Runviewer was blighted with a trip to the French Riviera, so making the best of the situation, we managed to squeeze in a few early morning runs through Cannes.
Temperatures reached around 35 degrees in the day, meaning that delicate English constitutions were confined to exercising in the morning and the evening (when frankly we were drinking wine instead).
This route begins on La Croisette, the famous seaside promenade and home to numerous fancy hotels, including the famous Carlton, as well as The Casino Barriere Les Princes, private beaches and one million ice cream stands. We head West to the Palais Des Festivals (1 min 34) home to the famous film festival and red carpet. The adjacent port – Quay Saint-Pierre (the old port) dates to 1838. One can assume the garish Ferris wheel is less historic. At the other end of the Quay is where we will conclude our route later on. As we continue to head West you can just about spot the Church on top of the hill. The Notre-Dame de l’Esperance, has stood above the old town since the 1600s and is late gothic, with some renaissance elements in architecture. The clocktower is an iconic landmark over the town (1.53 – 2.04)
For now, we head North West past the Hotel De Ville, through Le Suquet, the old town, and skip past the cafes and fisherman’s houses through the sleepy, cobbled, climbing streets, which will soon be bustling with the day’s business.
You can’t quite capture the climb that takes us through residential Cannes on camera. Fortunately nor can you see the small river of sweat emitted by the camera operator at this point.
A final climb up Boulevard Lord Brougham brings us to the parched Parc de La Croix Des Gardes (4 mins 16 secs). There are a few nods to the high achieving British Statesmen Brougham, who when he wasn’t espousing his views on science and philosophy, defending the Queen Caroline’s title, opposing slavery and designing carriages, bought a strip of land in the fishing village of Cannes and started a movement that would turn it into the tourist destination it is today.
Anyway, onto the Park. There are 200 acres of forest and fabulous views perched atop the town. We’re told that at a certain time of year the scent of Mimosa is quite arresting here, and there is an arboretum featuring over 40 types. Along our route there’s not much to overcome the scent of hot earth and sun-bleached vegetation. The speed of footage has been taken down a bit here so you might be able to capture a shot or two of Le Grand Jas Cemetery on the hillside opposite, separated by the steep drop to the highway. Brougham is buried here.
The sound of crackling grasses, crickets and birdsong is a pleasant relief after the bustle of the seaside, but the terrain is a little rugged in places, meaning that this is not a spot for speedy runs, unless you’re deeply coordinated around rocks and sheer drops. At the top of the park is a climbing frame or two and a memorial airplane propeller marking Captain Robert Hornbaker and his WWII crew, whose plane came down on the Croix Des Gardes hill under heavy fire in 1944.
As we leave the park, and stumble steeply downhill to the coast the route heads East and we’re presided by the glowing orb of fire which, although only low in the sky, was still warm enough pre 10am to make this runner feel pretty unwell. Hence our route concludes fairly abruptly at the other end of the harbour after we have rejoined the water on the Boulevard du Midi, where the waters are practically transparent. Here you can find some exceptional views of La Croisette, the achingly blue Mediterranean, as well as rich people’s big white boats.
AMENITIES
We’re going to assume you’re not day-tripping and recommend taking water with you. In the summer months, personally I wouldn’t run past 9.30am in the morning.
There’s not much in terms of refreshments or facilities in the park, but there is car park if you’re heading up for wander on wheels.
You’re never short of cafes or places to stop for refreshment along the Boulevards de Croisette and Du Midi in Cannes, just ten minutes downhill from the Croix Des Gardes.
The main railway station in Cannes is located North of La Croisette, but the railway runs along the coast with various stops and indeed we took it all the way from Paris.