On January 28, 2007, a magnificent winter Sunday, I went on a hike through the "Massif de l'Esterel", a coastal mountain range right around the corner from where we live. The hike began at the Col de Belle Barbe and involved just over six hours of trekking up and down countless ravines, gulches, and gullies, as well as climbing up to the summit of the Pic de l'Ours, or Bear's Peak. The journey yielded a large batch of photographs, some of which are displayed on this page. Clicking on the above map will open a larger version in a separate window. It is also possible to download a zipped PDF version (6.6 MBs) which can then be printed (the file is zipped to make sure it gets downloaded and not just displayed in a browser window). Either way, those interested in following the hike on the map can easily do so.

On the map, the itinerary is depicted as a highlighter-like yellow line. There are only two ambiguous parts: the first one is where the line splits, just north of the Lac de l'Ecureuil (Squirrel Lake). There, I took the left branch while heading out. The second ambiguity is at the Col Notre Dame. where I took the direct line to the summit of the Pic de l'Ours and the somewhat longer, winding road on the way down. Once back at the Col Notre Dame, I took the path that goes off to the southwest. From the Lac de l'Ecureuil on, the way back to the car is the same as the outbound journey. The images below are arranged in chronological order, so it should be easy to find the landmarks they refer to on the map.

On the other hand, it's not necessary to bother with the map at all; the pictures should convey a good enough impression of this place, and hopefully, they may even convince some visitors to explore this wonderful area on their own; it is definitely worth it. Happy trails!

Click on any of the small images below to see a larger version!

Starting out at the Col Belle Barbe	Towards the Ravin de Grenouillet	At the bottom

First ray of morning sun in the ravine	In the Ravin du Mal Infernet	Little rivers like this abound

Leaving the ravine	Near the Ravin de l'Ecureuil	Quiet river

Lac de l'Ecureuil: Looking north	Walking along the lake	At the norhern end of the lake

Lac de l'Ecureuil: Looking south	Leaving the lake behind	Towards the Couche de l'Ane

Climbing up the Couche de l'Ane	Looking to the east...	...and continuing to climb

Near the Col des Replats	View from the Col de la Cadière	On the way to the Col Notre Dame

View from the Col Notre Dame	La dent de l'Ours: The Bear's Tooth	Climbing up to the Pic de l'Ours

View from the Pic de l'Ours	Pic de l'Ours: the summit	Looking towards the Iles de Lérins

Looking down to Trayas station	Picking up trail GR 51 to head down	Looking west...

...while descending towards the lake	Still on trail GR 51	Near the Ravin de l'Ecureuil

Towards the Ravin du Mal Infernet	In the Ravin du Mal Infernet	Tiny cascade

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This page was last modified on February 1, 2007
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