Red granite
Jagged spires.
Michal Osmenda from Brussels, Belgium — CC BY 2.0 · JeanbaptisteM from France — CC BY 2.0 · JeanbaptisteM from France — CC BY 2.0 · Myrabella — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Michal Osmenda from Brussels, Belgium — CC BY 2.0
The Calanche de Piana are red rock cliffs and pinnacles on the west coast of Corsica, France, at Piana on the Gulf of Porto, halfway along the coast road between Ajaccio and Calvi, about 37 km north of Ajaccio in a straight line. The rocks belong to the plutonic formations of crystalline Corsica and form a small V-shaped mountain chain whose highest point is 698 metres. In 1983 they were listed with the Gulf of Porto, the Gulf of Girolata and the Scandola reserve as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, for their beauty, rich marine life and unique maquis scrubland. Jagged towers and spires of red-ochre granite, carved into strange shapes, rise above a deep blue sea, cut by green ravines and rock arches. The stone glows orange and red at sunset, and the narrow coast road runs right between the rocks. Visitors drive the road and stop at viewpoints, walk short trails among the rocks, or see the cliffs from the sea on boat trips. There is no footpath from the road down to the sea, and the road is narrow and full of bends, so drive with care.
Jagged spires.
Glowing rock.
From the sea.
Piana, Gulf of Porto, Corsica, France
There is no path from the road.
By car or by boat.