Hike to Monte Cornacchia (2003 m)

Alessandro is working gruelling shifts. He usually tends to cover the night shifts and the Sundays that his colleagues don't usually like to cover.

It's one of those occasions when Elena can be with us too, and even though she is coming off a run of night shifts she makes the extra effort to be on the path with us.

We are at the Fontana di Valle Fossato at 8.00, more or less as planned.

The valley is enchanting. In some ways it makes me think of Prato di Campoli, even though the beeches are not as majestic.

The climb begins straight away in a tangled wood. Starting from the Fontana di Valle Fossato we find ourselves a bit tangled up in the thick of the wood; if we had started from the gravel road that begins further on we would probably have had fewer problems. We quickly hit the gravel road and carry on following it. At the first fork we carry on until we reach a first grassy clearing. We carry on, still following the gravel road, and here we come to a second grassy clearing where the Rifugio di Fonte Astuni stands.

At the water trough we head into the thick of the wood; it's low vegetation, and we find traces of an old cart road now overrun by grass. We know the place is little frequented, so we dare to climb through the vegetation until we find the path and, once again, the gravel road. This gravel road climbs up to a col where the vegetation has been thinned. It is undoubtedly a firebreak; the wood is intensively managed and thinned. The ridge is very easy to identify. The heat and humidity are extremely high. We are literally dripping with sweat, partly because we are climbing at a speed of 12 metres/minute. We don't mind slowing down and stopping... the aim of the hike is to find in this wood relaxation and the pleasure of being here and of climbing slowly.

We can't help drinking constantly... I myself, overcome by laziness, end up not drinking enough.

The wood doesn't look particularly majestic, yet it's pleasant to walk in the relief of the shade. The hike had been designed this way on purpose. It would be pointless suffering to throw ourselves into great conquests in such torrid temperatures.

As we climb the wood changes appearance: if in the lower part we had found beech and maple, now we find myrtle and other low trees. The vegetation at this altitude seems to grow more slowly. The branches are twisted by the cold but the plants seem to hold out. Walking in this low wood is a new and unequalled pleasure. Never before had I seen vegetation grow in this way. The path, very clear especially in the upper part of the route, leads us quickly towards the Rifugio di Coppo dell'Orso. The view from the hut is incredible. A panorama over a heavily eroded glacial basin. The Rifugio Coppo dell'Orso is closed, a big padlock is on the door, but it's new, which points to constant use and upkeep.

By now we have come up very high; on the hut a plaque marks 1900 m above sea level, but we know full well that the hut stands at 1870... only a few metres of height gain are left to the summit.

We know, though, that we still have to do the most tiring part of the route. The sun beats straight down and it's torridly hot.
Once out on the ridge a light, dry wind gives us that relief we had looked for so hard in the wood.

Elena, who usually plays the “hare”, seems to be suffering from tiredness and the heat. I instinctively go to the front of the group to pull and create that “chase” effect. Every 100 metres I stop and wait for Elena and Alessandro, who keep to a more moderate pace. I am strangely in form, as I hadn't felt for months. I even have the strength to skip on ahead, but I can't work out where this strength is coming from. Probably going out in the mountains constantly over the last few months has got me back into shape.

From the Rifugio Coppo dell'Orso we manage to climb with one steep, direct push up to the nearby summit of the Tre Confini (1992 m); from here we can look out over the landscape of the wide Vallone del Tasso. A classic and demanding climb is the one that starts from Campoli Appennino and, going up the Vallone del Tasso, climbs to the summit of Monte Cornacchia (2003 m).

All that's left for us is to enjoy the route along the ridge to the summit; we are well within the walking times, and the cool air up high lets us enjoy the last stretch of the hike calmly.

I'm happy to find myself once again on top of a summit with Alessandro and Elena; we are here almost all for the same reasons, above all the shared wish to enjoy the walk, fleeing from the Roman heat.

We stay on the summit chatting for almost an hour. Between a sandwich, a photo and a joke, time flies and it's already time to head back. The sun is beating down, and although the wind keeps us from feeling the heat too much, we know we are getting nicely, nicely tanned.

Alessandro is always very careful and there is never a time he forgets to put on sun cream. I, on the other hand, out of laziness and listlessness, end up underestimating the problem.

The return to the hut goes calmly. At the head of the valleys the wind coming up from the valley is dry and cool; we stop to savour the coolness.

At the Rifugio Coppo dell'Orso I meet our friends from La Muvra, in particular the Avezzano section, for whom I had proposed the presentation of the group on the Appennino.Tv website.

The descent, like almost all descents, is torture for the tips of the toes and for the knees. A massacre, but we have the incentive of going to refresh ourselves at Fonte Astuni.

The last stretch of the route is much better marked than on the way up, and we discover that we missed the real path through a mistake of 10 metres. We have shed light on a route that in its lower part still has a few problems. All this with the intention of illustrating the climb in a fact sheet in as much detail as possible.

As we come down we lose our bearings; Elena remembers a cairn of stones in which I had planted a stick. The cairn had been placed to mark the exact point for picking up the path again. Well done Elena, if she hadn't been there to remember the cairn we would certainly have got lost, adding considerably to the length of the route. Along the path we find the cairn again and the point for getting back on the right way towards Fonte Astuni.

At Fonte Astuni we all drink excellent, ice-cold drinking water, the kind of water you can only drink in the mountains. Crystal clear, with an excellent taste... this one in particular free of any solid residue, no sand, no dust... a really good water.

The hike ends at the Fonte del Vallone del Fossato, where we left the car. Alessandro has an instinctive love for green, for woods and water. At the spring he takes off his T-shirt, his boots and his socks. We see him happy as a child to be able to wet his feet under the icy water. He seems to have lost all his shyness, in the grip of a rapture for the nature and freedom that only the mountains manage to give him.

Despite the heat, all things considered, it was a day spent mostly in the woods, finding that relaxation and that coolness which were our real goal.

Taking stock of the day, Alessandro and Elena point out to me that I kept up a really excellent pace; although I didn't notice it, I'm pleased about this, especially considering that the year hadn't started all that well.

Max. I missed Max, who so many times had advised me to climb to the Coppo dell'Orso. When all is said and done he was the one who originally worked out this itinerary, and the credit goes to him for spurring me to give it a try.

Because of route-finding problems I wouldn't recommend this hike to just anyone. It is probably a hiking route better suited to experienced hikers who are familiar with the problems of route-finding inside a wood.