Corsica & Sardinia

Day 1: Ajaccio, Corsica / Filitosa / Sartène

Our designated flight is met on arrival in Ajaccio. This afternoon, we stretch our legs with a walk among the entrancing prehistoric standing stones at Filitosa. Created by a Neolithic people some 8,000 years ago, the statue-menhirs at Filitosa are set in a beautiful meadow scented with wild mint and dotted with ancient, gnarled oak trees. It was only in 1940 that a local farmer discovered these giant statues, tumbled over and engulfed in vegetation. They are distinct among all other megalithic European menhirs because of their carved, stylized human features. Filitosa V, the largest statue-menhir on Corsica, is a dramatic sight, with its striking human face and sword and dagger carved in relief. We gather this evening for a welcome dinner. Overnight in the delightful hilltop village of Sartène, with its perfectly preserved medieval center...D.

Day 2: Cauria / Sartène

A half-day warm-up hike takes us through mystical oak woods on the high, maquis-covered plains of Cauria just southwest of Sartène. Our hike weaves through the landscape by way of Cauria’s megaliths, 22 stone menhirs in the form of “standing men,” a striking reminder of Corsica’s prehistory. After visiting Cauria, we continue down to the beach where we enjoy a picnic lunch and a chance for a refreshing swim in the turquoise Mediterranean. In the afternoon, we continue our hike along the coast, following a trail that leads up into the hills. Overnight in Sartène…BLD Approximate hiking time: 4 hours.

Day 3: Col de Bavella / Bonifacio

Some of Corsica's most beautiful scenery awaits us on our hike around the Col de Bavella (4,000'). We hike through a beautiful forest of Corsican pine (laricio var corsicana) by way of an impressive natural arch and continue to the top of the mountain for a picnic lunch. From this mountain-top setting, views of the gleaming Mediterranean and gulf of Porto Vecchio lie before us, and the steep pinnacles of the Bavella mountains are behind us. After lunch, we descend on a loop trail to the Col de Bavella and drive for about two hours on a beautiful mountain road to the cliff-perched town of Bonifacio, an ancient port supremely isolated at the tip of southernmost Corsica. It is said that Ulysses and his men once took shelter in Bonifacio’s harbor, where they encountered a race of giants. The original part of town is a maze of tiny streets with a Renaissance flavor, and dramatically set below it is a perfect natural harbor, a magnet for fishermen and traders for many centuries and now a haven for pleasure yachts. Residents of Bonifacio speak the Ligurian dialect of Italian, a legacy of the town’s original Genovese inhabitants. Overnight in Bonifacio…BLD Approximate hiking time: 5 hours.

Day 4: Bonifacio / Capo Pertusato

We set off from the hotel this morning for a walking tour of the Old Quarter of Bonifacio, followed by a hike along white limestone cliffs with beautiful vistas across a turquoise sea. In the afternoon, we visit a shepherd’s farm where we have lunch and taste a variety of delicious goat cheeses, including the famous Brocciu, a fresh, mild cheese frequently used in traditional Corsican cuisine. Alternately, we can have the remainder of the afternoon free to relax by the marina, take a boat ride to explore some of the sea caves nearby, or shop for the local coral jewelry. Overnight in Bonifacio…BL Approximate hiking time: 2 hours.

Day 5: Capo Testa, Sardinia / Alghero

We catch a morning ferry for a short ride across the Straits of Bonifacio to Sardinia, disembarking at the little resort town of Santa Teresa di Gallura at the island’s northern tip. Just west of Santa Teresa is Capo Testa, a dramatic granite promontory connected to the main island by a sand bar. We cross over to Capo Testa and enjoy a wonderful hike through sweet-scented maquis scrub and among ancient quarries that once supplied the Romans with granite for their monumental temples. Lying in a fantastic jumble along the sea, Capo Testa’s enormous blocks of granite have been carved into beautiful (and sometimes bizarre) shapes by the wind and sea, and we scramble among them as we circle from one dramatic bay to the next. After lunch, we drive to Alghero, a beautiful walled city by the sea with a Spanish Catalan origin. Catalan is still spoken and Catalan seafood cuisine is offered in the local restaurants. Along the way, we visit our first nuraghi, a stone structure built by a little-known people who inhabited Sardinia between 800 and 500 BC. The Nuraghe Maiori is a megalithic granite tower of uncertain purpose dating from the Bronze Age. There are more than 7,000 of these monuments scattered across the Sardinian countryside, some of them still standing. They are witnesses to the remote and mysterious past that is the legacy of Sardinia. We also visit the remote Romanesque church of Santa Trinita de Sacargia, with its zebra-striped facade, interior frescoes, and bell tower, before arriving at our hotel in Alghero. Overnight at a hotel in the center of Alghero…BLD Approximate hiking time: 4 hours

Day 6: Capo Caccia / Alghero

On the other side of the gorgeous bay called Porto Conte is a coastal nature reserve that is the setting for our day’s hike. We follow trails contouring the magnificent limestone headlands of Capo Caccia (“Hunter’s Cape”), and enjoy dramatic Mediterranean views from atop high cliffs above the sea. The vegetation of the cape is pine, Mediterranean macchia, and garigue, with low bushes and tiny herbaceous plants emerging from rocky terrain. Seabirds, ravens, peregrines, and griffins soar above this spectacular coastal reserve. Conditions permitting, we may visit the extraordinary cave complex of Grotta di Nettuno to walk the single-file path deep into a long, curving cavern of fantastically shaped stalagmites and stalactites. Dinner on your own tonight, with an overnight in Alghero...BL Approximate hiking time: 3.5 hours.

Day 7: Monte Ferru / Santa Cristina / Oristano

In Sardinia’s wild interior, we hike up the flanks of the dormant volcano Monte Ferru, with its forests of cork oak. Views stretch to the coast and out over the vineyards of Sardinia’s prime Vernaccia wineproducing region. Our picnic lunch is in a beautiful oak forest above the small town of Seneghe, well known for its olive oil. When we reach Oristano, the main town in western Sardinia, we visit the nuraghic village of Santa Cristina in rural Paulilàtino, notable for its eerie underground well-temple dating to 1000 BC and dedicated to a cult of the mother-goddess. We can descend into the well through its triangular opening. Inside is an underground spring where once a year the moon is reflected in the water through a hole bored in the temple’s roof. The sacred nature of the site is enhanced by its green, wooded surroundings and a church built nearby for devotees of Santa Cristina. Overnight in Oristano...BLD Approximate hiking time: 4 hours.

Day 8: Stagno di Cabras / San Salvatore / Tharros

This morning we travel to Stagno di Cabras, a coastal lagoon on the Sinis Peninsula that is also a reserve for nesting birds including peregrine falcons, purple gallinules, marsh harriers, and large flocks of flamingos. The fish in these lagoons have provided a good source of income for the local people for centuries. The traditional fishing boats of Cabras are fassonis, canoe-like crafts handmade of reeds and similar to those used in Phoenician times. We set off for a leisurely walk to the village of San Salvatore and near this village, we enjoy a lunch of fresh-caught fish cooked for us by the local fisherman (perhaps the local dish called sa merca, salted mullet cooked in herbs, one of the oldest-known dishes in Sardinia). The village contains the fascinating sanctuary of San Salvatore, one of Sardinia’s chiese novenari, churches open just nine days a year during special novena ceremonies for Catholic pilgrims. Around the church are tiny whitewashed houses used by pilgrims during the novena, which occurs in late summer. The highlight of the annual novena is a barefoot race called the Corsa degli Scalzi, a reenactment of an ancient legend associated with saving the sanctuary’s Christian statues from invading Saracens. After lunch, we explore the ruins at coastal Tharros, one of Sardinia’s most important archaeological sites, set on a spit of land called Capo San Marco. Phoenicians settled here as early as 800 BC. Tharros flourished under the Carthaginians, and later it was an important site to the Romans. We may also visit the prestigious Contini winery, where we sample the Vernaccia di Oristano and tour the cellar with the owner. Overnight in Oristano…BL Approximate hiking time: 2 hours

Day 9: Sant’ Antine de Sédilo / Monte Tiscali / Su Gologone

Our first stop this morning is rural Sant'Antine de Sédilo, a shrine with an extremely evocative sanctuary where Christianity and paganism are mixed in every detail. Sant'Antine is the Sardinian dialect name for San Constantino, the saintly persona of the Roman Emperor Constantine (not an official saint of the Catholic Church). The interior of the shrine is fascinating, with its ex-voto graffiti completely covering the walls. Each year, the nearby town of Sédilo hosts a wildly colorful horse race dating from medieval times, with the sanctuary as its finish line. We continue on to our trailhead for a one-hour hike on a fairly steep and rocky trail up Monte Tiscali (1,700’). Near its top, we explore mysterious Tiscali, a nuraghic village with round stone dwellings visible amid crumbling ruins. The village is set within an enormous chasm and was discovered a century ago by woodsmen. We descend the mountain on another narrow, rocky trail and then head to the most beautiful hotel on our journey, the family-run Su Gologone, with its impressive rural setting by a spring below the Sopramonte massif. The architecture is distinctively Sardinian, furnished with rugs and other beautiful crafts made by local artisans. The hotel’s restaurant is famed for its Sardinian specialties. Overnight at the Su Gologone, near the village of Oliena...BLD Approximate hiking time: 3 hours

Day 10: Codula di Luna / Su Gologone

Our last hike, with a picnic lunch, follows a trail past ancient shepherds’ huts of stone and juniper wood and continues through woodlands to the coast, where we descend the Codula di Luna, a limestone canyon filled with pink oleanders. The canyon path leads us to the Cala di Luna, a tiny half-moon beach of white sand accessible only on foot or by boat. We can enjoy a swim in this idyllic setting before departing via boat to Cala Gonone, a picturesque port full of yachts. We gather for a farewell dinner this evening. Overnight at the Su Gologone…BLD Approximate hiking time: 4 hours.

Day 11: Olbia-Costa Smeralda / Depart

Depart from Olbia-Costa Smeralda on homeward-bound flights, with connections throughout Europe...B.