In October 2021 we were lucky to get our very first hands-on work experience when it comes to handling a cycling group on French Riviera. Before that time, would only get the individual and rather unofficial visits- let’s call the things by its’ name - by friends (Tobias) or family (my dad). It has served us though very beautifully as a test group.
This col is the main gate to Col de Turini, the famous stage of the Monte Carlo Rally which is held on the tight road with its many hairpins turns - Source: dangerousroads.org
Let me present you a little bit our team - Pawel, Przemek (not in the picture), Karol, and Bartek.
So here they were, all avidly in need of some climbs, sun, and beautiful views. 5 participants (4 cyclists), from 4 different cities of Polan : Warsaw, Krakow, Kielce, and Limanowa (now Coburg)
As they came on Saturday evening, as the first itinerary I chose one of the Mythical Passes - Col de Braus, located northwest of Nice. The decision of doing it on Sunday was mainly motivated by the local, “mountain shelter-like” resto being open only during the weekend - Buvette du Col de Braus, where we gladly tried the traditional "salade Niçoise".
On that very day, we did almost 100 km with 1400 m of a climb with the return the same way - all that to admire the spectacular, less known switchbacks.
Of course, I wouldn’t be myself if we wouldn’t stop at local BOULANGE just before attacking the main climb and made the guys try the local specialty - Tourte de Blettes (traditional cake from Nice filled with swiss chard). You can usually get it under two versions - salty or sweet. I prefer salty if you ask me, but this one was not bad at all either !
I really loved the atmosphere - everyone was just freshly out there in the nature - everyone not fully confident yet about their ability to conquest the beast, but very much eager to face it. We finished up the day with some pizza and beers (or Apreols) in Nice in La Storia.
In the evening we’ve settled to go for a little local beers discovery walk in Antibes that guys appreciated a lot - we had a chance to taste some local delicacies from BlueCoast (where I organise Bike & Beer tasting tour - reach out to me directly to book yours) and Brasserie du Comté as well as admire the views of nocturn Antibois old-town.
It was a good day overall and gave me a lots of reasons to be proud of my new group and sure of the fact that the program is well-cut for them !
Stay tuned for some upcoming days & adventures... (6 cycling days!)
PS. If you liked the article- please don't hesitate to share or if you would like to have a similar experience yourself (group or privatized) - you know where to find me.
DAY 2 - The Red Rocks Ride - Welcome to the French Colorado !
Massif de l’Esterel & Rocher de St. Barthélemy - 120 km loop / 900 m of elevation
“If you have never visited the American Great West and the Colorado - this itinerary gives a fairly similar, almost tangible feel - Welcome to Our Wild Wild West”
The profile of our route :
But first things first ! We've started with a short tour of Cap d'Antibes and the Garoupe Lighthouse - a nice landmark stop with a local hills panorama with some very cool ceramic map, that is very common way to show the orientation (we will see some more of this kinds of signage on the 3rd day :
Afterwards we went on stright the cycling that lead us to Cannes ! First stop- of couse the Festival Palce - to see the famous hand prints of celebrities immortalised in cement.
We took a short coffee stop in a typical Snack Bar (this is where locals go, not the fancy restaurants & cafés on the promenade just before embarking on the French Colorado itinerary :
This kind of views will lead us stright to the top of St. Barthelemy rock a little bit from the backstage route of not perfect surface, but giving very rewarding views.
And then finally, very much earned lunch in my favourite local Bistrot - Cabane Chez Monique.
Just so we’re clear - the place looks like exactly the inverse what you could imagine when dining on the Côte d’Azur - and this is exactly why locals go there and how you recognise it’s THE spot. On the top it offers a very much correct price / quality relation. I wouldn’t be myself without recommending any food spot, huh?
On the return, we’ve attaqued the Old Town area of Cannes, called „Le Suquet” Hill. FYI, this is where all the classy, nightlight life is happening (Jazz concerts, fireworks spotting in the summer etc.) with a facade of Church of Notre Dame d'Esperance beautifully highlighted in the evening.
Of course we couldn't say no to the last rays of the sun on our way back - there's no better way than salute it with a bottle of light Corona beer in hand ! Life on the South is so simple when you embrace it !
DAY 3 - The Route of Azure Balconies - The High-Perched Villages Collection!
Valbonne - Grasse - Gourdon - Tourettes S. Loup- Vence
93 km loop / 1500 m of elevation
This itinerary boils down to the simple equation : The Heritage + The Hills = High-Perched Gem of the Villages. Further from the Coast - Closer to the Heart - Discover the French Riviera Like a Local.
This route I was very much looking forward to and I consider it my personal favourite. Last time I did it with my dad on e-bikes and it came to be a great success.
1st ... Biot
First stop - the Biot village, 15 km away from our the coast. We were lucky to have a village market, but unlucky to have just ate our breakfasts - no one was yet in the mood of tasting anything that early.
2nd...Valbonne
These are some typical postcard-like views, that we will get many more on that day. Biot, a village of artistic heritage, is famous for glass-blowing (same as Valbonne - here you can tell even after the couleurs of the facades that they are of a fairly similar heritage).
3rd... Grasse
We’ve continued our cycling sightseeing with the visit of the perfumes capital - Grasse. FYI the flower of Jasmin collected over there serves as a base to the famous scents of Coco Chanel and Chanel N5.
The city is also a home to three historical perfumeries - Fragonard, Galimard and Molinard - each of one offering a free guided tour, all-year long and open to all public. What else I can say about Grass apart from the fact that almost every single time I am there the weather is super-humid and unwelcoming in general - this visit was only the exception confirming the rule ! We've tried some fried Courgette Flowers - apparently a must-try when visiting the city, but to be honest we didn't love the experience.
4th stop - Gourdon !
High-perched, eagle-nest village listed as one of "Les Plus Beaux Villages de France" located on 760 m of alititude. Quite challenging, but perfectly doable climb. Gets slightly harder to conquer when done right after lunch, but well ! The pictures capture its' ambiance.
My dream team - couldn't miss a chance to catch a group picture
5th...Tourrettes-sur-Loup & Vence
All those climbing only for the sake of descending it and then starting to climb again !!! At least we could grab a coffee - last picture shows pretty accurately who was "team coffee stop" and who was more "too many stops, (and too much beauty around) can't take it anymore"... ;)
DAY 4 - La Dolce Vita Italiano Vero aka. Pizzaiolo Ride
In the footsteps of Milan - San Remo
95 km - 1500 m of elevation
Mais quel kif ! (The Awesomeness)
But let's start from the beginning.
8:15, Wednesday, we've met at the agreed location (of course, the boulangerie)
8:30 we've got to our train that has gladly taken us to the Italian-French border (with obligatory photo-stop)
10:30, quick coffee at the station, and off we go !
It was not a hard of a ride - pleasant, rolling hills, moving slowly, but steadily forward through ups and downs made us however quite hungry - so the lunch time imposed itself (even though we were planning it a bit later). The trick is that you have to carefully watch the clock - the only lunching hours are 12-15h and (they sometimes close the kitchen as soon as 14h) and then again from 19h. If you happen to be hungry outside these hours, worst case scenario you will just eat a snack somewhere (in a bigger town). But if you run out of the energy somewhere in the mountains (where it's sometimes even hard to find a water fountain)- then well, you're in a serious trouble !
Pizzeria Fra Diavolo - godess gracious. What A great place it IS ! And on the top we've found it completely by chance. If I say they do the most instagrammable pizzas in the entire San Remo I would not lie ! You have a choice of 3 different pizza crust - traditional, whole-grain and carbon. It can easily be reached through the cycling path starting in Ospedaletti. But if you prefer (recommended!) to pass by me to book a table - don't hesitate to drop me a message.
