Coming over the hill at Sparavalle I could see that where
I had intended to walk that day was covered in a heavy layer of cloud. So I
decided to change my destination. The
crest running from the Passo di Praderena was almost free of cloud so I decided
on the classic walk (for me) along the crest to Passo Focerella, which is
always a beautiful walk in autumn.
The Apennines here between Emilia and Tuscany often form
a barrier, where one walks the dividing line between bad weather on one side
and a nice sunny day on the other. It is a strange experience.
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| Clouds cover La Nuda, Cerreto, RE |
I had chosen the right time of year for this walk as the
Myrtle berry bushes had turned parts of the landscape into a vivid red carpet. It is a moment I try to catch every year as
it is when the Apennines are perhaps at their most beautiful.
From Passo Praderena in the province of Reggio Emilia I
took the 00 footpath that runs along the Tuscan side of the crest for a few
kilometres before flipping over the crest at Monte di Soraggio.
At Monte di Soraggio one has a superb view along the huge
glacial circus that stretches back to Monte Sillano. With the clouds billowing
over the crest and the red landscape I stopped for a while along the precarious
footpath to take in the view.
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| Monte di Soraggio,Ligonchio,RE |
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| Monte di Soraggio,Ligonchio,RE |
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| Monte di Soraggio,Ligonchio,RE |
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| Monte di Soraggio,Ligonchio,RE |
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| Monte Cusna from Le Porraie,Ligonchio,RE |
By the time I got to the Porraie, the most savage part of
the walk, the bad weather coming in from Liguria and Tuscany had
imposed itself on the Emilian side as well.
I had planned to stop for lunch as usual at the little chapel at Passo
Romecchio, but stopping here in the thick damp mist did not seem like a good
idea.
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| Passo Romecchio,Ligonchio,RE |
"From a humble Sheppard
who lived up here in this quiet sweet magical place.
This permanent memorial on this stone.
Written for my future grandsons
and my regret"
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| Le Porraie,Ligonchio,RE |
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| Le Porraie,Ligonchio,RE |
Pushing on to La Forcerella and descending towards the
Bargetana refuge I found myself in the sun again.
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| La Forcerella,Ligonchio,RE |
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| La Forcerella,Ligonchio,RE |
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| La Forcerella,Ligonchio,RE |
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| La Forcerella,Ligonchio,RE |
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| La Forcerella,Ligonchio,RE |
I stopped to eat in a place where the shepherds who
tended the sheep once upon a time up here must have chosen as their
restaurant as all the large stones were carved with their names and dated with years running from the nineteen twenties
up to the early sixties.
It was now time to retrace my steps back to the car. The
weather was improving and by the time I got back onto the crest the fog had
cleared, in the battle between the weather on the two sides of the mountains.
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| Le Porraie,Ligonchio,RE |
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| Le Porraie,Ligonchio,RE |
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| Le Porraie,Ligonchio,RE |
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| Le Porraie,Ligonchio,RE |
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| Le Porraie,Ligonchio,RE |
On my way back I met a Sheppard with a large flock of
sheep and goats, protected by a large gang of dogs. including several huge Maremmano sheepdogs, an ancient race of dog that
stretches back to antiquity, and are famed as fearless in their protection of
the sheep against wolves. As he escorted me through the flock to make sure the
dogs did not get the wrong idea, he complained that wolves had killed seventy
sheep near here just a week ago.
In these troubled times here in Italy, with the return of
the wolf, I also see an increasing
return to the future up here with increasing numbers of flocks of sheep roaming the mountains. Will we have some new
inscriptions on the rocks at Bargetana?
