Cassis is beautiful! This morning, I woke up early but without an alarm to hike in Calanques National Park. This was my main reason for being in Cassis. I was excited to get going, plus I enjoy morning hikes in an effort to avoid mid-day crowding. But first, coffee and SPF!
I walked from Cassis proper and then followed the AllTrails map for the Port-Miou, Port-Pin, and En-Vau calanques. It was a gorgeous morning. The trails were well-maintained, reasonably well-signed, and had lots of blue spray painted markings designated where to go. It would be pretty hard to veer off course, apart from some of the small rocky areas where the path is a little less obvious. But even there, it’s easy to figure out quickly if you’re not going quite the right way. Plus, some of the “off-trail” areas lead out to beautiful overlooks so I think there’s some intentional off-course spots for some hikers.
The Port-Miou is a beautiful place to have a boat slip. More and more, I want to get into sailing. I’m not sure if this will actually occur, but it seems delightful. Maybe I could get a friend with a boat?
Port-Pin was also quite pretty although by that point, I was very excited to get to En-Vau, widely considered one of the most beautiful calanques.
I first saw En-Vau from above and it is gorgeous. The water is varied shades of blue depending on the bottom (seaweed vs sand vs rocks) but the water is crystal clear. There were a few people on the beach.
I hiked down, and it was a little tough. I would only want to do the hike in good weather as I think the rock would be incredibly slippery when wet.
I reached the beach and laid out for a bit. Then I went for a swim. Although I initially hadn’t planned to swim out to the swimmers boundary, I did. It was gorgeous. It was cool, but not terribly cold in the water.
Then, I laid out in the sun to warm up. While resting, I heard a loud crack and looked up. Two base jumpers were jumping onto the beach. The first had gone, tossed his pilot chute up, and the crack was his larger shoot opening. He landed successfully on the beach and was shortly followed by his friend. Good for them but man, I would never!
I hiked back to town and considered what I wanted to do. On the way to the hike, I had passed Plage du Bestouan where there was a Cafe Same Same that overlooked the beach. Did I want to do that or did I want to see the Calanques from the water on a boat cruise? I had heard that was the best way to see the Calanques, but ultimately, I decided on cafe beach day! I had already had a great view and I can’t do it all! I’ve also been to places where cruises are recommended such as the Nepali Coast in Kauai and sometimes, a hike is fine. A cruise would be amazing, but there is only so much time. On the other hand, I have been on some great sunset cruises so it’s not an option I completely exclude.
Also, on the way out, the trail was a lot more crowded with full sun exposure. The morning had some scattered shade, but there were some people looking a little miserable on the climb even on a pretty perfect weather day.
I dropped my bag off at the room, bought a straw mat at the souvenir shop, and walked over to Plage du Bestouan. I went to the Cafe and got an aperol spritz and grilled sardines. Not as good as the ones in Cap Ferrat, but they did the trick after a hike. I was hungry!
I had a seat at a bar table facing the beach. It ran along the railing and had ~10 seats and it was perfect for a solo diner. I sat for awhile, but decided I wanted to go to the beach itself.
First, I laid out on the rock and later, went for a swim and moved to the beach. I had my disposable flip flops from our hotel in Normandy, which were real feet savers for those little pebbles. They aren’t quite like stepping on legos, but they are a little painful!
I walked into town during Golden Hour. Beautiful.
I went to Le Petit Oyster Bistro for the sole purpose of enjoying their Oyster Hour: 3 oysters and a glass of white wine for 10 Euro. I am really going to miss these oyster prices when I’m back in the US.
Then, I went down to the beach for a picnic of baguette and my remaining Brillat-Savarin cheese. What an amazing Cassis day.
And, as a memory placeholder, if I ever come back to Cassis, I want to consider Chateau de Cassiss and Hotel De La Plage- Mahogany (oceanview room!) as places to stay.