[5]Homo Appenninicus - English Page
[on Ligurian, Maritime and Cottian Alps]
On this page:
» Short description
and aim of this site
» What you find on these pages
» Routes available in English
» Grades - Alpine rating system of hiking and
climbing
» Maritime and Cottian Alps. How to get
there and around by train and bus
» Accommodation and food
» Climate and weather
» Maps and guidebooks
Short description and aim of this site
Homo Appenninicus is a sub-section of the
Anfablopir.com website. Its pages are devoted to my hiking experience
through the south-western ranges of the Italian Alps (Ligurian, Maritime
and Cottian Alps), and through the Ligurian Apennines and the Apuan
Alps.
The aim of this section is to provide foreign hikers with some information
and pictures about destinations and routes in this area.
I am not an Alpine guide and I am not an English native speaker. I've
tried hard to be as accurate as possible, but I apologize in advance
for the mistakes you might find on these pages, either in the information
provided or in the language.
"Homo Appenninicus" is a Latin expression meaning "Apennine
Man". I use it with my friends as a private joke, meaning that
the "Apennine Man" is a more cautious and fearful "species"
than the "Alpine Man" (i.e. the Alpinist).
But to tell the truth, it is the Alps I really love. And here, too,
it is possible to find easy routes and peaks, even 3000m or higher,
where no climbing or scrambling is involved.
What you find on these pages
Detailed descriptions - with general information,
pics and (sometimes) maps - of routes to easy peaks in the south-western
ranges of the Italian Alps (Ligurian, Maritime and Cottian Alps) and
in the Ligurian Apennines.
This is not just the English translation of the Italian pages. What
you find here is something more, since I assumed that as a foreigner
you need to know something more specific before embarking on any walking
adventure through the Italian mountains. And something less, because
not all pages and all routes have been translated into English.
As for the Alps, I've asked myself who might be travelling to this part
of the Alps and for which purpose, and I've come to the conclusion it
might be people doing some stages of the Grande Traversata delle Alpi
(GTA).
I think that the GTA can be a great experience, but one may wish to
"add salt" to his daily ups-and-downs between one pass and
the next valley floor by climbing some easy peak; this is why I have
translated (or planned to translate), of all routes, just those along
the GTA or implying only small detours from it.
As for the Apennine routes, my idea is that there might be people going
to Genoa or to some other renowned places in Liguria (Portofino or the Cinque Terre, to
name just a few), willing to do some hill-walking anyway, and I have chosen
the routes passing through or departing from these places.
Routes available in English
At present the following routes are available
in English:
» Mount Altissimo
(1589 m, Apuan Alps)
» Mount Tenibres
(3031 m, Maritime Alps)
» Testa dell'Ubac (2991
m, Maritime Alps)
» Mount Maniglia
(3177 m, Cottian Alps)
» Rocca La Marchisa
(3072 m, Cottian Alps)
» Col and Mount Bellino
(2942 m, Cottian Alps)
» Monviso (Mount Viso) (3841 m, Cottian Alps)
Many more routes will be published in the English version as soon as
possible.
These routes are also accessible from the main page "Archivio
Gite" (routes archives) where you can find the complete list
of my hiking trips (93 in July 2008).
I have devoted a web page with pictures, general info, route description
(and sometimes a map) to each route listed there. I hope all this might
be of interest even to those who aren't familiar with Italian. So please
have a look.
A few warnings on how to read my route descriptions:
- I've done all the peaks described, so there is no "hearsay"
here.
- As a rule, no information on distance is given, as this is not a very
important factor in the Alps, or at least not so important as, for example,
the height gain, that is how many metres you have to climb.
- the height to climb is given in terms of difference between the starting
point and the summit. In case of significant ups and downs with further
loss or gain of height I've made it clear explicitly.
- as for timing, I've considered the time you need from the starting
point to the summit according both to guidebooks or signposts and to
my own experience (my pace during the ascent is generally faster).
Stops are never included. The way back or down is not included either.
- Grades and rating of difficulty: there is a whole section below. Notwithstanding
the grade given to a route, I've always seen it with… the Apennine
Man's (cautious) eyes, so I have never omitted to mention or describe
passages or situations where I felt problems or potential hazards.
Grades - Alpine rating system of hiking and climbing
The Italian alpine rating system of hiking
and climbing is the same as in France, and it is as follows:
Hiking: T-E-EE
Climbing: F-PD-AD-D-TD-ED.
Hiking
"T" indicates a route for "tourists" ("T"
stands for "Turistico").
A route graded "T" is not much different from the walk you
take in the park at home. We are talking here about walks on country
roads or very large paths, where no experience is required and very
little physical effort is made. Almost any footwear would be appropriate,
from tennis shoes to mountaineering boots.
"E" identifies a route for "mountain hikers"
("E" stands for "Escursionistico").
This grade covers all hiking activities on paths even at high altitudes
(3000m), no matter what the terrain (grassy, rocky, scree slopes), the
ascent to climb (could be 1400m or more). Therefore you must be physically
fit, have a reasonable knowledge of mountains and of the outdoor environment,
and wear proper footwear and equipment.
No technical knowledge is required, however, and on an "E"
grade route you will always find a definite path to follow.
"EE" indicates a route for "expert mountain hikers"
("EE" stands for "Per Escursionisti Esperti").
A route may be rated "EE" for a number of alternative reasons:
because it includes exposed passages, requiring head for heights and
sure foot; or it may entail easy scrambling, or orienteering on rough
terrain, without a real path to follow. This is the upper limit of hiking.
Glaciers, however, are never involved. IGC maps (see below) generally
show "EE" paths with red dots (but the reverse is not always
true).
The difference between E and EE is tricky, the very concept of exposure,
for example, being not that easy to define. According to my experience,
E grade routes do involve very easy scrambling at times, and may present
slight exposure too.
Climbing
"F" (stands for "Facile") that is "Easy"
(climbing).
This is the first stage of alpinism. The difference between EE and F,
again, is not always very clear, though if you are on an F grade route
you are already "climbing" (scrambling) and not "hiking"
any more, which means that handholds (and even footholds) are not optional
but necessary to proceed here.
Above "F" you have serious stuff, climbing far too complicated
for us "Homines Appenninici" (Apennine Men) to be even dreamt
of! Anyway the rating goes on like this : PD: peu difficile / not very
difficult - AD: assez difficile / fairly hard - D: difficile / difficult
- TD: très difficile / very difficult - ED: extremement difficile
/ extremely difficult.
Note that often a + or a - is placed after the grade to indicate that
a particular climb is at the lower or upper end of that grade (e.g.
a climb slightly harder than "F" might be "F+",
if slightly easier than "PD" might be "PD-". "PD-"
is therefore slightly harder than "F+").
NB. This rating system, generally used in guidebooks, expresses an overall
rating of the route, taking into consideration the technical difficulty
along with the quality of rock, the length of the ascent, altitude,
danger, commitment, etc.
Sometimes this rating comes with the indication of the most difficult
climbing passage, expressed in roman numbers (e.g.: F, with one passage
of II)
All grades refer to ideal conditions of weather and terrain. In the
Alps these ratings make sense only in the summer (basically July and
August).
Whatever the season, ice, snow and even rain may turn an "E"
route into a much harder and dangerous one.
Routes described on my pages are mostly rated "E", sometimes
"EE", with the odd "F" (and even "PD-")
experience.
Maritime and Cottian Alps. How to get there and around by public transport: train and bus
If you have no car, the best starting point
for exploring the area of Maritime and Cottian Alps is the town of Cuneo.
You can reach Cuneo by train from Turin or from Savona (Liguria), this
latter a good option if you come from Genoa or France. Railway timetable
is available at www.trenitalia.it
Cuneo is a nice town (smart shops) in a wonderful setting and deserves some of your
time.
Cuneo has got bus connections with all the valleys from where our routes
start (Tanaro, Gesso, Stura, Grana, Maira, Varaita, Po).
Regione Piemonte, at www.regione.piemonte.it/ptplweb/index.do,
has a search engine for bus lines and timetables.
Or it may be easier to visit the bus companies' websites:
- Benese (www.benese.it,
lines and timetables available only on the Italian page), operates bus
service for Valle Maira (Cuneo-Acceglio) and Valle Gesso (Cuneo-Valdieri-Entracque,
and Cuneo-Terme di Valdieri, this latter in the summer only).
- Ati (www.atibus.it)
runs the bus service in Val Varaita (Cuneo-Saluzzo, Saluzzo-Pontechianale)
and in Valle Stura (Cuneo-Vinadio and Vinadio-Argentera).
- Val Tanaro is served by the railway up to Ormea (from Cuneo, Mondovì
and Ceva). From Ormea to Viozene (it's about 20Km) a local bus connection
is available once a week during the summer (July and August only). The
run is done by Autolinee Viani, but the summer timetable is generally
not published before May. The Tourist Office at Ormea knows more (Tel
0174-392157).
If you use buses don't expect to find one every five minutes. Plan your
moves carefully and in advance to avoid being stranded in a place for
hours. Buses, however, should be really considered as a last resort.
Accommodation and food
The accommodation in the valley-floor can
generally be found at a "Posto Tappa GTA",
a special walkers' hostel, cheap and spartan. As you are in a village
(or close to one), you'll also find shops and things to buy. Drawbacks
of being close to civilization: cars, people, noise.
Mountain huts (Rifugi) cannot generally be reached
by car, and some of them are located in truly breathtaking locations.
They are the real alpine experience. Very spartan at times, with accommodation
in bunk beds as the norm. Toilets and showers facilities are improving
everywhere (though you may have to pay extra for a hot shower). Dinners
are generally good, with very generous helpings. Price reductions in
most places are available for CAI members (Italian Alpine Club), and
sometimes for members of foreign sister organizations.
You also find
many unmanned shelters or bivouacs (Bivacchi), but overnighting there
implies to carry food and water, not to mention other discomforts...
The full list of Posti Tappa, Rifugi and Bivacchi in the area, with
pictures, phones and fax numbers, emails, etc can be found here: http://montagna.provincia.cuneo.it/gta/rifugi
In this part of the Alps I've never seen solo-walkers or small party
turned away because a place was full, but during summer weekends and
the month of August mountain huts and posti tappa get crowded, and booking
is necessary. Always give them a ring before showing up.
Food (a packed lunch, basically) can be bought at Rifugi, sometimes
at a price.
Climate and weather
The best season for hiking in this part of
the Alps is the summer, from mid- or better end-June to the end of August.
It is the only time when you can reasonably expect not to find late-lying
snow on your paths.
Hiking on the Appennino Ligure is possible almost all year round.
Avoid the Apuan Alps in winter (very dangerous for verglas and rime) and in summer (too hot).
Along the coast, summer hiking is also a very bad idea because of the heat
and the crowds. Try to visit Cinque Terre and Portofino in spring, autumn
or even winter.
Before setting out for your route in the Alps, have a look at the weather
forecast.
Best mountain huts generally have local forecasts sent in by fax. On
the internet, Regione Piemonte (www.regione.piemonte.it/meteo/previs/index.htm)
gives detailed weather forecasts for Piedmont up to 48 hours ahead.
Pages are updated daily after 12 a.m.
See also Nimbus (www.nimbus.it/italiameteo/previpiemonte.htm)
or Il meteo.it (www.ilmeteo.it).
Weather conditions are generally not so dramatically unstable as elsewhere
(UK, to name one place) but don't underestimate the problem. In July
and August you may well be walking most times wearing a t-shirt and
shorts, but being caught in a snowstorm is not unheard of either.
Making undue generalizations, bad weather (thunderstorms) tends to come
after noon. This is an additional reason for an early start.
Maps and guidebooks
1:50000 IGC Maps (IGC - Istituto Geografico
Centrale) cover the Area of Ligurian, Maritime and Cottian Alps as follows:
IGC sheet n.8 "Alpi Marittime e Liguri"
IGC sheet n.7 "Valle Maira Gesso Stura"
IGC sheet n.6 "Monviso"
For the Monviso area an IGC 1:25000 map is also available (sheet n.106
"Monviso Sampeyre Bobbio Pellice").
The 1:50000 IGC maps are not very detailed, there is no date of publication
or revision, but they serve the purpose fairly well. They are quite
cheap (arond 6.50 €) and widely available in the valleys.
As for books, if you can read Italian the must-have books are those
published by CAI - TCI ("Club Alpino Italiano", the Italian
Alpine Club, and "TCI" Touring Club Italiano) in the series
Collana "Guida dei monti d'Italia". Unfortunately many are
out of print. The only one easily available is:
Monte Viso - Alpi Cozie Meridionali, di M.Bruno - ed.
CAI - TCI (Collana "Guida dei monti d'Italia"), Milano, 1987,
€ 33.50, available. The two volumes on the Maritime Alps cannot
be found any more, not even second hand! (But every CAI section in Italy
has got one copy in their library)
These books are expensive and very climbing-oriented, but hikers too
will find them very useful. They are the true 'bible': if there is a
way to go up, you'll find it written in there.
Two more volumes covering "Alpi Liguri" and
"Alpi Apuane" exist too, and are available;
but route difficulty is not rated.
For hiking in Liguria, especially through the Cinque Terre and the Promontorio
di Portofino, the booklets published by the Parks and other local authorities
should be enough (and they are likely to be in English). Multigraphic
in its fairly reliable and cheap (7.50 €) 1:25000 map series covers
in one sheet the Apuan Alps and in another the Cinque Terre; this is
the best purchase.
On the Apuan Alps you'll find a guidebook, "The Alps of Tuscany:
selected hikes in the Apuane Alps, the Cinque Terre and Portofino"
by Francesco Greco. I own the Italian version of the book; I think it
is a good book to buy if you plan to hike there, as it is a goldmine
of information and ideas on hikes in the area, and more info about what
to do and what to see. Be extremely careful, however, to the rating
given to the routes described; some routes are grossly underestimated
(eg M.Pisanino).
On all these mountain ranges you can obviously find a lot on the internet,
but then in most cases you'll need to read Italian.
On my Italian page on maps and books (halibri.asp)
you'll find the full list of what I own and use, with more pictures
of some book and map covers.
