Just north of Ravenna, along the southern border of the Lagoons of Comacchio, in the Po Delta Park, is one of Italy's most fascinating cycle and pedestrian paths.
Enriched in 2022 with refined access gates and renewed signs, it leads to the charming Argine degli Angeli (lit. angels' embankment), ancient sandbar in the heart of the lagoons, a place which is also often favoured by many species of white-winged birds.
The perfect starting point of this itinerary is the town of Sant'Alberto, the northernmost area in the territory of the Municipality of Ravenna.
It is a small village in a very interesting natural area, also hosting the NatuRa Museum, dedicated to Natural Sciences and displaying a precious ornithological collection.
As one of the visitor centres of the Po Delta Park, it is the starting point of many excursions on foot, by boat and electric minibus to discover the southern Lagoons of Comacchio.
They feature the stunning Oasis of Boscoforte, inhabited by Camargue horses in the wild and flown over by flocks of flamingos.
A natural border between the territories of Ravenna and Ferrara, in this area the Reno river appears in its wildest and most uncontaminated form. To access the northern bank and go on along this itinerary, you have to cross it just outside the town of Sant'Alberto.
Here is a picturesque cable ferryboat, which – after a journey of just a few metres – will lead you to a completely different and incredible scenario.
Once on the bank of the Reno river, take the unpaved road East, and continue suspended between the river and the Lagoons of Comacchio.
On your left, you can immediately notice the Oasis of Boscoforte, a thousand-year-old uncontaminated sandbar stretching in brackish water for over six kilometres. It is a private area that can be visited with guided excursions and hosts a great vaiety of fauna and flora, among which tamarisks, marsh reeds and salicornia, the great pink flamingos, herons, shelducks, black-winged stilts and avocets.
But the most incredible encounter is the one with Camargue Delta horses, roaming in the wilderness along the peninsula.
The itinerary heads slightly North and follows the bight of the lagoon up to Volta Scirocco, the point where the Reno river splits in two and creates a wetland controlled by the homonymous mobile diversion dam.
Here, as in many other points of the lagoons, it is possible to see the peculiar fishing huts, typical gathering places for many inhabitants of these areas.
Standing right on the surface of the water and featuring the so-called "padelloni" – huts with nets to catch fish – they were born as poor buildings, but have evolved during the years and some of them are now even luxury ones.
Depending on the season, you can catch flathead grey mullets, big-scale sand smelt, eels, anchovies, prawns, soles and whitebaits.
Along the cycle paths you can also find huts for birdwatching, typical activity in the area due to the large number of bird species.
Let's finally get to the desirable Argine degli Angeli, towards Bellocchio: more than five kilometres of a path that seems suspended in the sky, surrounded by the motionless waters of the lagoons and flocks of wonderful birds.
The name of the path seems to have originated right from the presence of large-scale white-winged species, just like angels.
Great egrets, Eurasian spoonbills or even pelicans would massively nest on this bank, making it different from any other one in the in the area, generally occupied by smaller specimens.
The name of the path, chosen unanimously by the executive committee of the Po Delta Park brings this interesting suggestion back to life and makes the final part of this unforgettable journey even more magical, like a light flight over the lagoon.
You can go back to Sant'Alberto by completing the ring along the eastern part of the Lagoons of Comacchio, along Via Romea Nord, until the right turn towards via Bellocchio. This itinerary includes paved roads that could be very busy, so we suggest this only if you have the right equipment. Otherwise, we suggest you take the same path back, and enjoy the view on the lagoons and the countryside from another perspective, looking south.
