Sometimes aimless wanderings uncover hidden gems. Before I recount Day 2, focusing on the hike from Monterosso to Riomaggiore, I return to an unresearched, unknown, and unplanned (you probably think they all are) experience we enjoyed on Day 1. During the time between checking into our lodgings and eating dinner, we found ourselves meandering up a small path out the back of town. On the stone wall, we noticed a small wooden winery sign. After passing the Carabinieri (police) station, we found ourselves huffing and puffing our way up a small road (actually more of a cart path) through some lemon groves and vineyards. Soon we arrived at the arched gate of the Agriturismo Buranco, and decided to go inside.
We discovered a large terrace, overlooking a valley full of lemon trees. Looking across their tops, we saw a terraced vineyard stretching up the other side. On our side, three large tables were set up, each full of people eating and enjoying the food, the wines, and the company. We asked a staff member if we could sit down for a glass of wine and were told they were closed (or closing) following lunch. While we were enjoying the view, the Head Chef came out. We figured it wouldn’t hurt, so we asked him if it would be okay to just sit down and enjoy a glass of wine. Although they liked to make sure the staff had time off between lunch and dinner, he said a glass of wine would be fine. We found two comfortable chairs overlooking the vineyards. Two hours, two glasses of wine, and some great conversation later, we made our way out the Buranco gates and back down the hill to town. As Buranco is an agriturismo and rents rooms, we spent a few minutes looking to see if we could book a night; we have some friends coming to visit later this year. Nothing was available. When we asked if there was an issue with the website, we were informed that was common – rooms book up real early. When I got back and looked, I found a couple nights availble in May, then nothing until a couple nights in late August and September. I would highly recommend early reservations – our impression was that we wouldn’t be disappointed.
Let the “Stroll” Commence
After a restful night, we were ready to start our final Cinque Terre weekend adventure – the hike back, along the Sentiero Azzurro (Blue Path), to Riomaggiore. The weather wasn’t great, the skies were overcast with rain expected later in the day. Not deterred, we had our morning cappuccinos, pulled out our rain jackets, put on our backpacks, and set off on what we had read was a nice hike along the Mediterranean Coast. The five towns are fairly close together, with none of the hikes longer than 4-5 kilometers. Accounts and blogs were split between saying the hikes were easy to moderate. We had printed off our Treno tickets and carried these with us to show at the checkpoints – they have guard shacks set up a little outside each town to monitor trail traffic and check passes. If you do not have a day hiking pass, you can buy one at the shack (for the same price.) Having printed our passes saved time, as people were trying to access phones and emails to show their passes or looking to purchase them on the spot – with the paper copies we were waved right through. The guard shacks are also watching for people who think they can do the hike in high heels or flip-flops. While some other blogs and accounts might make this seem doable, I will tell you now, IT ISN’T.
The first leg, from Monterosso to Vernazza, starts with an uphill climb – described as a fairly easy two to five hundred metre (depending on which site you read) set of stairs winding up into some vineyards. DO NOT BE FOOLED . It was not fairly easy, it was 500 metres if a foot, and the stairs were pretty darn steep. Although we are in pretty good shape (training for a marathon later this year actually – I will let you know how that goes), we had to stop several times to wipe our brows and catch our breath. There were some great views, back to Monterosso, out over the Med, and down into Vernazza once we got around the corner, but 45 minutes into our hike back down the coast and we were hoping we might be able to at least hold up through the first leg. Once we finally made it to the top, we enjoyed the music of an older gentleman playing an accordion, spurring hikers on for donations, and the going was a little easier, although a bit treacherous now that we were going downhill.
Upon arrival into Vernazza (the next city down the line), we looked at each other and decided to give it another shot. It was mid-morning and we had read the first section is the most vertical, supposedly the trail between Vernazza and Corniglia (the middle town, and one that is not on the water and accessible only by climbing several hundred stairs (or catching a fee shuttle) up from the train station – unless you hike in) was easier. If you read about it on the Cinque Terre Corniglia site, it is described as a “relatively easy path.”
Relatively was an accurate word – easy was not. The path between Vernazza and Corniglia was slightly, not much, less steep and arduous than our first leg. However, we were still struggling up the hills and along some pretty small trails, with more rustic stairs – meaning they are not cut out and formed more by ledges and roots than blocks. Already a little winded from the first section, this leg did not seem any great degree easier. Again, there were some nice views, back, forward, and outwards, as we went along. We were also finding the trails were not super easily marked and identified – they were fine once you were on them and had little to no other option, but catching them in towns and understanding which forks led to overlooks versus continued on was challenging at times. An hour and a half later, we crawled our way into Corniglia and sat down at the first corner bar we found. It was time for a well-earned beer.
The Hike – Second Half
The next segment of the trail, from Corniglia to Manarola, is washed out, it actually has been for several years. That doesn’t stop maps and advice columns from talking about it, kind of like it was actually there. There is an alternate path. Instead of 2-3 kilometers, supposedly along the coast with great views and easy-ish, it is nearly 7 km long and takes 3 hours. The official Cinque Terre Footpaths website currently states, “The best option is to take the bus”. However, this recommends riding the bus half way, to Volastra, and then embarking on a 3.5 km hike that takes about 2 hours. Discretion, being the better part of valor, led us to climb down the several hundred steps to the train station (a lot easier than hiking up them). We boarded the train and headed back through the tunnels to Manarola.
There is quite a bit of information on the final section, from Manarola to Riomaggiore. The main Cinque Terre Trail is a flat boardwalk along the coast between the towns, which sit about 1.5 km apart. This has been washed out for years, but is scheduled to reopen sometime in the next couple. However, most map apps still direct you to the start of the Via dell’ Amore (as it’s called) and tell you it is a 25 minute stroll. The sky was getting pretty dark, rain was moving in. The suckers that we are, we believed the maps – and headed out along the original path – which is open, for a ways, until it is blocked off. There is an alternate path, which is also “1.5 km”, and map apps tell you it is about a 30 minute hike – the official site says average difficulty. Already sweaty and tired, with the chance of rain increasing, we figured we had the time and energy to knock it out, finish our hike, and board the train towards La Spezia to close out the weekend.
Here is a more accurate rundown of the final section. The start is difficult to find – it is through a couple back alleys and up through the back side of the town and not particularly well marked. Once you leave the town, you start up the steps – and you keep going. I had to take my wife’s water bottle so she could use both hands to pull herself up a few places as we scrambled up the nearly vertical incline. This section goes for a LONG way. The steps are closer to natural rock, meaning that they are not flat, wide, or level. And although there are some nice views, we were so gassed going up that we failed to fully appreciate them. We had just crested the top (that is right, not much of a flat walk once you get to the top – meaning it is about .8 km up and then down) and started down when it began to rain. Now the rocks were a bit slippery, we were a bit wet (not sure if from rain or just sweating) and our fun meter was about pegged. We did get into Riomaggiore, only to be lost trying to figure out how to get to the train station (we could see it but, “couldn’t get there from here”.) Eventually we made our way through a neighborhood, caught the train, changed in La Spezia, and found ourselves on our way back to Livorno.
Overall, there were some great parts of the experience but some aspects that caught us by surprise. As I mentioned at the outset, sometimes what you read, hear, and see from others isn’t what you might encounter. The area was beautiful, we really enjoyed our lodging and meals, and the people were great (we have found wonderful people wherever we go to be a common theme.) However, the train was not a shuttle (we had some 30 minute waits on platforms as they are common but not constant) and the views out the window, except for in the towns, were pretty dark. Also, the hike was challenging, well above an easy to moderate walk along the Mediterranean coast. The views were spectacular, but the walking part was a bit tougher than expected. This may have been due to our wanting to try and experience Cinque Terre in 2 days – something that is hard to do anywhere, much less than in a national park that includes 5 different towns. But there are so many other places to see and so much more of this region, this country, this continent, and this world to explore that sometimes 2 days is all you have. My best advice is give it your best shot, knowing that there will be things that might be different, bigger, harder, or grander than expected. Take the advice you get, read, or hear with a bit of a grain of salt. And at the end of the day – go out and live and enjoy your Later Gap Travels.