Here we are venturing also in the hinterland of the Aspromonte Park, we are in the province of Reggio Calabria.
The landscape of Aspromonte is a succession of shelves, ridges and deep valleys with a hydrography characterized by torrential watercourses, short and very steep, which give origin to the well-known “fiumare”. From the geological point of view the rock formations outcropping are of magmatic origin intrusive and metamorphic. From the hydrographic point of view, the forests include the entire heads of the streams Aposcipo, Ferraina and Butramo, which flow into the Fiumare Laverde and Bonamico respectively, and that of the stream Menta, which falls into the Fiumara Amendolea.
Objective of our tour are the castate Forgiarelle, at about 1200 mt of altitude and among the most beautiful of the whole park.
We want to point out from the beginning that you have to pay particular attention when you enter here because until a few years ago the signs were very few and the risk of losing the sense of orientation could be high, especially after several hundred meters of altitude difference made.
Lately things have improved, but asking someone local to accompany you is a piece of advice we give you.
You can get there from different points at the entrance of the park, we decide to leave from Sant’Agata del Bianco and continue to go up with the car for about ten km and “climb” on the hairpin bends of the mountain up to where we are allowed (the road slowly becomes passable only by off-road vehicle/jeep).
From here we continue on foot on a wide road and comfortable for the pace that can be well supported until the path becomes narrower and we arrive at what they call, the “Scalone di Ferràina“, a fairly steep climb (not impossible) that takes us in a short time to cut several meters of elevation gain and makes us come out below the Puntone Galera.
What you leave behind is this path.
From here you can choose to follow, straight by straight, our track, or keep left and go towards Croce di Dio Sia Lodato (then through a loop you can still go back to our track).
Here you will find a few more signs and you can enjoy an incredible view up to the Ionian Sea, while behind you there will be Montalto, the highest peak of the place with its 1955 m is the highest peak of Aspromonte.
From here on, the road becomes easier and you’ll arrive in a short time to a wooden bridge from which you’ll start to see the first signs of waterfalls.
Advances from here you’ll cross another path coming from Canovai, a resting point/shelter up here
And all you have to do is go down the steep path to reach the small lake formed by the three jumps of the waterfall.
Here, even in particularly hot and sultry seasons, you will never feel the heat, but rather enjoy a coolness and peace that you will rarely find elsewhere.
We recommend that you have lunch under some plants before setting off again.
On the way back you can choose whether to extend a moment by passing through Canovai and the Ferràina forest where the path is much more comfortable, or return the way you came. From the map below we leave you the indications to understand both points.
This is one of those places that best represents the essence of our project, a place surrounded by nature, which few people know and that would be enhanced.
Trail Type: dirt road and mountain trail
Water: you need to be self-sufficient or get water from one of the streams that run up high, which is very pure, like from the Ferràina stream
