It’s winter and raining. Our days indoors watching Wednesday on Netflix eating Panettone cake and chocolates feel very heavy. I check the weather. Seems like a lull in the wet forecast is coming for 2-3 precious days.
Spontaneously I book an airbnb in the Port of Cogolin, load the car, and drive east towards St. Tropez.
St. Tropez in the summer scares me. Hordes of visitors, parking wars, and endless bumper to bumper. Not for nothing is the city referred to as “St. Trop”, trop meaning too much in French. But in the winter? Different story. No sign of jet setters and fashion hunters. A perfect opportunity to see St. Tropez standing bare naked.
St. Tropez in the summer 
Pretty. Even very.
But what’s the story here?
During the ninth century, pirates set the country on fire and bloodshed . These abuses, which lasted nearly 100 years, were perpetrated by the Saracens who took refuge in La Garde-Freinet. What remained of their passage here are the pink tiled roofs of called “Saracen” in the Provence region.
From 890 to 972, the peninsula of Saint-Tropez was an Arab-Muslim colony. In 972 , the Muslims of Saint-Tropez kidnapped Abbé Maïeul de Cluny whom they released for a huge ransom. This was the final straw. William I Count of Provence, decided to battle them at their stronghold in Garde-Freinet. The Saracens were finally defeated and expelled. Guillaume the Conquerer, as he became to be called, built in 980 a defensive tower on the current location of the Suffren tower, in order to better protect the city.
St. Tropez and her citadel in the 17th century 
St. Tropez and the citadel today
But St. Tropez’s troubles didn’t end there and throughout history managed to repel successive attacks by the Spanish and Turkish, and even helped out their neighbors in Frejus and Antibes.
Port Cogolin
My choice of staying in Port Cogolin about 10 minutes outside St. Tropez proved to be the right one. Quiet, calm with a nice wet terrace overlooking the tiny port. Cons? All the eateries around are closed for the winter. Either cook or venture out back to St. Tropez or the nearby commercial center. Hence, our meals consisted of soup, sushis and the occasional Burger King.
I should say that this was an extremely great deal partly because there were no cleaning fees charged. Instead, you are kindly asked to clean before departure and to bring your own sheets. I didn’t really mind this as a local, but I can imagine for tourists it’s highly impractical.
Plenty of parking
Our first day, the clouds are ominous but the enormous huge parking is almost empty. This is the same parking lot that a few years ago, in the height of July, I could not find one spot to park. We are talking about a parking lot with a capacity for hundreds of vehicles. It’s hardly recognizable today.
Walking around the port and the old city, even the iconic colorful houses seem grey today. Alas, the kids are not interested. I push them up to the famous citadel of St. Tropez I’ve been wanting to visit for ages.
A citadel as shelter from the rain
In 1583 a first fortification was built on the “wooded hills of the mills” which dominated the city and the Gulf of Saint-Tropez. A costal defense against pirates, corsairs and the Ottoman Empire.
It was Henri IV who sent the king’s engineer to build a new hexagonal tower on the hill between 1602 and 1607. This is the current keep with a vast interior courtyard, accessible by a drawbridge, defended by an artillery platform and three circular turrets.
The large bastioned enclosure and the system of moats and counterscarps were completed in the 1620s . During the Thirty Years’ War, this fortification system resisted an attack by 21 Spanish galleys.
Today it is an extremely interesting Maritime History Museum of St. Tropez. The labyrinth that is the keep just adds to the immersive experience inside the guts of this museum. This is especially practical on a grey rainy day or during the sweltering summer. A very economical escape, as the entry fee is only 4 euros and kids are free.
The Keep. 
Cannons in the rain.
We stayed as long as possible in the small rooms and tight corridors of the “Keep museum” and alas we must venture back to the car. Umbrellas open we cut the old city. Christmas market cancelled and ice rink shut down due to weather. We are not particularly bothered as we see these in practically every town.
What is St. Tropez without B.B.?
At night, almost fitting, we watch a documentary on Arte on the life of Brigitte Bardot. I explain to the kids that today she’s an animal activist living in La Madrague. The Brigitte Bardot Foundation has been recognized as being of public utility since 1992. Its field of action is national and international.
But every summer Madame Bardot has to run away because the tourist ferries pass by her property bellowing “This is Brigitte Bardot’s house”. Shouldn’t there be a law against this?
Ramatuelle
The next day is sunny and clear so we start it by visiting the lovely perched village of Ramatuelle. The old stomping grounds of our friendly Saracens, it is in the middle of the peninsula. As we stroll down the alleyway aptly named Rue Amoureux (Lover’s street) I think, why not? Splendid views, cute cafes, and everything tiny. This is a cute cute village.
We buy some baguettes at the Tropezienne shop. My son implores me to buy a portion of the famous Tropezienne cake, but alas, this will not hold during our hike.
A street for lovers 
Cute and small
The Coastal Trail
From this point on our trip was dedicated to exploring the famous Sentir Litoral or Coastal Trail that goes all the way around the peninsula of St. Tropez and continues westward. It’s certainly too much for one day, but you can pick up a map at the tourist office and select one part for a great day trip.
We choose a short hike to the Cap Taillat. In the off season, parking at the trailhead, which is close to the beach is free. But judging by the hundreds of empty parking spots around, I can only imagine the expensive circus that it is during the summer. The opulent villas overlooking the beaches get no respite except for now. But that’s the price you pay for living in paradise.
The trail is mostly flat hugging beaches and very exposed to the sun. In the summer it’s baking torture. But now it’s perfect. We reach Cap Taillat and climb it all the way to the pointy end and feel oh so satisfied.
Trail to Cap Taillat 
At the top of the Cap
Where’s the cake?
Now that we’ve all warmed up, the next day we choose another part of the trail, this time to Cap Lardier. It’s about a 4 hour hike back and forth from Gigaro beach, with many ups and downs this time. One very long ascent which seemed to take forever. But at Cap Lardier we take it easy enjoying dramatic coastal views and devour our sandwiches.
Trail to Cap Lardier 
Cap Lardier
On the way back, the sun decided to come out and we have to ration our winter-walking-water, because now it’s suddenly spring. When we reach the end of the trail, in homeless fashion we fill up our water bottles at the public toilets and take the coastal road back home.
