Visiting the highest coastal village in Europe... road trip part VII

While staying in Menton on our recent road trip we decided to visit some of the hilltop villages nearby. First on our list was the pretty little village of Sainte-Agnès ranked among the 'Plus Beaux Villages de France' (Most beautiful villages in France). It claims to be the highest coastal village in Europe and holds a few surprises. Although only 3km as the crow flies to the coast the winding (and a little scary) road up to the village is a distance of around 10km. We used the local bus at the great value of 1,50 euro each way plus their knowledge of the hair pin bends was invaluable!

 

After you are dropped off by the bus the first thing you see is the brightly coloured church of Notre-Dame-des-Neiges which was rebuilt in the 16th century on the site of the original 12th century church. 

 The mairie sits just behind the church with a reassuring sign that there is life in the village.

You enter the 'old' village  through a stepped portal which leads to a series of  narrow and sometimes steep, cobbled alleyways which occasionally take you through vaulted passages.

We only saw one other person as we wound our way through its narrow streets but there were some craft shops showing signs of life.

Loved strolling through its streets and was pleased to have a black cat cross our path as we walked.

This is the front of the Auberge that has the fab terrace (see first pic.) but it was closed. 

We eventually made our way to the terrace that gives spectacular panoramic views,even on a dull day, down to the Mediterranean and the bay of  Menton with the long viaduct of the A8 motorway in between. The high ground to the left has the ruins of a medieval castle on top and a concrete fortress underneath! It also had an open restaurant where we joined another four customers to enjoy further great views.

The concrete monstrosity was in fact the  final southern bastion of the Maginot Line, the Fort of Sainte-Agnès and its guns were used to repel the Italians in 1940. It has more than 2,000 m² of internal space over four levels and was equipped with the most modern facilities at the time of its construction (between 1932 and 1938) and was home to over three hundred soldiers at its prime. One amusing fact is it was actually an Italian company that built it!

The last point of interest of our visit was the castle ruins but as it was quite a dangerous climb and the wind was picking up Pauline decided against joining me.

 

Some points of the path were difficult and the wind was challenging but the 360 degree views made it worthwhile!

After the climb I caught up with Pauline again and now knew why this bit of  equipment was made available.

The end of our visit took a lucky (that black cat) twist when while we sat at the bus stop awaiting our return bus a lady who was visiting the cemetery (her family home had been here) said she was heading back to Menton and offered us a lift.  She had obviously driven the route many times as she negotiated the many hazards with relative ease and had us back before the bus was due to leave the village.