Discover the Sassi di Roccamalatina Regional Park!
Experience nature in a park rich in flora and fauna where sandstone spires - the Sassi - rise above the landscape. Here, where the Sassi dominate the landscape, we suggest one of the Park’s most scenic itineraries.
The day begins in the Fontanazzo parking lot of the Sassi di Roccamalatina Regional Park Center. From there, you can follow Itinerary No. 3, a loop trail through the Sassi, from either of two directions.
Take the route that leads to the Borgo dei Sassi, moving among forest lands and cultivated fields, and marvel at the changing faces of the Sassi, the sentinels of the Park.
Roughly a half hour’s walk from Pieve di Trebbio takes you to the Borgo, also known as Rocca di Sopra. Here you can note well-preserved buildings with grand entranceways that date to the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries as well as the Oratorio of the Madonna dei Sassi with its fifteenth-century bas-reliefs.
In the medieval village, next to the Visitors’ Center, is a stairway that leads to the top of the Sasso della Croce.
This route, which the Park identifies as No. 4, requires a ticket, which you can buy at the Info Point before you begin your climb.
The Sasso della Croce terrace offers splendid 360-degree views and is a good place to keep an eye out for the many species of birds that live here—peregrine falcons, ravens, crag martins, and woodpeckers.
If you’d rather not venture out on the highest sandstone peak, you can stop at the nearby restaurant for a panoramic view.
Continuing to follow Itinerary No. 3 and keeping the Sassi in front of you, you’ll come to Mulino della Riva and the Sorgente della Riva. Take a refreshing pause here to listen to the sounds of water that has flowed for centuries.
Notice, too, the reconstruction of an antique coal refinery. Though it is not currently in use, its former function is clear from the structure that has been built here. The coalman’s art may have been lost, but it was once a highly practical skill in this part of the country.
A nearby picnic area is equipped with tables, benches, and barbecue pits where you can stop for a bite before continuing your exploration of the Park.
When you resume your journey, what is perhaps the most demanding part of the route lies ahead. Though the trail heads uphill, we can assure you that the marvelous views of the Sassi will feel like a fair reward for your effort. On your right, in fact, you’ll be captivated by a magnificent expanse of greenery from which imposing rock formations seem to loom toward you.
Soon you’ll have arrived at the village of Sant’Apollonia, a good place to stop for photographs or, if you happen to be there at lunchtime, for a bite to eat at the nearby trattoria.
Before heading back to the starting point, make a stop at Mulino delle Vallecchie and stretch out in the shadow of the grand trees that grow alongside the stream that, once upon a time, kept the old waterwheel turning. Today, it is a bed-and-breakfast.
