Day 1 – Arrival
Arrival in Calabria. Accommodation in Hotel in Gambarie. Welcome cocktail and handing out of information material. Dinner and overnight stay.
Day 2 – On the trail of the Park’s fauna
Breakfast at the Hotel. Departure for birdwatching activity on Aspromonte Plains, one of the most interesting places in the province of Reggio Calabria. This is the area where birds can both eat and rest before the springboard to cross the Strait of Messina. Birdwatching session with expert guides. Possibility of watching various bird species at the observation platform, where ornithologists monitor migrating sailor birds every year.
Packed lunch or picnic with typical products.
Move on to the stream at the foothill of Cippo di Garibaldi (Garibaldi memorial stone) to present the fauna found in wetlands and waterways. Afterwards, we continue along the village of Quarti, above Rumia lake, where we will look for traces of wolves, roe deer, wild boars, badgers and foxes, until we reach Gambarie on foot, walking along Brigante trail for a few kilometres. Return to the hotel. Dinner and overnight stay.
Day 3- Maesano and Montalto waterfalls
Breakfast at the Hotel. Departure for excursion to Maesano and Montalto’s waterfalls. Maesano waterfalls are an unmissable stop and whose path, climbs and descents make it even more fascinating. First, you cross the beech and silver fir wood along Menta stream, then you face the south-eastern slope of Aspromonte, where woods of laricio pine and broom dominate the landscape. At the viewpoint, you will find yourself facing three great jumps of the waterfalls known as “U Schicciu da Spana” in local jargon. The return journey follows the same route as the outward journey. Continue to the locality “i putichej”, at the bottom of Montalto, the highest peak in Aspromonte, 1956m above sea level. The walk to the top is short (about 1km) and will be done along a very short section of Sentiero Italia, the longest trail in the world!
At the end, return to the hotel. Dinner and overnight stay.
Day 4 – The ghost town of Pentedattilo
Breakfast at the Hotel. Departure for Pentedattilo, a semi-abandoned village, whose name comes from the shape of Mount Calvario’s cliff: a giant hand with five fingers (pente-dactilo). Mysterious and fascinating theatre of stories and legends, extraordinary international geological site.
The trip continues to Bova, one of The Most Beautiful Villages in Italy (I Borghi più belli d’Italia). Visit to “Gerhards Rohlfs” museum and the town centre (Chòra tu vùa), considered the capital of Grecìa Calabria culture, for centuries linked to the presence of a Hellenic-speaking minority, direct descendants of the ancient Magna-Graecia and Byzantine populations. Here all the streets, inscriptions and various signs are written in Griko dialect, bearing witness to this rich linguistic and cultural heritage that has managed to survive to this day. Accommodation in “ospitalità diffusa” (scattered hotels). Dinner and overnight stay.
Day 5 – In the land of the Greeks of Calabria: Night excursion at Gallicianò and Roccaforte del Greco
Breakfast. Departure for the excursion that from Bova will lead us to Amendolea, in one of the privileged places to admire the homonymous river, the most famous of Aspromonte. Lunch based on local specialities. Visit to a bergamot plantation in Reggio Calabria, a precious citrus fruit called the “green gold of Calabria”.
In the afternoon, we leave for Gallicianò, one of the most important villages of the Calabrian Hellenophone community, the only village where all the inhabitants still speak the Greek language of Calabria (Griko dialect), albeit in an exclusively domestic environment. The visit of Gallicianò will start from Piazza Alimos, where the suggestive church of San Giovanni Battista stands. We will proceed with a visit to the small village, passing through narrow streets and ancient dwellings until we reach the Ethnographic Museum, a small treasure chest containing numerous objects from the tradition and culture of Grecanica area (or Grecìa Calabria). Afterwards, passing by the Fountain of Love and the small open-air theatre, we reach the beautiful Orthodox Church Panaghìa tis Elladas (Our Lady of the Greeks).
Dinner based on typical recipes. At the end, departure for Monte Scafi and short night excursion where, in Roccaforte del Greco, the stargazing activity will begin.
Return to Amendolea. Overnight stay in an ‘agriturismo’ (farmhouse for stay and meals).
Day 6 – Departure
Breakfast. Return to headquarters.