Trail name and description
- Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni National Park
- Municipalities of Cannalonga (Province of Salerno) and Rofrano (Province of Salerno)
- CANNALONGA 40.244347, 15.293174 / ROFRANO 40.211714, 15.426949
Level & Scale of difficulty used for hiking
E (For more info have a look here)
Duration
10 hours or 2 days with use of tent
Distance
about 22 km
Refreshing points
None – to the following points it’s possible to get fresh water from some springs: Crepavoi spring; Cognulo dell’Orco; Abbenante;
Shelters
None
Best period for hiking
from Spring to Autumn
how to reach the starting point
in both towns the starting point are reachable by private car or by public transportation.
Equipment and outfit required
Comfortable shoes and clothes for hiking/trekking, a rucksack, a binocular, a camera and at least 1,5 liters of water also if there is possibility to get water at least on three points along the path, a tent and sleeping bag if you decide to walk along the path on two days.
During the period from the 1930s to the 1960s, people living in the mountains along the Apennines or in rural areas far from populated centers, were precluded from attending school and thus accessing education due to the absence of schools. To put a solution to this deficit, so-called subsidized schools were established, financed by the state or benefactors. In this way, teachers could be recruited who brought education directly to the places where peasant families resided. Often this meant that the teachers lived for long periods in the mountains with those families and came down to the valley only 3-4 times in the period between October and June. This event inspired the marking of this thematic path. The teacher Angelo PAOLINO, who brought teaching to the children and adults who lived in the place called Cognulo dell’Orco, walked it for several years and today we wanted to propose it as a thematic path with the aim of not forgetting a piece of history shared by so many communities who lived far from towns in so much places of Italy in those years.
The area in which the path allow to walk/hike is characterized by strong naturalistic value. The trail crosses woods of Neapolitan Alder, Black Alder and other trees of the Mediterranean Wood. The water running in the Mingardo River is the perfect environment for the Brown Trout and the Otter, thanks to the high quality of the nature.
The area in which the path allow to walk/hike is characterized by strong naturalistic value. The trail crosses woods of Neapolitan Alder, Black Alder and other trees of the Mediterranean Wood. The water running in the Mingardo River is the perfect environment for the Brown Trout and the Otter, thanks to the high quality of the nature.
Both towns are a perfect paradigm of the typical Cilento town of medieval origin. This characteristic is most pronounced in Rofrano where its origins are rooted in the 900s. The town was built around a Basilian coenoby, and the historic center still retains its urban structure dating from that period. Worth visiting are the three surviving churches: the parish church, the church dedicated to St. Mary of the Martyrs and the church dedicated to Our Lady of Grottaferrata. These buildings house mostly religious statues of fine workmanship.
Cannalonga probably owes the urban layout of the historic center to the presence of a Spanish nobleman who arrived in the area during the Angevin-Aragonese period. Of definite interest is the Mogroveio palace located at the edge of the main square and other noble palaces adorned with stone portals.
Typical inland Cilento gastronomy bases its quality on the use of seasonal meat and vegetables.
Since the 1950s, Cilento gastronomy has risen to fame under the name Mediterranean Diet, which has been inscribed since 2010 on the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. thanks to the studies promoted by Ancel Keys, an American scientist who related the quality of the diet and the longevity of the Cilento population. Among the many recipes to be enjoyed are definitely homemade pasta dressed with meat sauce, caciocavallo cheese, fresh or aged goat and sheep cheeses, salami, as well as seasonal vegetable soups
Special events:
CANNALONGA
- March 23: Celebration for Turibius of Mongrovejo
- July: Sagra del Fusillo
- July 16: Celebration for Madonna del Carmine.
- 2nd Saturday of September: Fiera della Frecagnola
ROFRANO
- June 23: Fiera di St. John
- September 8: Celebration for Madonna di Grottaferrata
Useful links: www.gettrek.it www.cilentoediano.it