Summer Diary: #5 Splash in the Solenzara River

While driving through the Bavella mountain range, I notice that cars are parked in the most unexpected places, beginning with sharp bends. As I wonder why on earth someone would ever want to park here and where all their occupants may have gone in such a wild environment with no easy access to valleys or visible point of interest, hubby points out that they may well be bathing in rivers somewhere downhill.

Ah! Call me a fool, but it never crossed my mind. Sadly, this is most probably because I never went swimming in a river. But of course, this is an alternative if you are lucky enough to live in the right environment!

Now, I did kayak down the Ardèche - and came out totally soaked and exhausted by the effort - but that does not count as a leisurely swim, right?

Imagine my happiness when I found out that the village of Solenzara, on the East coast of Corsica, takes its name from the river that runs through it, and that the eco-site where we are staying has direct access to it!

The rocky site is beautiful, without offering the breathtaking view you can have in the mountains, of course; the water is incredibly clear, calm and fresh - all very pleasurable given the heat of the day. Its color ranges from pale green to deep emerald, echoing beautifully the Mediterranean flora around it. In the morning, birds gather by its banks to drink and play, and it is also the best time of the day to swim there, unless we run late and end up there in the late hours of the morning, when cicadas welcome us in their deafening way (oh, do I love them despite their ugly looks!).

Credits: TheDaydreamerDiary