On the mineral trail - Tour of the Marguareis Nature Park - Stage 3
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On the mineral trail - Tour of the Marguareis Nature Park - Stage 3
Ormea

3. On the mineral trail - Tour of the Marguareis Nature Park - Stage 3

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This stage is mostly at low altitude and on easy paths, however, pay attention to the waymarking after Gola della Chiusetta.
After crossing pastures and pine woods, beyond Gola della Chiusetta you are back in a high mountain setting, with scenery typical of a karst environment, dry slopes, lakes transformed into peat bogs and pasture. To note in particular is the typical architecture of the hamlets around Carninopendii aridi, laghi trasformati in torbiere e pascoli. Da notare l'architettura tipica delle borgate di Carnino.

1 point of interest

  • Architecture

    The Chapel of Sant'Erim and the Selle Refuge in Carnino

    The Chapel of Sant'Erim (Chapel of Sant'Elmo) was built following the saint's apparitions here to groups of shepherds. Tradition has it that a mass was celebrated here every year on the day the cattle went up to the mountain pastures.
    The Rifugio Selle di Carnino was built from a shepherds hut by the Ligurian Section of the CAI . It was used until the Second World War when it was seriously
    damaged and definitively abandoned.
    [A. Parodi, R. Pockaj, A. Costa - Nel cuore delle Alpi Liguri, collana Sentieri e Rifugi, Andrea Parodi Editore, 2012, p.42]


Description

From the Mongioie refuge, you will head, in the opposite direction if you have not chosen the variation for the lakes and via Bocchino delle Scaglie, along the itinerary towards the Venes. Once you have gone over Colla di Carnino, you will reach the fork for Passo delle Saline (1500m). From there, continue to the left and, along the path which provides a shortcut compared to the road, you will reach the village of Carnino Inferiore. From the small square, turning right onto the road which heads uphill over the Saline brook, you will pass close to the cemetery and reach Carnino Superiore (1397m). It is worth stopping in this ancient commune; the first houses built here date back to the 10th century. The roof, thatched with rye straw constitutes the most characteristic part of these old stone houses: the spandrels protrude from the roof in the shape of two stone edge beams, which help to hold the straw in place and provide access to the roof, thus creating the typical closed structure of a roof. From Carnino, head up the Chiusetta valley until Sella di Carnino, beyond which the valley, which has become larger, is known as the “dei Maestri” valley. Head through Pian Sottano and Soprano de la Chiusetta, picturesque Alpine meadows, until you reach Colle dei Signori and the Don Barbera refuge (2070m), which was opened in 2006. From there, you can reach the summit of Mont Marguareis, which will take around two and a half hours for the outward and the return journey.
  • Departure : Mongoie refuge
  • Arrival : Don Barbera refuge
  • Towns crossed : Ormea and Briga Alta

Altimetric profile


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