Page 130 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Provence & The Côte d'Azur

128  PROVENCE AREA B Y AREA

jSt-Raphaël
Road map E4. * 34,716. £ @
n Quai Albert Premier (04 94 19 52 52).
( Tue–Sun. ∑ saint-raphael.com
This staid family resort dates to
Roman times when rich families
came to stay at a spot near
the modern seafront casino.
Napoleon put the town on the
map when he landed here in
1799 on his return from Egypt,
and 15 years later when he left
St-Raphaël for exile on Elba.
Popularity came when the Château de la Napoule, now an art centre
Parisian satirical novelist Jean-
Baptiste Karr (1808–90) pub- rocks remain intact. Until the start of the Riviera, at La Napoule.
licized the town’s delights. In mid-1800s, it was a refuge for Here there is a 14th-century
the old part is the 12th-century highwaymen and escaped château refurbished by American
church of St-Raphaël and the prisoners from Toulon. Here, sculptor Henry Clews (1876–1937),
Musée Archéologique, which after being fêted on arrival in who left work scattered about the
contains Greek amphorae and St Raphaël, Napoleon and his estate. The château is now an art
other underwater finds. coach were robbed of all their centre, the Fondation Henry
valuables while on their way Clews. The pedestrian route
E Musée Archéologique out of town heading to Paris. leading inland to the Col Belle-
Place de la Vieille Eglise. Tel 04 94 The north side of the massif is Barbe from the coast passes on
19 25 75. Open Mar–Jun: Tue pm–Sat; bounded by the DN7 which runs the right a turn to the 452-m
Jul–Sep: Tue–Sat; Nov–Feb: Tue pm– through the Esterel Gap, following (1483-ft) Pic du Cap Roux. An
Sat am. Closed public hols. the Roman Aurelian way from hour’s walk to the top is rewarded
Cannes to Fréjus. To reach Mont by a sweeping view of the coast.
Vinaigre, at the Testanier cross- Inland from Col Belle-Barbe
roads 11 km (7 miles) from Fréjus, over the Col du Mistral up to the
follow the road leading to the Col des Trois Termes, the path
Malpey ranger station. Park there then twists south to Col Notre-
and do the final 45 minutes on Dame. A 45-minute walk leads
foot. This is the highest point to the dramatic 496-m (1,627-ft)
on the massif, and there is a Pic de l’Ours. Between here and
fine panorama from the Alps the coast is the 323-m (1,060-ft)
to the Massif des Maures. Pic d’Aurelle, which also
On the seaward side of the provides an impressive vista.
massif the D1089 from St-Raphaël
twists along the top of startlingly E Fondation Henry Clews
red cliffs to Agay. This resort has 1 blvd Henry Clews, Mandelieu-
the best anchorage on the coast. La Napoule. Tel 04 93 49 95 05.
It is famous for its red porphyry, Open daily; Nov–Feb: Mon-Fri pm.
Tourist poster of St-Raphaël from from which the Romans cut Closed 25 Dec. & 8 - Apr–Sep
the 19th century columns for their Provençal = ∑ chateau-lanapoule.com
monuments. Be aware that there
is only one paved road (mostly
kMassif de l’Esterel one-way) to reach Agay and no
access to return to the seafront
Road map E4. k Nice. £ @ Agay,
St-Raphaël. n Quai Albert Premier, between Agay and Theoule.
St-Raphaël (04 94 19 52 52) & 86 ave Round the bay is Pointe de
de Cannes, Mandelieu-La Napoule Baumette where there is a
(04 93 93 64 64). memorial to French writer and
World War II aviator, Antoine de
The Esterel, a mountainous St-Exupéry (see p33). The road
volcanic mass, is a wilderness continues to Anthéor and the
compared to the popular coast. Pointe de l’Observatoire. Just
Although it rises to no more than before here, a left turn leads
620 m (2,050 ft), and a succession to the circuit of the Cap Roux
of fires have laid waste its forests, and Pic de l’Ours.
its innate ruggedness and the The coast road continues Remaining timber on the fire-ravaged
dramatic colours of its porphyry through a series of resorts to the Massif de l’Esterel
For hotels and restaurants in this region see pp199–200 and pp211–12