Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
where you can descend to the crater floor, to a three-hour climb to the summit of Strom-
boli to see it exploding against the night sky. From Etna you can also trek across into the
Madonie park, or, on Sicily's northwest coast, you can track the shoreline in the Riserva
Naturale dello Zingaro (
Click here
)
.
Hiking Sardinia's granite peaks is more challenging. The Golfo di Orosei e del Gennar-
gentu park offers a network of old shepherd tracks on the Supramonte plateau and incor-
porates the prehistoric site of Tiscali and the Gola Su Gorropu canyon, which requires a
guide and a little rock climbing.
SELVAGGIO BLU - THE ULTIMATE TREK
Arguably the toughest trek in Italy, Sardinia's seven-day
Selvaggio Blu
(Savage Blue) is not for the
faint-hearted. Stretching 45km along the Golfo di Orosei, the trek traverses wooded ravines, gorges
and cliffs and passes many caves. It's not well signposted (a deliberate decision to keep it natural) and
there's no water en route. Furthermore, it involves rock climbs of up to UIAA grade IV+ (challen-
ging), and abseils of up to 45m.
For information
,
Italian speakers can consult
www.selvaggioblu.it
,
a website with descriptions of
each day's walk, advice on what to take and when to go (namely in spring or autumn).
Rock Climbing
The huge rock walls of the Dolomites set testing challenges for rock climbers of all levels,
with everything from simple, single-pitch routes to long, multipitch ascents, many of
which are easily accessible by road. To combine rock climbing with high-level hiking,
clip onto the
vie ferrate
in the Brenta Dolomites.
Climbs of all grades are found in the Trentino town of Arco, home to the world-famous
For hard-core mountaineering, alpinists can pit themselves against Europe's highest
peaks in the Valle d'Aosta. Courmayeur and Cogne, a renowned ice-climbing centre,
make good bases.
To the south, the Gran Sasso massif is a favourite. Of its three peaks, Corno Grande
(2912m) is the highest and Corno Piccolo (2655m) the easiest to get to.
Other hot spots include Monte Pellegrino outside Palermo in Sicily, and Domusnovas,
Ogliastra and the Supramonte in Sardinia.
