Category Archives: Roya Valley Hikes

Best hikes in the Roya Valley, France.

Col de Loubaira-col Boselia from Tende

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The hike begins at B55 across from the Spar in Tende. At first the route is a piste. Climb to B62 on the piste then up to B63. It’s a steady but not particularly difficult climb. Although there were shady spots the route became progressively sunnier. To avoid in summer! After reaching the Col de Boselia, the path looks alarmingly steep but only for a very short while. It became the prettiest part of the hike with much more shade, nice views and moutain flowers. It led to the Col de Loubaira and the TV station. The descent was easy as it was along a paved road. It was long though with a lot of switchbacks and very exposed. The hike ended at b52. Then it was between one and two kilometres to walk back up to the village. Denivilé 360m Length 8km Duration: a very relaxed 4 1/2 hours.  

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Hiking to the Baisse de Peluna and Vallon du Ru Sec

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I parked near the tourist office in La Brigue and found the beginning of the hike at Balise 44.  The path was easy and relatively shady with good views.   After Balise 46, the path got slightly steeper and rockier but still was great views over the valley.   It’s important to go left at this balise, not right.   It took about 1 1/2 hours to reach this balise, at which point I followed the arrow down to Vallon du Ru Sec. It was an easy descent along a pine-shaded path that ended at a country road that I followed back to the starting point. It was a comparatively easy three-hour hike. Baisse de Peluna is quite a bit more for an ascent. Will try it when I have more time!     Save Save Save Save Save

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Mont Gros via Baisse de Levens

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I started out at Balise 124 and followed the Route de L’Armee des Alpes which was a wide, sunny track.   Along the way are casernes from WWII. Then I entered the Parc de Mercantour for the climb to Baisse de Levens which passed through a shady forest of pines and firs.It’s particular to the region and called l’Ostryaie It took about 45 minutes to get to the Baisse de Levens. I followed the balises pointing to Mont Gros but shortly after this point, the trail seemed to peter out.   Instead of following the trail along the ridge, I probably should have climbed straight up the steep hill to get to Mont Gros but it was poorly indicated. Anyway it was a beautiful spot to eat my sandwich. I then followed the balises down a very gentle path that wound round and round ending up at balise 136 (?) which was under the Col de Brouis on the road. It was a kilometre or two up the road to get back to my starting point. All in all it was a beautiful, shady hike, perfect for warm weather. In springtime, the snowy Mercantour in the distance and the spring … Continue reading →

Hike from Saorge

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As there was no parking around the monastery of Saorge, I couldn’t do my planned hike to Chapelle St Croix, so I parked down here at Balise 161 and took a wide track that curved around a gorge. It was an easy walk as the path sloped gently downwards. It was beautiful but definitely not a hike for summer as it faced directly south.After about a 1/2 hour I followed the sign to Chapelle Sainte Anne which took me up a fairly steep and extremely narrow path. It was a bit overgrown but I kept following the yellow markings until I got to the  top a little breathless and more than a little sweaty. No Chapelle Sainte Anne, but a nice shack with some shade and a fair amount of flies. I couldn’t find the path to the Chapelle Sainte Anne and was getting hot so I set about heading back to Saorge. The path was narrow and descended slightly. Finally I got to Balise 163 which pointed me back to Saorge. Here is a view of Chapelle Saint Croix. An easy and very sunny walk brought me back to the Franciscan Monastery with this splendid view of Saorge. It … Continue reading →

Saorge: Circuit de Pieremont

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On a beautiful late summer Sunday, I started from the Franciscan Monastery (Balise 20) and climbed slowly up on a wide path, stopping to rest at a mountain fountain (Balise 162) It was mostly sunny but with patches of shade. There was some cultivation and a working donkey. A steady, gentle ascent brought me to the Chappelle Sainte Croix. Then the road got steeper with a brief climb over schist. Finally I reached La Pinee and its abreuvoir (Balise 433, 360m dénivelé) Beautiful views It was a beautiful picnic spot. Then I slowly descended through a pine forest. The descent was much shader than the ascent which made me wonder if it would be best the other way around. The vegetation was Mediterranean with fig trees (not yet ripe), blackberries (already dried out) and apple trees (not yet ripe). It was the perfect time of year for this pleasant, not too demanding hike.

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Voie Sacrée de Fontanalbe

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July 19 The gravures of the Vallée des Merveilles have been a goal of mine for years. I finally made it! We got an early start at balise 395: 9.10am to be exact. Although definitely warm the heat had not yet become stifling. The patches of shade made it bearable. As we climbed higher it became cooler and the alpine vegetation was cool indeed. A little over 2 hours later we were here in cooler air: We reached balise 388 at 11.30 where a sign directed us to Lac Vert. It took only another 20 minutes but it was a hard 20 minutes as a park official reminded us to put the hiking poles away. The metal tips are forbidden once you enter the area of the gravures. Then, there it was! Lac Vert de Fontanalbe: By now the air was cool and refreshing. The lake was cold but swimmable I suppose once you got past the muddy bottom. After a relaxing lunch, we decided to press on to check out the gravures which involved an easy climb of about 100m to an orientation table with sweeping views that included Mont Bego on one side and its foothills (below) on … Continue reading →

Breil-sur-Roya to Peine Haute

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We began at balise 2 right outside Breil. and climbed gently until balise 118, then followed the sign to Peine Haute bearing left and slowly descending. The trail was extremely comfortable and well-maintained and the vegetation was beautiful and varied with Mediterranean flowers in full bloom. Soon we walked out of view of the road below and all was peaceful. After a while the trail descended down and down to a mountain stream which would be a great picnic stop. Then, the hard part began. We began climbing and climbing and climbing. The last part after balise 439 climbed rather steeply to Peine Haute. It was rather exposed to the sun at this point but still it was not a difficult trail. Instead of taking the predicted 2 1/2 hours to Peine Haute, it was a good 3 1/2 hours. It then took exactly 3 hours to walk back to Breil. Although not difficult, it was quite long and very up and down with ascents and descents. It is certainly not a hike for the summer, but a good sporting day for spring and fall. A hike to the stream would be pleasant and cut the time and effort substantially. … Continue reading →

Libre Circuit

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Libre is more than a hilltop village where weathered young men in waist length dreadlocks amble into town with a mule. I’ve always loved the hippie vibe of Libre but now I see it as the launch point for one of the region’s most scenic hikes. The landscape ranges from views of the Mediterranean to the peaks of the Roya valley. The hike followed the recommendations of the Randoxygene. Full details are here. Beginning in Libre at Borne 417, the path mounted steadily. It was in good condition although narrow at points. For the first hour or so sun and shade alternated making this a good hike at all times of the year except the heat of summer. The views facing west were spectacular the entire course of the hike. I followed the sign to La ColetteThen at Borne 419 the path forked north still affording excellent views. That’s the Mediterranean in the distance! After about an hour of climbing: There weren’t many picnic opportunities along the narrow path until just short of its highest point where there was a large rock that made a good rest area.. The hike reached its peak just under the looming Cime of Mairise … Continue reading →

Pas de Colle Ardente, La Brigue

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Once again I failed to reach the famous waterfalls Cascade de Fraches on this trail. It’s too hard! I started off at Balise 266 next to the Notre Dame des Fontaines in La Brigue. True I started late (a little after noon) but the trail mounted steeply through schist. It was a beautiful spring day though with everything in bloom. It took me a good 1h 45min to get to this point: I was huffing and puffing because the rise was steep and relentless. The trail was in good shape though and well-groomed. No flies but plenty of butterflies and lizards. There were few places to rest and the climb was mostly in the sun but with patches of shade. Those are snow-capped mountains in the distance. This was the highest point at about 1336 or maybe 400m denivilé.This was the first point where it was comfortable to stretch out and munch a sandwich. Whew. After this the trail descended gently and after about 20 minutes or so I could at least hear the waterfalls in the distance. And then I could see them from a distance. Yes that little crack in the center is a distant stream. Soon after … Continue reading →

Circuit de Stroup

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Park at the entrance to Morignole which is balise 287 and then on the right climb through the village before crossing the bridge and turning right. The path is narrow and faces southeast making it a nice winter walk as it’s quite sunny. In some places dead trees had fallen across the path. There seemed to be a lot of dead trees as well as pines, machia and thorny bushes. The thorn bushes had planted themselves right on the path in many cases and were particularly malevolent. Long pants obligatory and long sleeves desirable. A pair of hedge clippers would come in handy. It took about an hour to reach this balise. Mostly the path was schist, climbing steadily and not too steeply. After the marker, the path was grassy with even more thorn bushes. It climbed a little more steeply but the views were great. The reward was this spot which I reached after about 2 hours. There were no real picnic places until the giant rock slab here. I never did get to Balise 290. I estimate this at least 350m dénivilé.

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