Run report 958 - Riviera Hash House Harriers

Run report 958 a Walker’s view

‘Where do you go to my Lovelies?’

…asks Peter Sarstedt. Well it depends on your SatNav- mine took me round in a couple of circles before arriving at the designated meeting point in Juan les Pins. Undoubtedly the what3words realness.difficult.atoning was the appropriate reference if you were trying to find a parking space. Trying to find a good what3 words square is always interesting- would overheating. sweat.conditioning nearby have been offputting?

Or silliness.descriptions.longish been accurate?

We set off down avenue Notre Dame, a road lined on both sides by huge old olive trees- was this once an olive orchard? But then I couldn’t remember whether I had locked my car so I set off back to check. Of course it was locked; so now I had to catch up, hoping that it would be easy to follow the trail and catch the group.

There is a public WC at the edge of the Pinede, which is a useful thing to remember, so I took advantage of this and on coming out I met Fairy Plunger. He was looking lost and had been late for the start due to a drive up to Tourrettes sur Loup to search for his phone which it turned out he had dropped inside his vehicle. So we both had to look for the trail as by now the walkers group must be miles ahead. Arrows pointed down to the path along the sea edge. We went through a very nice restaurant; I bet it was a bit too close to the water’s edge when the wind got up at lunchtime.

Then further along the path there were sun worshippers getting top-ups to their tanned bodies. Now it is questionable whether you should look towards them- will they be the beautiful female bodies and the handsome Adonises? or will they be tubs of lard lounging like overweight seals. Best not to stare. Chalk marks and flour were easy to follow until we got to the boatyard where the trail could not be seen; but then we got back to the road and I noticed an arrow up the…

Chemin de Crouton

Markings here were easy to follow. Although we were passing many expensive villas there is little visible of what must be behind the walls. Only a villa called Mistinguett had a very fancy gateway- no plaque on the road to say that Mistinguett lived here- she was apparently a famous music hall dancer known for her legs- she must have revealed a couple of inches above her ankles and driven men mad. One of the most famous villas on the Cap D’Antibes was the Villa America owned by Gerald and Sara Murphy in the Twenties but the villa itself was rather unprepossessing- fame came from the parties and the guests who came.

‘To The Lighthouse!’

is almost the motto of a hash set by No Satisfaction. Fairy Plunger didn’t think we were anywhere near the lighthouse, but there it was ahead of us. The way up was to follow the Chemin du Calvaire , a rocky penitential path leading up to the chapel of the Garoupe. In July each year there is a procession bearing a statue from the cathedral in the old town of Antibes to the chapel so the last bit up the hill must be difficult as the path would not pass any health and safety regulations.. As Fairy Plunger and I got there, hoping for the beerstop, the walkers group was preparing to leave as there had just had a shopping break at all the stalls around the Chapel. No Satisfaction said that the beerstop was just down the hill. So we continued down and soon we were at the main road by the beach. The road is Boulevard du Bacon but I have no idea whether the road is named after Francis Bacon, ( a 13th century philosopher and Franciscan friar), Roger Bacon ( a philosopher and adviser to Elizabeth I and James I ) or Francis Bacon ( a recent painter known for particularly tortuous portraits of popes). None of these I suspect. There is a Restaurant de Bacon which you would hope specialises in bacon sandwiches for all the walkers and joggers going round the Cap, but I don’t think you could get a BLT there. The recent trip advisor comments are not very favourable.

More to the point was the beer stop…

on the other side of the wall from the road. Farty Bum had not been warned to supply bacon flavoured crisps but the beer and crisps and chocolate! were most welcome. It was a delightful spot with views to the old town of Antibes and the baie des Anges, with great views of a sailing regatta where the boats were heeling over beautifully in the offshore wind which had developed.
After the beerstop photos we started back. I thought I was following the group but apparently not- I was the only walker to do the trail back which went through a path through the woods after a couple of tricky paths. No Satisfaction had devised a shortcut for the walkers group who were all back at the start by the time I got there.