Mercantour National Park
The Mercantour is France's most biodiverse national park — a place where Alpine and Mediterranean ecosystems collide in one of the steepest environmental gradients in Europe. Within 50 km, you can travel from olive groves at 500 m to glacial lakes at 3,000 m. This is where wolves returned to France in 1992, where 40,000 Bronze Age rock engravings cover a sacred mountain, and where you can swim in the Mediterranean and hike through snow on the same day.
Wildlife
The Mercantour's biodiversity is exceptional:
- Grey wolf: This is where wolves returned to France in 1992. Multiple packs now resident.
- Ibex: Reintroduced from the Italian side — growing population
- Chamois: Several thousand
- Mouflon: Introduced (Corsican origin)
- Golden eagle, short-toed eagle, eagle owl: Raptors benefit from the extreme terrain
- Hermann's tortoise (at lower elevations)
- Italian wall lizard, Corsican fire salamander: Mediterranean and endemic species
Botanical highlights include Europe's northernmost olive trees alongside Arctic-Alpine plants — gentians, saxifrages, and the rare Saxifraga florulenta (endemic to the Maritime Alps).
Hiking
- GR5/GR52: Both long-distance trails pass through the park
- GR52A (Panoramique du Mercantour): A spectacular 10-day traverse
- Day hikes: Lac d'Allos (Europe's largest natural high-altitude lake at 2,228 m), Vallée des Merveilles, Gorges de Daluis (red rock canyon)
- Difficulty: Trails are often steep and rocky — the mountain terrain is more rugged than the Vanoise
Nice — Nice is the gateway to the Mercantour — 90 minutes from the coast to the park entrance — on La Porte.