Gole di Celano, October 20, 2017, Parco Regionale Sirente-Velino

Navigating the giant boulders in the Celano Gorges

Our visit to the Celano Gorges was years in the making. The hike was on our must-do list during a trip back in 2012. But on that occasion, when we arrived at the trail head, we found the place plastered with caution signs showing crude stick figures with X-ed out eyes and the word CHIUSO - CLOSED. The signs were kind of like those popular Italian t-shirts from a few years back with drunken-looking figures and the English words "This is my face after party." But instead of beer bottles in hand, the stick figures had huge rocks landing on their heads. So we quickly deciphered that the gorge was closed due to rock falls.

Lonely trees in the gorge

Despite being back to Abruzzo other times, it took five years before we made it back to Celano. We were glad we finally did. Since it was a weekday in October, we fortunately found the super-sized parking lot totally empty and didn't encounter a single hiker throughout the day. From the parking area, the trail heads north through a pleasant meadow and into the gole - which in the winter and spring is totally impassable due to snow and ice and then raging runoff from the snow melt. In parts, there is no trail to speak of, just boulder scrambles beneath massive canyon walls.

Collecting water from the Fonte delgli Innamorati

The path through the gole continues for many miles, eventually connecting with another trans-Sirente trail heading to the northern reaches of the preserve, so we set our day's objective as La Fonte degli Innamorati and reached the pleasant little glade in two hours. The fonte is actually a waterfall that trickles down the canyon walls. We cooled off by letting the water fall on our heads and filled up our water supply before setting up a lunch spot within earshot of the cascade.

Narrow passage

We took our time on the return and arrived to a still-empty parking lot, a frequent occurrence when hiking in Abruzzo in October.

Diminutive Fiat

Una gita alle Gole di Celano. Five years in the making, but definitely worth the wait.

Destination: Fonte degli Innamorati
Elevation: 3,375 feet (752 feet)
Distance: 5 miles round trip
Route: Up and back
Conditions: Sunny, 80 degrees F

Colle Brignole, October 19, 2017, Bosco di Sant'Antonio, Parco Nazionale della Maiella, Abruzzo, Italy

Looking south to Monte Amaro, Monte Mileto and Monte Mattone, from summit of Colle Brignole

In Italy, I am usually the one to research and plot our hiking adventures. After the evening passeggiata and/or while killing time waiting for the (hopelessly late) hour when restaurants open for dinner, I spend my time pouring over my stash of outdated-yet-still-useful topographic maps from Edizioni Il Lupo. Using these mountaineering maps instead of free tourist maps or guidebooks means that we can find trails that are seldom used, especially on weekdays in autumn.

Autumn colors in the Bosco Sant'Antonio

The hike to Colle Brignole, however, was all K. She got the word from our landlords about a nice little nature preserve called Bosco di Sant'Antonio about 20 km south of Sulmona. I have to admit that I was a little hesitant of following through on an Italian's recommendation, thinking that it would be too tourist-centered. But I reluctantly got on board with the idea. I am glad that I did.

Meadow ascent to Colle Brignole

Situated the next valley over from the one that holds the SS17 highway, the Bosco was located in area that we had never visited despite our many years of traveling to the Abruzzo. The drive to this new valley was quite pleasant. When we arrived at our destination, we saw the telltale signs of it being a very popular spot - plenty of parking, picnic tables, informational signs, and even a cafe, albeit shuttered for the season. We opted for a loop trail around the perimeter of the Bosco which wound its way past a stone hermitage and gnarly old trees. To K, it all resembled a magical home for "elves and sprites and fairies and shit."

Sumit marker, Colle Brigole

The trails through the forest are quite short, so we followed the fairly well-marked signs to the 01 trail leading north to a summit point called "Colle Brignole." To get to the colle, we proceeded out of the forest up through a meadow, then back into the woods along a series of fairly steep switchbacks. All in all, though, it was a pretty easy climb up to a long, wooded ridgeline that eventually opens up to wide open views in all directions. We most liked the view to the north. So we plopped down for lunch admiring the nice view of Passo San Leonardo and the profile of our favorite mountain, Monte Mileto. We lamented the fact that we wouldn't have time to climb Mileto this year, but took comfort in the fact that we had found a new enjoyable hike that we would surely like to do again.

Peak: Colle Brignole
Elevation: 1,625 meters (5,331 feet) Gain: 550 meters (1,804 feet)

Distance: 7 km (4.3 miles) roundtrip

Route: 01 trail from Bosco Sant'Antonio, up and back

Conditions: Sunny, 70 degrees F

Corno Grande, October 15, 2017, Parco Nazionale del Gran Sasso

Corno Grande, Via Normale

It looks tranquil and lonely from the photo above, but a hike up the Corno Grande on a beautiful Sunday in October is not an ascendant outing that I will ever do again. The craggy summit was absolutely mobbed with people, so much so that I had to sit and wait, sometimes for tens of minutes at a time, just to move a few meters. In all the times that I've hiked in Italy, I can count the number of other hikers that I've encountered on the fingers of one hand. On the Corno, I lost track once I hit several hundred.

View to the northest from the Corno Grande shoulder

In 2012, K and I made the drive up to the Campo Imperatore hotel/observatory complex from Sulmona with the intent of hiking the Corno Grande - the highest peak in central Italy. That sunny day was deceptive as gale force winds forced us to turn around in mid-hike. This time, I monitored both temperature, precipitation and wind speed, and knew that the day would be perfect. So too, apparently, did every Italian peakbagger. There are two main approaches to the Corno Grande. Via Normale loops around the summit and affords a more moderate, though still steep, approach from the north. Alternatively, Via Direttissima, the "most direct way," takes you right up the face. I chose the former, thinking it might be less crowded. Wrong.

Panorama from Corno Grande

Despite the views, it wasn't a very enjoyable hike and I sought to get up and back as quickly as possible. I even had to skip out on making it to the true summit because of a backlog of hikers crowding the cone. I didn't have the patience to wait since K was back at the trail head. As it turns out, making quick time was the best thing to do. Our whole plan was predicated on the fact that she could spend the three hours hanging out in the Campo Imperatore hotel/cafe to relax, knit, have biscotti and espressi, and use the bathroom when needed. But the hotel and cafe were both closed on an absolutely gorgeous autumn Sunday with literally thousands of potential customers milling about...

Italy.

Peak: Corno Grande
Elevation: 2,912 meters (9,554 feet); Gain 5,500 feet
Distance: 7.7 miles (round trip); up and back/partial loop
Conditions: Sunny, 55 degrees F