ITINERARY: MELOGNO – STRONGHOLD’S TRAIL (SENTIERO DEI FORTI)
By car (from Finale Ligure’s train station FF SS): you take the first way out to the right in the roundabout, and you drive on the national road Aurelia (Strada Statale SS1), direction Ventimiglia, for about 350 m. Then, you turn right to the SP490 until the roundabout in Finalborgo. You take the second way out going straight to the SP490 until you arrive to the square of Gorra. Here, you keep following the road (SP490) for 12.7 km towards Melogno (you can easily follow the road signals) ignoring every other deviation. You can park your car in the big space in front of the big central Stronghold of Melogno.
Car route’s total length: 17 km
Trail classification: trail of naturalistic and historic interest
Level: Easy – Moderate
Duration: 3 h Length: 9.2 Km Elevation gain: 247 m
Trail mark: AV’s mark “Alta Via dei monti Liguri” with RED – WHITE – RED stripes
The trail is well signaled, wide and easily walkable.
Form the parking area you go towards the Central Fort and, after 50 m, you turn right. Here, a signal indicates the end of the “Alta Via’s stage” at “Colle del Melogno” (1028 a.s.l.) and the paved road ends, replaced by an unpaved trail that goes right on the very next fork. This stretch goes through a shady and fresh forest called “Faggieta della Barbottina”. An important fork comes after 1.7 Km: the uphill trail on the left goes to the other fort called “Forte Merizzo” and you can easily go there to visit it from the outside. Back to the fork, now you have to go right crossing the gate that stops any incoming vehicle a bit further.
1 Km later you will reach a little building: it’s the “Casetta della Forestale”, a little refuge in the fields next to the big crossroad. This is a nice place to take a break since it has got a picnic area.
At this point we recommend you to make a little deviation: if you keep going on the AV trail you can easily reach the area called “Rocchechiare”. Here you can enjoy a wonderful panorama from the hills to the sea.
From the refuge, our itinerary goes towards North-East and goes again into the forest. Here the trail mark changes.
Trail mark: two horizontal yellow stripes.
The trail becomes now less signaled but it’s still wide and very easily walkable.
Ignore all the little deviation along the trail and, after about 1.5 Km, you will reach a monument in the memory of the Alpine soldiers who died during the war.
Just a bit further, there is another fork: the trail on the right goes to the other fort “Forte Tartagna” but it is now a private residence and the entrance is obviously forbidden so we dissuade you to go there.
Taking the trail on the left you are going to encounter two other forks just a bit further: go left again at the first and then right to the second: this is going to bring you to the starting large trail.
From now on just go back for the last kilometer to get back to the starting point and the car.
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