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The Train des Merveilles Nice-Tende. 51 km or 32 miles, takes bout 2.5 hr
each way.
The train departure from Nice Thiers station at 09:00 (12€/person round trip);
return departure Tende 5:22 p.m.-Nice 7:12 p.m.
A day to Tende on the Train des Merveilles (the Train of Wonders, because it
takes one almost to the valley where one find lots of heiroglyphs, ie the
Wonders) is an opportunity to discover the back country of Nice and the Alpes
Maritimes. This train’s route, a technical feat of French and Italian
railway engineers, was started after the annexing of the County of Nice to
France in 1860.
Here
and below you will find more information on the helical railway tunnel of Berghe
(after the chapel: Notre Dame de Fountain) and another part of the loop track
after St Dalmas de Tende.
There will have many points of interest: visit the village of Tende. Visit of
the Museum of Wonders. Visit of the eco-museum. There are also the strong
signals of the Alps, including those of the Col de Tende above of Tende.
The Roya and Bévéra valleys are also famous for their
historic
Italian organs and the organ festival every year with prestigious
performers.
History
The Alpes Maritimes are steeped in history and prehistoric. At the beginning of
the 19th century, the County of Nice and Savoy belonged to the kingdom of
Sardinia; in 1861, during the great nationalist movements that shook all of
Europe and the unification of Italy freeing itself from Austria and the Papal
States, the France under Napoleon III completed the annexing of Savoy and County
of Nice in exchange for supporting the constitution of the unified Kingdom of
Italy under the Kingdom of Sardinia. Tende, Brig and the ridges separating
France and Italy at the Col de Tende remained Italian.
Franco-Italian relations were very tense at the end of the 19th century,
particularly after the defeat of Napoleon III against Prussia in 1870; which is
why France and Italy built many military forts for the defense of the border and
any access to the valleys. Between the two wars of 1914-1918 and 1939-1945, the
line of forts was reinforced by the Maginot forts. In 1940, France halted the
Italian invasion (Mussolini's Italy sided with Axis forces with Nazi Germany).
It was in 1947 by the Treaty of Paris that Tende and La Brigue were re-attached
to France and the border was moved further north to the crest line of the Col de
Tende.
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The main chronological dates are given below:
 | 1388: cession of the county of Nice
to Savoy. |
 | September 1792: France occupies and
annexes Savoy and the county of Nice. |
 | 1815: second Treaty of Paris, the
Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia recovers all of Savoy and annexes the Republic of
Genoa. |
 | 1860: attachment of the county of
Nice and Savoy to France. See map. |
 | 1861: proclamation of the Kingdom of
Italy. |
 | 1870: defeat of Napoleon III against
Prussia which recovers Alsace and part of Lorraine. |
 | 1873-1884: construction of the Forts
Séré de Rivières, a defensive system of the borders which had taken account of
the defeat of France in 1870. |
 | 1927: foundation of the fort of
Rimplas, prototype of the Maginot line. |
 | 1931-1942: construction of the
Italian defensive system “vallo alpino”. |
 | 1932-1940: construction of the
Maginot forts in the Alps. |
 | June 1940: Battle of the Alps. |
 | June 24, 1940: signing of the
armistice between France and Italy. |
 | 1947: the upper valley of Roya
(municipalities of Tende and La Brigue), and the upper valleys of Tinée and
Vésubie are attached to France. |
The Special HELICOIDAL Tunnels of the La Roya train route
At the end of the 19th century, with the development of the train, the question
of crossing over mountain passes arose. Solutions were considered using methods
based on the principle of the rack and pinion.Various systems: Apart from the rack and pinion system, there was also the
FELL center rail system named after its inventor John Barraclough Fell. This
system was used center rail which was gripped by special wheels and required
special train locomotive. It was used in France when passing through the Mont
Cenis Pass before the construction of the Mont Cenis tunnel.It was improved by Engineer Hanscotte for the Puy de Dôme railway between 1907
and 1926. There have also been other ABT (rack and pinion/third rail) systems.Cogwheel trains are said to have started appearing in 1869. They still exist in
many places but also require special locomotives.The principle of helical pathwaysThe problem is, to gain altitude quickly in narrow, steep valleys.The rail track are subject to two constraints, low slope angles and curves with
large radii.To gain altitude, the helix system consists of lengthening the route so as to
meet these two requirements, which the helix curves allow, which are in most
cases in tunnels, but rarely in the open or partially in the open.

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The Roya spiral tunnels
Most were built when Upper Roya valley was still Italian at the beginning of the
20th century and the description is made from downstream to upstream
perspective. The estimated lengths are according to French military
documentation.The terminus of the train from Italy was at Saint Dalmas de Tende in 1915 and
the connection of the tracks with those coming from Nice was made in 1922.
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Berghe spiral tunnel
The entrance is to the northwest on the right bank of the Roya river. It is at
the outlet of the Scarasssoui viaduct at an altitude of 520 meters. After a big
curve to the left and a brief passage in the open air, the exit is at the
Verardo district to the northeast. The estimated length is 1185 meters and gains
90 m.Tunnels of Saint Dalmas de TendeThere are two successive tunnels:
 | The Vallon de Porcaresso tunnel on
the left bank of the Roya with a curve to the left. The entrance is towards the
northeast at an altitude of 646 meters, and the exit towards the west at an
altitude of 664 meters. The length is 1250 meters |
 | The Beonin tunnel on the right bank
of the Roya. The entrance is towards the southwest at an altitude of 677 meters
and the exit at the station towards the northeast at an altitude of 698 meters.
It curves to the right. The length is 1154 meters. |
 | The set of two tunnels and the
intermediate viaduct form a large SThe dotted paths show the passage of the rails and tunnels for the stretch
between Berghe and Saint Dalmas. |
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