French Riviera

Photos by Daniel Ciufo | Written by Vicky Bulmer

Our trip to the French Riviera and a charming little French town Villefranche-sur-Mer.

The locals told us that a visit to the local mountain, Mont Chauve, is a definite must for the most incredible views of the city. Known as Nice’s ‘Bald Mountain,’ it’s a favourite among the locals who enjoy a brisk 30km, 800-meter, 7% incline ride that takes your breath away, all conveniently close to the city. Our adventure began at a lively junction at the prime time of 4 pm, culminating at the unexpectedly barren summit adorned with communication antennas and the remains of a military fortress. It was Daniel’s longest climb and the first of many cols, and it felt like a fantastic way to kick off the holiday!

Day two was ambitions to hit Col d’Eze and Col de la Madone. But, as fate would have it, our start was delayed due to technical bike computer issues. After consulting the wise sages of Reddit forums and performing digital voodoo hacks, we were on our way. We eased into the ride, embracing an extremely fast descent, when suddenly, our route had a mid-life crisis. It quickly dawned on us that we had blissfully skipped the turn for Eze. We shrugged it off, thinking we could just loop back if feeling sprightly. Ah, famous last words indeed. Pushing forward, we didn’t feel worthy of a sit-down lunch. Who needs a quaint French café when you have the burning desire to conquer Madone?

After a thrilling negotiation with several junctions, we were finally face to face with our climb of the day—the climb - a 13km beast with a 6.7% average gradient and 1000 meters of climbing. We rode together for a while; Daniel, fueled by dreams of summit glory, left me to chase the top solo again. After an exhilarating descent, we landed in La Turbie, and our stomachs were as empty as our water bottles. Timing in Nice is everything, as we discovered that the culinary gates close at 3 pm sharp. But fortune smiled upon us as Le Bistrot de Banville welcomed us with open arms, cold beer, and the most divine homemade pesto pasta - a heavenly taste that almost made us forget about skipping Eze. And so concludes the epic saga of two cyclists, a misbehaving GPS, and the quest for the perfect pesto pasta.

Not being accustomed to the thigh-burning long climbs, we decided to mix things up a bit and do some more rolling terrain and ride to San Remo. Ah, San Remo, known to the world as a glamorous tourist hotspot on the Italian Riviera, but to us cyclists, it’s the grand stage of the Milan-San Remo race and the famous attacks on the Poggi. We endured some mega traffic on the way out, making us quarrel about whether there was a better road out. But I soon realised there is only one way. We started getting hungry as the clock struck our sacred lunch hour at 2pm. We ordered what can only be described as the holy trinity of cycling fuel: pasta ragu, fried calamari, and a beer with a strength of 6% because, let’s be honest, hydration is key.

Finally reaching San Remo, we faced the Poggio. Describing it as a “small climb” does a disservice to it. This historical climb, with its 4km length, an average gradient of a mere 3.6%, and 136 metres of elevation, has some serious hairpin bends, which Daniel enjoyed sending it. We celebrated the summit by enjoying a beer and the end of the Giro stage in a local Italian bar. The ride back was dreamy, with no traffic, and we could finally enjoy the fast roads, making it back as the sunset.

Keen to experience some climbs that will feature in this year’s 2024 Tour de France brutal mountainous stage. We decided to tackle the first climbs of stage 20, Col de Braus and Col de Turini. I was motivated to sit with Daniel on the first section of Braus. Both taken in by the climb and the stunning surroundings and switchbacks, we enjoyed the 10km climb together. We were half-expecting to be welcomed at the summit by a charming pub, yet all we found were our echoes wishing for a pint.

WE WERE HALF-EXPECTING TO BE WELCOMED AT THE SUMMIT BY A CHARMING PUB, YET ALL WE FOUND WERE OUR ECHOES WISHING FOR A PINT.

On the last day of our holiday, we took it easy. We enjoyed a leisurely brunch watching the waves and then went for a quick shake-out ride. We decided to tackle the local short climb Col d’Eze, which we had missed earlier, and the Col de Quatre Chemins, a little climb near our stay in Villefranche-sur-Mer. It was a lovely experience and one of the most iconic local climbs. The Col d’Eze is 8.3km long with an elevation gain of 513m and an average grade of 5%. It was a perfect two-hour, 40km ride, and we had a lot of fun descending back to Villefranche. On the way back, we also had a quick dip in the sea, nothing better when it’s hot to jump in, in your kit. It was the ideal way to end our holiday.

After everything, we realised that cycling in Nice is not just about how far you go but about the fun times, delicious food, and the understanding that no matter how tough the journey, there’s always a cold beer waiting at the finish line.