It was a showery grey morning when we awoke, but the showers had stopped by 9am and the skies appeared to be lightening up with the roads drying. We should stay dry on our shorter ride today. We wanted to split our remaining 80 kilomtre distance roughly in the middle with an overnight in Sagone but the two hotels located there appeared to now be closed for the season. Instead we will stay in Cargese which is a bit larger centre with three hotels available. This will make today a bit shorter ride and tomorrow a bit longer.
We began our ride on slightly damp roads -back up to the highway, past the local patisserie that has also closed for the season, to the two grocery stores at the top of the town. We bought some breakfast stuff, a baquette and some cheese. Even here the shelves are getting noticeably bare of perishables.
Today we are again on the D81 highway. The Corsica travel guide states, "The road between Piana and Porto along the stunning Calanches is one of the most beautiful drives in Europe".
From Wikipedia,
A calanque (or "calanca", and "calanche" in the plural, in the Corsican language ) is a particular geological formation in the form of a narrow and deep valley with steep edges, partially submerged by the sea.
D81 is a tight fit when tour buses come around the corner.
The car traffic was light as we began to climb to just under 500 metres. The grade felt a bit steeper than the ones a couple of days ago but it is fine (says Scott!). Before you know it we are at the 400 metre mark - right in the middle of the calanches. And what is at this spot? A small cafe perched on the side of a cliff! Perfect timing for our daily coffee stop. We admired the views from this vantage point and saw some domestic goats in the bushes. It seems odd that they just roam around freely by the roadside and I wonder how you would ever capture them. We finished our coffees just as the clouds were beginning to spit on us.
We have almost reached the top and Pat sees a coffee shop in the middle of no where. She suggests it is time for a break.
The scenery is truly wonderful but I think the grey day will not capture it's full splendor. The road itself is also a really neat ride with it's steep cliffs and twisty turns. Scott is on and off his bike taking pictures like crazy. At one point we noticed a full size semi truck approaching from below. We found a small hiding place next to a rock and waited for it to pass. Driving this rig on this road must be a nerve wracking challenge as the driver inched around the corners with such a tight radius his trailer will barely fit. When the driver reached our blind corner, a car was coming down in the opposite direction. Fortunately Scott was up on a roadside wall and able to play traffic cop as these two vehicles could not see each other. Both drivers were thrilled to have the extra assistance as they waived appreciatively.
I love the way the road construction works its way around these big rocks and just leaves them in place.
We arrived in Piana next. Piana is listed as one of the most beautiful villages of France. We cycled around the town admiring the setting and then carried on a bit further before we began to descend.
A goat herder. I wondered how they got them back inside the fence. He just called and whistled and they returned like dogs. Once one moves they all follow. The stick in his hand was just for show.
The road was bare and dry and we quickly traveled down several hundred metres before the skies opened and heavy showers began. Our timing was good as we were just passing a very old derilect building that was missing it's roof. We rode over to it seeking any shelter that it might offer. The old outdoor oven fit both our bikes and us under the domed roof!! Dry and warm, we ate our cheese and baquette as we waited out the storm.
We have ducked in from the rain in many strange places. But an outdoor oven is a first.
After 40 minutes the showers had finished and the road was drying. We continued our journey down hill and came across a herd of goats making their way up the highway. It really is the strangest sight as they ignore people, cars and the bikes and carry on with their migration to who knows where.
Very strange - you come around a corner and there is a herd of goats on the road. They move away but at their own pace.
Our day ended in Cargese. We finished our ride with a trip around the old part of the town, watched a beautiful sunset and had dinner at a nearby restaurant. All round a very good day.
