Corsica but not the GR20

We are looking into the possibility of going to Corsica in September and want to have a mixture of lazing around on the beach and walking.

Any suggestions for good places to do day walks and perhaps a 3-5 day walk? We will be camping and don't really want to sleep in the refuges or gite d'etapes.  We don't really want to get into any scrambling or climbing but were pretty comfortable on the HRP in the Pyrenees last year.

I've never been there and don't know the setup for wild camping, whether you can camp on routes like the mare a mare and tra monti a mare for example. 

hi

you can go with the train at Corte. It's a central (little) town in Corsica to do good day walks and some "circuit". At least two good camping places. The GR20 and Mare a mare are close to this town

BR

Maxime

You can see a nice bit of Corsica if you start to walk out from Corte and follow the Mare a Mare Nord up to the Refuge A Sega (where I believe you can camp). from there you can cross the Col de l'Arinella over to Calacuccia and then on to Albertacce (don't if there are campsites around there).

If you wanted to continue your walk you could follow the Mare a Mare up to Col di Verghio and on to Evisa, and follow the Tra Mare e Monti or take the (seasonal bus , July mid-September according to my guidebook) back to Corte, or on to Porto.

Great place, Corsica - the more people write about it on here, the more I want to go back there.

That's great and, pleasingly, fits some ideas I had having had an initial look at a Rough Guide.

Hi Stuart

Have been to Corsica several times and love the island.  Wild camping is not allowed on major routes but like anywhere if oyur discreet and pack up early...

Last wisit we walked mare a monti until it joined mare a mare nord then travelled east to Corte.  Not as exciting as GR20 which i had done previously but very scenic although sections of the mare a monti feel a bit contrived.  I would agree with wanderlust Corte is an amazing city worth a day to soak up at least.  Then if you walk west on mare a mare up Tavignano valley you'll get to refuge at Sega which has plenty of camping spots and fantastic swimming pools - if you want to wild camp you could go up to the next col but you might find it hard to leave the refuge.  Carrying on the mare a mare there is a campsite near calacuccia overlooking the lake and then a bivoac area at col de vergio - not the prettiest but OK if you get in the trees.  Couple of tips - watch your food in the porch because foxes will have it.  Take a good sleeping mat and stakes or nail type tent pegs because the ground is usually rock hard. Oh and if you like beer you have to drink Pietra not cheap but heaven in a glass.

There is a cicerone guide 'Walking in Corsica' but its not very good at saying whether camping is available.

Enjoy the trip - v jealous but just had summer in pyrenees so cant complain

Thanks Lee,

Have a look at the date on my original post though!

We did hang around Corte and go up to Sega but our trip coincided with rain almost every day, heavy thunderstorms and high winds so we decided to turn back after one night. Really frustrating.  Just a word of warning for other people who might go to this area, we had a very bad experience with the guardians at Sega, particularly the man who constantly harassed my wife and made her feel very uncomfortable, at one point cornering her in a small room with nobody else around.

Otherwise, the scenery in this area was brilliant, making it even more annoying not to be able to spend more time up there.

Can anyone list off a couple of the best British Grade 1 or 2 standard scrambles or ridge walks on Corsica. Not interested in multiday walks etc but maybe just day hikes or scrambles from a valley base.

Thanks

Rich

There are three walks across the island from west to east (or vice versa) known as the mare a mare, and we have done the northern most and sothern most of them several years ago now. Each takes avout a week to complete and gives a wonderful cross section of the island from the superb beaches and coastal towns right up to the high mountains and villages. Personally we thought the southern one was the best. The FFRP have a guide with all three routes in which, although in French makes a good start for planning. In September though you may find a lot of the places such as campsites, village shops closed. However July and August definately to be avoided unless you like crowds!! As Paddy says, if you camp discreetly and leave no trace, especially in the hills, nobody will ever know so I wouldn't worry too much.

 I've also done the GR20 but didnt really enjoy it - felt I'd spent the whole time climbing rocky slopes and hadn't really savoured the island properly.

 Would love to go back and do the whole thing again.......

 Then again I'm also planning the Pyrenees west to east as soon as the family let me.....

john adams 4 wrote (see)

The FFRP have a guide with all three routes in which, although in French makes a good start for planning.

All three are available in one book in English!

Hadn't realised that but it is 10 years or more since we visited the island. I would still recommend the official topoguide though and it appears that it now contains 6 routes.

Try this link as a starting point. I've always found these guides to be very worthwhile evenif I can't fully understand the French.

http://www.ffrandonnee.fr/boutique/topo-guide.aspx?ref=065&t=dep&v=20