Trekking among ancient shelters in the Supramonte di Oliena area

Valle Lanaitto_4 (MS)

Trekking among ancient shelters in the Supramonte di Oliena area

Discovering a thousand surprises in a ‘magical’ corner of Barbagia, a landscape dotted with cuiles (stone and wood buildings used by shepherds), caves, ravines and archaeological treasures
on the trails of the shepherds of the past

It is one of the harshest and wildest areas in Sardinia, in the deep heart of the Barbagia area, where the ancient Late Nuragic peoples possibly put up their last, strenuous resistance to the conquest of the Island by Rome. The route along the Z14 stage of the Grand Italian Trail leads from the secrets of Mount Tiscali to the enchanting Lanaitto valley, continuing westwards towards Mount Maccione, overlooking Oliena and close to Mount Corrasi, and finally concluding the stage in the Bandiera Arancione (Orange Flag) village, ‘capital’ of Nepente wine. The trek up to Mount Maccione is for expert hikers, with a total elevation gain of 1950 metres.

Itinerary: 23 km

Walking travel time: 9 hours

Tiscali

From the starting point in the locality of Surtana, the path proceeds by tackling the ‘steps’ of the same name and going past the intersections with other trails. Not far away, the cuiles de sos Mojos appear and, a little further north, those of de sas Traes. After just over three kilometres, you will come to the Curtigia di Tiscali, the sinkhole that guards the mysterious Nuragic village, on the border of the Supramonte di Dorgali area.
shutterstock_192509882_tiscali_elisa_locci_resize
Nuragic village of Tiscali
In the province of Nuoro, in the deepest heart of Sardinia, there is an unusual place, hidden and mysterious, inside Mount Tiscali, where time...

Lanaitto Valley

The route then proceeds downhill until you enter the Lanaitto valley. The journey encounters unmissable attractions: the Corbeddu cave, the refuge of a famous bandit and a place in which ancient human remains were discovered; the caves of sa Oche ‘e su Bentu, kilometre-long cavities that seem to ‘talk’ to each other, and the Nuragic ‘manufacturing’ village of sa Sedda ‘e sos Carros.
Valle di Lanaitto - Oliena
Valley of Lanaitto
Journey into the ‘heart’ of the Supramonte of Oliena and Dorgali, in the centre of Sardinia, amidst masterpieces of nature, legacies of the past,...

Mount Corrasi

Another three kilometres to the north will take you to the area of Gasole and then you’ll be heading south-east towards Sovana. The trek encounters other cuiles: Su Vicu, s'Uscradu and Orthini, and then it climbs towards Punta Cusidore, where a few mouflons may appear. You’ll then ‘go around’ Punta sos Nidos to the north and continue along path 401 towards Corrasi. The choice is between climbing the mountain to admire the spectacular view or turning off towards the Monte Maccione rest area.
Monte Corrasi - Oliena
Monte Corrasi
An impressive limestone-dolomitic massif stands in the territory of Oliena, in the central-eastern part of Sardinia: climbing it is an...

Oliena

To reach the first few houses in Oliena, there is an easy descent along provincial road SP22, with two and a half kilometres of hairpin bends in the middle of the woods. Once the trek is over, it’s time to taste the excellent products of the village that, according to Salvatore Satta, is “a wonderful town, at the foot of the most beautiful mountain that God created”.
Veduta di Oliena
Oliena
In the centre of Sardinia,in the Nuoro area, between the mountains and surrounded by woods, there is a little village in which the essence and...

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Mappa dell'itinerario

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