Long, thin, elastic lifeline ! Cascade de Courmes. Canyoning

Acum 10 ani puneam poza asta pe alpinet:
http://alpinet.org/bin/foto/showfoto.php?lng=ro&item=814&vot=0
uitandu-ma cum niste nebuni coboara o cascada ce parea ca porneste din cer.
Dupa 10 ani am coborat-o si eu, ca pe ceva firesc, cu bucuria imensa sa ma simt ca un paianjen tesandu-si plasa. Niciodata firul vietii nu a parut mai fragil ca atunci, cand doar un fir de ata si cateva zeci de metrii ma desparteau de pamant iar cascada ma acoperea cu o ploaie fina, o binecuvantare intr-o zi torida de vara.

Multi ani cascada, de fapt tot canyonul de la Courmes a fost interzis din cauza autoritatilor locale si a localnicilor "prietenosi" fata de canyoneri si sportul lor nebunesc.

Se pare ca lobbyul sportivilor a reusit si acuma exista permisiunea de a cobor acest canion. La sfarsitul lui august impreuna si la sugestia lui  Lolo si Alex  (carora le raman foarte recunoscator) am avut ocazia unei coborari fulger a acestui canion: 3 ore in topo, noi intr-o ora jumate eram gata, jos pe asfaltul incins. Cascada de 65 de metrii, din care aporape 50 total suspendata in aer este punctul principal de atractie si a fost hit-ul seriei de canioane pe care le-am strabatut aceasta vara. Senzatii garantate.De partea cealalta a aparatului de fotografiat de data asta:

there are canyons... and there is Maglia !!!

well, here it is the most visited and most renowned canyon in the Alpes Maritimes, and also in France, maybe even in Europe ! It is not the most photogenic one, but is surely has all you can dream in a canyon: a good water debit through the season, nice toboggans, a lot of jumps (some of them impressive), rappels (even one through a grotto), narrow swimming parts, even a little via ferrata part ! 4 hours of great descent !
And the most important, a nice group of buddies to go with ;)



















Maglia on RandoOxygene

Canyoning: Barbaira

This canyon is on the Italian side of the Alps, very close to the border and to the Mediterranean sea. It is an easy and very scenic canyon, quite short but very divers, with some magnificent jumps and narrow parts. The only "killer" thing is the approach, almost one hour on merciless sun, without no shade but full of sun beams reflections and humidity... To avoid doing this at noon ! Ah, and the tax... the italiens wants our moneys... :( But is far more pleasant to spent them in Dolce Aqua, the very impressive village downstream ;)

Here there are the pictures, in one of them you can see a viper eating a frog :D

Canyoning: Riou de Cuébris

Cuébris is kind of a hidden canyon: a well known 30m abseil on a magnificent waterfall, then some walk and then a beautiful chain of waterfalls and steps. Situated just next to its more famous cousins Riolan and Aiglun, this canyon is quite neglected thus more peaceful... for me it was a pleasure to (re) do it.

















Riou de Cuébris on RandoOxygene, just the middle part...

Canyoning: Riolan is number one !

Here it is Riolan, maybe the most beautiful canyon of about 300 canyons in Les Alpes Maritimes. The very narrow walls, sometimes below 1 m wide with very long swiming parts are the specificity of this canyon, take good care at the weather condition, a rise in the water level didn't leave you many possibilities of escape !
I've did Riolan for the third time, with a great emerald water and a nice sunshine. Due to the perfect condition we've finished it very fast, in about 2h15min. compared to 6h for the previous descent. There were a lot of groups there, leaded by profesional guides, we've even meet some romanian girl doing its first canyon there.
As I've already known that this canyon is guarded by vipers, which live in a paradise right there... So it was no surprise to cross a big one this time. It is their territory, please do not disturb them !