Day 10: Sospel → Nice

The final day of my crossing dawned bright and warm. Sospel’s church bells accompanied my early morning departure. Though Nice was less than 65 km away, I knew the route would zigzag through the last of the Maritime Alps, making me earn that first dip of my toes in the sea. Out of Sospel, I climbed the Col de Braus (1,002 m), a fitting last test. The Col de Braus road is an unforgettable piece of engineering, famous for its stacked hairpin turns that scribble up the mountainside. I ascended Braus’s east side, which meant about 11 km of steady climbing from 350 m elevation – the last sustained climb of the trip. My legs, seasoned by now, turned the cranks with a steady determination. Each bend revealed the remarkable pattern of hairpins below; it was like looking at a life-size switchback staircase etched in grey asphalt.

The road to Col de Braus is renowned for its dramatic hairpin bends, fully visible from above as I climbed. The French D2204 road ascends via a series of tight switchbacks carved into the mountainside, resembling a giant staircase of tarmac looping back on itself. Near the top, I encountered an especially steep stretch, with the gradient jumping into double digits (around 13%), and I had to rise out of the saddle to keep momentum. At last, I reached the Col de Braus at 1,002 m, the final pass of my tour, and felt a surge of accomplishment and gratitude.

From Braus I continued along a ridge, descending a bit and then crossing a couple of minor cols. The landscape was now thoroughly Mediterranean: dry limestone hillsides, olive groves, and the occasional palm tree. I rolled through the picturesque village of Peille clinging to a cliff, and then to La Turbie, where suddenly the vast expanse of the Côte d’Azur burst into view. The city of Nice lay below, its urban sprawl framed by the sparkling Mediterranean Sea.