal village of Solaranza and then south along the coast back to Porto-Vecchio, on this road are many fine beaches if you want a further stop.

<h3>Explore the beaches</h3> There are many beautiful beaches close to Porto-Vecchio including Palombagia, Rhondinera and Santa Giulia, and further north Pinarellu, Cala Rossa and Roccapina. The best-known beach is Palombagia (images below), if you arrive early or late in the day it may be possible to park on the small and rather awkward road on the way down to the beach, if you park on the main road above it is a 15-minute walk down to the beach. Like many of the beaches in Corsica there aren't a great deal of facilities, which in many ways keeps them unspoilt.

<h3>Take a boat trip</h3> The other main area to explore in the region is the spectacular village of Bonifacio perched on cliffs high above the sea. One of the best ways to view the village is from the sea. We took a full day-chartered catamaran trip through the Sailing Club De Bonifacio, the website did produce a security warning, however, I checked with the local tourist board who reassured me they were a reliable organisation. To get to the club you have to park along a small road that leads down to the boat area. The full day trip was one to recommend with a cruise under the cliffs of Bonifacio and then on to the Lavezzi islands with several stops along the way to swim, snorkel, or paddle board in the beautiful warm turquoise waters. Like most trips it was cash only payment, except for the deposit.

<h3>We loved the canyoning</h3> One of the highlights of the holiday was canyoning, we used the company Aqa-canyon who were excellent. The video below gives some idea of the fun we had along with the backdrop of spectacular scenery, although bear in mind that one needs to be of moderate fitness as there is a one-hour trek up and out of the canyon at the end of the day. The video also touches on our day in the catamaran. It is important to note that the time it takes to move around Corsica is deceptive, while only a small island, roads are only two lanes and winding so give yourselves extra time when planning journeys - on our drive back to the airport, in addition to nearly missing our flight home, I managed to make most of the entourage car sick and pick up a speeding fine! Credits - the music used on the video is James - Tomorrow. This website is non-profit making. In return for using this website all I ask if that you <a href="{entry:571@1:url||http://www.aworldonthebrink.com/blog/ten-easy-ways-in-which-you-can-make-a-difference}">follow this link</a> and consider doing more to support conservation and help protect our beautiful planet. Thank you.