Leisurely beach walk to a lagoon – also perfect for a stroll barefooted
If you like beach walks you will find a considerable number of opportunities on Corsica’s eastern coast in particular. Almost the whole of the coastline between Bastia und Solenzara is one long sandy beach interrupted only by river estuaries and almost purpose built for lengthy strolls along the sand. Particularly lovely is the section of beach to the north of Ghisonaccia. Here you quickly leave civilisation behind and experience a wonderful, to a large extent isolated beach. An idyllic beach lagoon, the Etang d’Urbino, also awaits you there. The path is ideal for walking barefoot – not only the way there across the beach, but also the return over mostly sandy or loamy paths and tracks are a delight for rather »hardened soles« (take shoes with you as well, to be on the safe side).
Starting point: Ghisonaccia beach, at the end of the D 144 (4.5km from the roundabout at the southern edge of the village, signposted). If you want to shorten the length of the walk by a good hour, turn left 200m before the beach onto the D 444 – after a good 200m the road turns into a badly eroded track in places and forks after 1km at a car park with pine trees. Go left/straight on here for another 3km; keep along the track straight ahead (right) at all junctions and following the wave signs to a car park/turning round place with shady pines behind the beach.
Height difference: insignificant.
Grade: easy beach walk.
Refreshment and accommodation: in Ghisonaccia.
Tip: trip to the Ferme d’Urbino, a floating restaurant on a peninsular projecting a long way out into the lagoon. The restaurant serves really fresh oysters and mussels which have been bred in the lagoon (from Ghisonaccia about 6km on the N 198 to the north to the signposted turn-off, from here, about 3km to the restaurant).
Map: IGN 4352 OT (1:25.000).