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The undisputed star is nature
Santu Lussurgiu-Santa Caterina di Pittinuri-Putzu Idu-San Salvatore-Cabras
This walking tour takes you to Sardinia in the beautiful SINIS PENINSULA, where the charm and variety of landscapes are perfectly blended with history and culture. The undisputed star of this tour is nature! During the first part of the tour following itineraries along the mountain massif of Montiferru you will walk among rock formations and green woods. Then the route takes you into the hinterland with green pastures, golden fields, vineyards, and olive shape landscapes with multiple shades. You will meet enraptured water of clear and drinkable sources (as the seven fountains Santulussurgiu) alternated with ponds with flocks of herons and flamingos (as is Benas). Finally you reach the blue sea that caresses white limestone cliffs and the the glittering white quartz beaches of Is Aruttas and Mari Ermi.
The Sinis has also always been fascinating the visitors, thanks to the presence of important historical and archaeological sites, such as the ancient Phoenician-Roman city of Tharros, and places telling about the typical local traditions and customs, such as the villages of San Salvatore Sinis, Cabras and the fascinating Corsa degli Scalzi.
The Sinis Peninsula will also surprise you with its typical products, such as Pecorino Sardo cheese, ravioli, gnocchi and soups, including “Sos Pizzottos” el ‘”Abbacasu“, the roasted pork, bottargo (salted, cured fish roe) and to finish with the sweet “Sebadas“. On this walking tour you will discover an authentic and extraordinary Sardinia
The daily program of the 8-day tour
Today you arrive in Santulussurgiu, a mountain village on the south slopes of the eastern mountain range of Oristano. In a hotel our representative will deliver your travel itinerary and information material. If you are not too tired you should visit the charming village, nestled in a landscape of rocks and woods, whose stone houses have the typical tower structure and the streets, steep and winding, still retain the cobblestones
Overninght with breakfast in a *** stars hotel
Today’s itinerary, a mix of road walking and agricultural tracks, takes you to the particular district of Santulussurgiu, that, between oak and chestnut trees, knows how to combine the ruggedness of the mountains with lush and unexpectedly varied vegetation. This area is also rich in water sources and famous for the Siete Fuentes of San Leonardo, the seven fountains from which flows an excellent clear drinking water, which is also bottled. After a visit to the sources, the church of San Leonardo and Muristenes with small buildings that are closed around a leafy courtyard and the village of the same name founded in 1100, you return back to Santulussurgiu, where a small deviation will allow you to enjoy the panoramic view over the countryside.
Overnight with breakfast in a *** stars hotel
Distance: 12 km / 7,5 miles
Ascent & Descent: + 326m – 326m
Walking time: 4 hrs
Today you leave Santu Lussurgiu and after breakfast you have a short transfer to the Mountain of Montiferru. Descending you follow a path among a varied landscape with different shades of colour from the rocks and dense woods. You cross green meadows and golden fields of the countryside, admiring the silvery leaves of olive trees, until you reach the sea. The end stop is the fishing village of Santa Caterina di Pittinuri crowned by high walls of white limestone, which are rich in caves and ravines. The resort is famous for the presence of a ridge of white rock on the sea (in Sardinian “‘Sa Rocca de Cagaràgas”) and for a particular inlet reminiscent of fjords called’ ‘On riu de sa ide.
Overnight with breakfast in a *** or **** stars hotel
Distance: 24 km / 15 mi
Ascent & Descent: + 100m – 100m
Walking time: 6/7 hrs
This morning you could make a walk along the southern coast of the region of Oristano, in a calcareous landscape, often divided into bays and promontories and famous for its lunar reflections. After breakfast you have a private transfer to Is Benas, a lagoon home of the pink flamingos and grey herons. Keep walking between sea and rocks to the beach of Pallosu from where you have a panoramic view on the very beautiful and charming Punta Santa Caterina di Pittinuri, with its Spanish watchtower. The end stage is Putzu Idu, a small town on the coast from the fine white beach from which to enjoy a beautiful sunset over the sea. Here is often blowing the strong Mistral wind which makes it a popular spot for windsurfers.
Overnight with breakfast in a **** stars hotel or in an Agriturismo
Distance: 17 km / 10,5 mi
Ascent & Descent: + 50m – 50m
Walking time: 5 hrs
You walk along the white limestone cliffs of “On Tingiosu, overlooking the sea and the Island of Mal di Ventre. The niches and cracks of the cliffs are a perfect shelter for many species of fish and birds creating a significant natural habitat in this area. Accompanied by breathtaking views the cliffs become the charming quartz beaches of Is Arutas and Mari Ermi, a white sand beach enclosed by high dunes. With your eyes full of all this beauty you leave the coast to enter the hinterland and reach, through orchards and cornfields, San Salvatore Sinis, a village of medieval origin and famous for its church erected over an hypogeum.
Overnight with breakfast in a *** stars hotel or in an Agriturismo
Distance: 20 km / 12,4 mi
Ascent & Descent: + 74m – 77m
Walking time: 5/6 hrs
Today an inland route that passes through fields and along the lagoon of San Giovanni with clear waters and a rich birdlife. You come to San Giovanni di Sinis, where you can visit the Paleo Christian church bearing the same name. It is built in the middle of the fifth century on an area formerly used as a Punic and then Christian necropolis. Also worth to visit are the ruins of Tharros, a town dating back to the eighth century BC– It was a thriving Phoenician, then Carthaginian and finally Roman town. Until today, there remain the Tophet, a Phoenician-Punic open-air sanctuary, the baths, the foundations of a temple and the Roman part of town with houses and workshops. You continue your walk along paths past a tower and the Phoenician necropolis, and accompanied by wonderful views of the coastline and the deep blue sea you arrive at the promontory of Capo San Marco. Overnight stay in San Salvatore Sinis.
Overnight with breakfast in a *** stars hotel or in an Agriturismo
Distance: 17 km / 10,5 mi
Ascent & Descent: + 130m – 130m
Walking time: 4 / 5 hrs
After breakfast, you leave San Salvatore Sinis to reach the village of Cabras, on the opposite bank of the lagoon. Your itinerary is reminiscent of the Corsa degli Scalzi, a traditional and exciting procession made by the faithful bringing barefooted the statue of San Salvatore from Cabras to the hamlet of San Salvatore di Sinis and then vice versa (first weekend of September). You walk inland, among fertile soils and large lakes, such as the Cabras lagoon, famous for mullet, but especially for the high quality Bottarga (called the “caviar of the Mediterranean“) obtained from their eggs, which exalts the flavour of the “Vernaccia di Oristano” DOC, produced in the vineyards of this area. If you enjoy bird watching you can walk through the swamp of Pauli ‘e Sali, or you can visit Cabras, a small hamlet dating back to Roman times functioning as a post (Villas de Capras) and which became in the Middle Ages a castle.
Overnight with breakfast in a *** or **** stars hotel
Distance: 10 km / 6,2 mi
Ascent & Descent: + 20m – 20m
Walking time: 3 hrs
Departure after breakfast
Impressions of the Sinis Peninsula in Sardenia
LEVEL 2,5
Moderate. Walking in a slightly hilly landscape with daily distances between 12 and 22 km. A tour for walkers with a walking experience. The routes are following paths and country roads. The kilometers are significant but on mostly flat terrain.
Total km: About km 100 km / 62 miles
DEPARTURES:
Every Saturday from 06/04 to 22/06 and from 31/08 to 12/10 2024, it is possible to
start other days of the week paying a supplement.
From 23/06 to 30/08: on request
PARTICIPANTS:
1 or more people.
START / FINISH:
Santu Lussurgiu / Cabras
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