The vineyard terraces above Port-Vendres

The Albères hills come down to the Mediterranean here, and the last three kilometres of them are covered in vines held on dry-stone terraces so steep and narrow that they are still worked by hand and by mule. These are the Collioure and Banyuls appellations: schist soil, low bush vines, and a network of stone gutters built to move the water off the slope in autumn storms. The road from Collioure to Port-Vendres and on toward Banyuls climbs through the middle of it.

For photographs, take the narrow road up toward the Tour Madeloc, the thirteenth-century signal tower on the ridge at about 650 metres. It is single-track with passing places and it is not a road to hurry on, but every hairpin opens a wider view: terraces stepping down, the sea beyond them, Port-Vendres harbour and Collioure on the coast below, and on a clear day the Pyrenees to the west.

Early morning gives haze off the sea and long shadows along the terrace walls; the last hour puts the sun behind the ridge and lights the coast below while the slope goes into shadow. The vine leaves turn from mid-October and the harvest here runs in September, done by hand and in small crates.

The practical point: these are working parcels, often reached by tracks that are private. Park in a pull-off, stay on the road and the marked paths, do not walk into the rows, and keep well clear of any picking or spraying. Weather closes the top road occasionally in winter — check locally before driving up.