Three attempts at excursions in Corsica (when the weather plays tricks)

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Writer: Helena Bergström

When you're travelling, things don't always go exactly as planned. Corsica is a fantastic island, but that doesn't mean that all travel plans always go like clockwork... This time it was the weather that played tricks on us!

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Trial excursion 1: Boat trip to Lotu beach

In hindsight, we should have made that trip to the beach Lotu (Plage du Lotu) right when we arrived at the nice Saint-Florence. We didn't do that, but we booked a ticket for a few days later.

It is very popular to make boat trips to either to Saleccia beach - which we visited ten years ago (magically beautiful!) or to Lotu beach, which we chose this time. We paid for a ticket (20 euros/person) and when it was time to leave, we packed a waterproof rucksack with a packed lunch - water, baguette, salami and lots of fruit.

It was windy in the morning so we didn't get completely surprised when the company declared that the tour was cancelled. We rebooked for the next day!

Field trip experiment 2: Boat trip to Lotu beach

Shame on those who give up! When we woke up the next morning, the storm had subsided and it felt completely calm. Now it was time for an excursion! We repacked the waterproof backpack and headed for the harbour.

We were really determined that the excursion would take place now, but the boat company had a better idea of the upcoming weather than we did. Unfortunately, the tours were cancelled on this day too, and we got our money back.

Field trip experiment 3: Car journey to l'Ostriconi beach

Ok, what were we going to do now? Our plan was to follow the coast southwards towards Calvi, and Peter had spotted a beach that looked nice: Ostriconi beach. If we couldn't take a boat to a beach, why couldn't we take a campervan to a beach? We set off, on winding beautiful roads, with amazing viewpoints.

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After less than an hour, we arrived at l'Ostriconi, and it turned out that a height barrier (maximum 2 metres) effectively stopped all motorhomes that wanted to visit the beach during the day. On the other hand, a campsite was right next door: Camping de l'Ostriconi.

We were going to stay somewhere for the night anyway, so why not spend a night at this campsite and walk down to the beach? We parked in the green and somewhat wild campsite, amidst the unruly mix of motorhomes, tin cars, vans, roof tents and various kinds of tents and hammocks.

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We packed the picnic bag again and headed for the beach. It was a bit of a walk and on the way we met a family who explained in Italian-English that "the beach could not be reached". What? We thanked them for the information, but we did not want to give up ...

The narrow path was really flooded in places, and we had to wade through thick mud in several places. But shame on those who give up!

Finally we arrived and we realised: the wind was fierce! We think the beach can be beautiful and inviting in the right circumstances, but now there were whipping winds, sandstorms in our faces and a dark chest-deep moat to negotiate to get there. A stubborn man trudged forward through the depths with his daughter on his shoulders, but well ...

We wouldn't have been able to eat our packed lunch in the strong wind anyway. We did as the Italian family did and went back to the motorhome, where we at last ate our packed lunch, which we had started preparing three days earlier

Are we in need? Absolutely not! But no matter how experienced we are, things often don't go as planned, and we want to share that too! When you're travelling, do your plans usually work out?

You might also like:

Things to do in Saint-Florent, Corsica - 10 tips for a Corsican gem Things to do in Calvi, Corsica - 15 tips for a holiday favourite Calanche di Piana - dramatic mountain roads in western Corsica Plage de Cupabia in Corsica - revisiting paradise after 10 years What to do in Bonifacio, Corsica - our top 15 tips 15 beautiful beaches in Corsica that you don't want to miss

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