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Is This Europe's Toughest Trek? |
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Written by Alun
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Thursday, 04 February 2010 |
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.jpg "The Cala Luna Wild Blue Coastline")
Eight years ago I flew to the sunny island of Sardinia on a mission. The challenge was to hike the 'The Wild Blue Trail' or, as it's known to the locals 'il Sentiero Selvaggio Blu'. Back then there was little information available on the trail other than a couple of mentions on a few obscure Italian websites.
From what I could gather, there were many ways to die on the Wild Blue. Waymarking was scarce making the route difficult to follow and getting lost very easy. There was little to no fresh water sources on the trail, making dehydration a serious threat. There were a few sections of Grade 4 climbing plus a couple of abseils to contend with - including one of 45m. All in all, just the level of information to get my mind working overtime and the adventure juices flowing.
As it happened my arrival in Sardinia on a cold December evening coincided with some of the worst storms to hit the Mediterranean for a long, long time with snow turning up on the beaches of Barcelona and Nice and my time on the usually warm, sunny, parched and pristine seaboard of eastern Sardinia more reminiscent of a torrid week spent south of Grimsby in torrential rain. It was no time to take on the Wild Blue.
These days there is far more information available on the 'Wild Blue' though still not much written in English. The route is linear and follows a north/south (or visa versa) routing and is around 30 miles in length. The southern trailhead is at Da Pedra Longa with the northern check out in the famous rock climbing Mecca of Cala Gonone. It's recommended that hikers plan on spending at least five or six days on the trail, set off between November and April and organise water drop offs in advance – a local boat service has been set up for this. You'll also need to carry a couple of 45m ropes plus a harness and a few bits of gear.
I've managed to find this account in the New York Times
And here's a website set up by a local enthusiast . You'll get the drift by using a Google translation. Plus the guy who owns the site has translated a guide book into English and it's available to buy on-line.
And here's a few Youtube vids to get you in the mood. The first is a short one off and the four that follow are parts 1 to 4 from the same group. If you've hiked this route feel free to let us know what you think in the comments section below or on the forum
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