Hidden Italy Walking Tours

After conquering Vulcano, well… walking up to the top of the volcano, we found a nice little bay for a swim and then enjoyed lunch prepared by our captain Salvatore.

On top of Old Smokey. Vulcano is one of the seven islands of the Aeolian archipelago. It’s a dormant volcano, ie it is still active but closely monitored. Its a slow trudge up the sandy path but well worth it for the views on top (on a clear day you can see all the islands plus Etna and Calabrian coast). The smoke on the top is from the ‘fumaroles’, vents that go down into the burning bowels of the volcano. It’s pretty cool!

Leaving Panarea with Stromboli in the distance. Our boat is a converted fishing vessel. Our captain the redoubtable Salvatore. Heading back to Lipari.

Lipari here we come. After four days in mountains of central Sicily, it’s always fun to head to the Aeolian Islands, an archipelago of seven volcanic islands off the the north-eastern coast. After all these years, it’s still thrill to sit below in the hydrofoil and watch the skis come out of the water. Scooting across the blue Mediterranean to another adventure.

Buffalo milk buratta in the mountains of Sicily. It actually tasted even better than it looks!

The Norman kingdom in Sicily (1071 to 1250, more or less) was of the most remarkable periods in the Middle Ages in Europe. Its dazzling court of learning and racial tolerance was a beacon of winder is an often very dark period. King Roger II’s private chapel (1130) in the royal palace in Palermo is a symbol of this, a combination of Norman political acumen with Arabic, Byzantine and Latin craftsmanship.

This is the Quattro Canti, an intersection between the two major streets in old Palermo: Via Maqueda and il Cassero (which connected the Royal Palace with the harbour. It was built between 1606 and 1620 - High Baroque. It is a magical place. I got up early this morning and couldn’t believe the intersection was completely deserted: no cars, no people.

Genius. The vendor announces his presence and down come baskets. First the cash and then the goods. Certainly beats schlepping up and down those stairs. That’s Palermo baby.

I love the overnight train trip from Rome to Palermo. You sleep like a baby being rocked to sleep by the clattering of the train and they serve you breakfast in bed but the real highlight is the early morning crossing of the Strait of Messina between Calabria and Sicily. You can stay on the train if you like but who would miss this, even if it was a bit cold, wet and windy.

Each of the seven islands of the Aeolian Archipelago off Sicily has its own identity, its own vibe. On the May Sjcily tour, we spend a day on a boat exploring Panarea. It’s a small island on the way to the more famous Stromboli (still an active volcano). Panarea is quite chic - beautiful, discrete houses and, best of all, no cars (just a few small electric ‘taxis’. We walked to Cala Junco for a swim but then caught taxis back to the port for lunch.

The Puglia self-guided walk is one of my favourites. It’s got it all: long leisurely walks following ancient pilgrim trails through farmlands and forests until finally finishing at the beautiful coastal town of Vieste. Best of all there is no-one else around. This is the first day’s walk which finishes at San Giovanni Rotondo, the home of the great sanctuary dedicated to Padre Pio, Italy’s most popular modern saint.

Vieste is on the Gargano Peninsula at the northern end of Puglia. It is a gorgeous town along way from the tourist trails further south. It’s where our Puglia self-guided walk finishes. After six days beautiful walking through the farmland and forests of the Gargano Peninsula, the lucky walkers spend two nights in a lovely hotel in Vieste. No walking on the last day - instead they have a private boat tour along the coast, exploring the grottoes, bays and beaches.

I’m not sure what this was but it tasted very good.

The coastline between Riva Trigoso and Moneglia. If I had two weeks spare, I would redo this self-guided along the eastern Italian Riviera, that starts in Genoa and finishes in Portovenere. It passes through some of the most famous places on coast (such as Camogli, Portofino and the Cinque Terre) but also some beautiful ‘wild’ stretches where you won’t see another hiker.

After a snow fight on the Italian side of Mont Blanc we caught some tiny little cable cars across glacier fields to Aiguille de Midi above Chamonix on the French side. It rakes about forty minutes each way, traveling in little four-person pods. They travel in groups of three, stopping every now and then, suspended above the ice, the peak of Mont Blanc in the background

Snow fight on Mont Blanc. When we woke up for the last day of our tour to the Valle d’Aosta, the rain had stopped but Mont Blanc was covered in cloud but we went up there anyway. We got the first cable car if the morning and there was pretty much just us and some workers. It seemed people had been put off by the weather. Fresh snow gad fallen that night and we pretty much had Punta Helbroner to ourselves. What better way to celebrate than a snow fight?

After nearly ten days in the Valle d’Aosta, aka the valley of the giants, the climax has to be going up to the base of Mont Blanc, the giantest of them all (4600 mts). To get there we took the new Skyway funicular from Courmayeur. It cost 52 euro round trip 😬but it was well worth it. It takes you up Punta Helbroner (3640 mts) - you can imagine the biews

The Tour de Mont Blanc is one of the classic multi-day walks in the European Alps. It is a 165 kilometre loop walk around the highest mountain in the range. It had an accumulated ascent of over 10,00 metres. The short walk that Grace and I did included one of the legs. As I said in an earlier post, it is one of the most beautiful hikes that I have ever done snd we were so lucky with the weather.

Start of walk #2 in Cogne (Valle d’Aosta), looking down over Cogne with Gran Paradiso sparkling in the distance.

Herds of the local Herens cattle in Valle d’Aosta are dominated by a single female. The La Bataille de Reines celebrates these cows. Every two years, there is a series of play-offs throughout the region. The cows face off, pushing each other until one has had enough and acquiesces. The cows have blunted horns so no damage is done. It’s heart felt by the locals but it can be a little dull - one match can rake up to forty minutes. The local champs meet for the grand final in a purpose built stadium in Aosta, the regional capital in October. The champ is crowned La Reine des Reines, the Queen of Queens.