The Goat Work

GR20 Day 14 — Beach Day

June 6, 2022 — debriefing the GR20 in Pinarello  We got a ride to go catch the bus, and then waited, and waited... and then finally someone told us that it’s a holiday. So, no bus. Taxi quoted €450 to Bastia, seriously. Tourist office guy suggested staying over in nearby Pinarello, and since Anthony‘a flight isn’t until tomorrow, that’s where we are. Beach town.  We bought picnic lunch, walked to Pinarello, got a room at the nice, cheap Hotel Golf, had a nap. Rented a 16’ cat and went sailing for a couple of hours, then very good dinner at  La Source and thyme and wild mint ice cream afterwards.

GR20 Day 13 — Wayfinding and Trusting the Path

June 5, 2022 — Stage 15 — Bavella to Conca — 12mi / 1,800' Bad sleep indoors in the gîte. At this point I was fully adapted to sleeping outdoors in a tent, and much preferred that to being in a room with other people. We had breakfast and then left at 8:30, walked to Paliri, had coffee, and then a long, humid walk through descending maquis and big exposed slabs of granite and red rock. Beautiful, pretty much all the way to Conca, where we decided to stay at the small ** Hotel San Pasquale. Sort of anticlimactic ending as there is no big crowd welcoming you at the end of the GR20 ;)  Strava GPS: https://www.strava.com/activities/7259513735 [https://www.strava.com/activities/7259513735]

GR20 Day 12 — Intuitive Decision Making, Weather and Attention

June 4, 2022 — Stage 14 "alpine variant" — Asinau to Bavella — 6mi / 1,600' 30 minute debate and observation about the weather to decide whether to take the “Alpine” route. At first we though no, but the sky opened up blue and we went up. I had a conversation with Anthony about paying attention. Dramatic views, lots of rock. Arrived in Bavella for lunch and then checked in to the gîte at Auberge Col du Bavella. We ran into the French here yet again and we all had dinner together. A short day over beautiful steep red rock terrain with a good lesson in intuitive decision making.  Strava GPS: https://www.strava.com/activities/7253102102 [https://www.strava.com/activities/7253102102]

GR20 Day 11 — The Corsican Maquis

June 3, 2022 — Stage 13 original route — Uscaliolu to Asinau — 11mi / 3,200' By this point we've learned that it's usually better to make ourselves breakfast than buy the set breakfast from the refuge. We decided to take the slightly longer "original route" to the next refuge, which is like a stage and a half. Weather was overcast, with a few raindrops.  The second half of the day was hard, a long ascent of about 1000m up to a windswept peak with a big cross and then a very steep descent of the same. 1000m downhill is rough. Asinau refuge was very nice, and they served an excellent lentil dinner and had a nice shop with local charcuterie. Again, not crowded, but the gardien (ranger) told me that the night before they had 80 people, tonight only 25. In the high season they have 200-300 people! Argh!  We slept in rented tents — clearly the way to go, as long as you are doing the GR20 in a season when it's not too crowded.  Strava GPS: https://www.strava.com/activities/7253097745 [https://www.strava.com/activities/7253097745]

GR20 Day 10 — Fou d’Europe

June 2, 2022 — Stages 11b & 12 combined — Relais San Petru to Uscaliolu — 10mi / 4,250' Morning walk on well graded trail uphill to the Prati refuge and then beautiful hiking beyond Prati with clouds forming on the lee side of the ridge. Walking through beech forest at Bocca a Meta, the air was thick with insect life. Not pests, just alive. We then came down to the col there where the Mare a Mare Sud crosses the GR20 and I stopped to read the informational sign there, discovering the town down the valley below of Guitera-les-Bains , which has the best natural hot springs in Corsica. It was just then that I smelled the maquis for the first time on this trip. Up until then I had expected and hoped for this magical scent, but had not yet had it sweep over me as it had when I was here with Kirsha one winter some years ago. Someone I spoke with confirmed that the season to experience the maquis is early spring, and so it hasn’t been everywhere as we are a bit late. At this place though, the scent of wild thyme was strong, and I sat amidst it for a while, and then showed Anthony, at which point we found wild arugula (rocket) growing with the thyme, and ate some on the spot. As I was carrying on from the col, ahead of Anthony for the moment, I came upon another person, and we dropped quickly into conversation. This turned out to be Goulven le Goff [https://www.facebook.com/goulven.legoff.5], making his was south on the GR20 (at the moment), self supported and wild camping (backpacking, not staying in refuges).  Goulven walked with us to the Uscaliolu refuge, and we had him as a guest on the podcast before he continued on to wherever he camped. This refuge was situated in a rocky gully, not quite as pleasant as many of the others, hot and lots of flies with sort of a youth hostel atmosphere. We slept again in rented tents. Good pasta dinner but it wasn't quite enough to eat.  Strava GPS: https://www.strava.com/activities/7253114268 [https://www.strava.com/activities/7253114268]