Wake up at 6.30, no noise comes from outside, the sea is flat and practically the waves do not even reach the shore. The silence is unreal, an intense blue mirror with the long morning shadows on the beach. I get up and go to photograph the Citadel with the morning light that smells of warm, an orange that also touches the slate roofs of the ancient buildings of the town. The profiles of both the Agriates desert and Capo Corse are clear. Return for breakfast, not very abundant for € 11, with the total lack of the salty part which is fundamental for us cyclists. We are able to leave very early according to our usual standards around 9:30 am. The climb that will take us to the Agriates desert awaits us just outside the village of Saint Florent. This route, both from the guides and from the stories of those who have traveled it, puts us a bit of concern, due to the steepness of the climb and the length of the road. According to many, it has no refreshment points or the possibility of refreshing oneself, as there are no crossings of countries. In fact, even looking at the map, I have the distinct feeling that what I have been told corresponds to the truth. The climb is without any problem, with the slope always constant and not very demanding. We find several villages with even some trattorias or refreshment points so, contrary to what we thought, we do not find any difficulty in following this road. Quite different if you wanted, once on the summit plateau, to descend towards the beaches of the Agriates desert, at least 12 km of dirt roads with 350 meters in altitude to reach a beach, all with a sandy bottom and large stones. Honestly, for us it is absolutely not worth it, even for not even diving into the water! The landscape is majestic, with evident traces of the crops that once covered this desert, it was practically the granary of Corsica. Now it is almost completely abandoned, although some crops are still visible, but not of wheat. Some high rocks emerge here and there in the middle of the plain making the landscape even more spectacular. We pass the highest point at 360m and stop for some photos that will increase the albums of our conquests. We begin the descent and in fact, the stretch towards L’Ile Rousse, which today is our destination, is much more uninhabited, especially up to the T30 state road, very busy with very fast cars. Fortunately, since it is a very busy road, it always has a sidewalk on the right that is well-accessible for bicycles. We find the sea near Ostricon beach and actually the glance is incredible. This tongue of sand, which forms a crescent, is surrounded by the deep blue of the sea with all its different shades, and with the rocks in the background of the Agriates desert. We continue on the state road that runs sheer to the sea, always overhanging with views that continue to change at every bend in the road. We thought we had finished the climbs, but it is a succession of small bumps that then descend to the sea. We climbed 5-6 times from the sea level to 60/100 meters above sea level. Stop on the immense beach, of white sand, of Lozari, where some tourists let their kitesurf sail. I must say that the last two sections were quite hard, probably due to the fatigue accumulated during the day, but also because they are perhaps the points with the greatest slopes of today’s route. The last climb, in the town of Monticello, makes us run out of residual energy. We also cross the railway at the top of the hill and then downhill towards L’Ile Rousse. A city that has little to do with Corsican nature and history, as it was built specifically by the Corsican rioters in the mid-1700s to have a port not in the hands of the Genoese enemy, then the French were called by Genoa and still now the courses fight them. It has no particular monuments or other important buildings. Ferries from France stop here. The Escale hotel welcomes us right near the port, from where tomorrow morning I will be able to easily reach the island of ile Rousse connected to the mainland by a bridge, or so I think, but this will be the story of tomorrow. Today 47 Km and 580 m. of altitude.
Photo 2: The slab roofs of the oldest houses Photo 3: Early in the morning towards the desert of the Agriates Photo 4: The desert of the Agriates Photo 5: The desert of the Agriates Photo 6: The desert of the Agriates Photo 7: The two of us Photo 8: Plage dell’Ostricon Photo 9: Lunch break bananas and peaches Photo 10: Lozari beach Photo 11: Lozari beach Photo 12: Lozari beach Photo 13: Salicorne beach Photo 14: Towards L’Ile Rousse Photo 15: From the seafront of L’Ile Rousse
if you missed the first part here is the link: Corse by bicycle. First stage
