bettyo70

Hi Everybody,

We'll be staying in Tellaro this month and plan to walk/hike A LOT!

Regarding the walk to Lerici from Tellaro: what is the simplest, most direct path? Does it take 15-30 minutes on average?

Also, from Lerici back to Tellaro: Is this walk safe to do in the evening? Is the path well-lit, or will we have problems dodging cars? Will it be all uphill?

Thanks for your help!

yorkshire

Well the simplest, most direct path would be along the road, but I would not find that very pleasant. Although there is not a tremendous amount of traffic, it is generally at a high rate of speed. I walked the hiking trail, but this was several years ago, and I do not remember the amount of time it took--but certainly closer to an hour. It is gorgeous--like Cinque Terre but without the villages, and we saw few other hikers.
http://www.parks.it/parco.montemarce...hp?id_iti=1010
I do not recommend walking along the street at night. There was a grassy shoulder, if memory serves, but still no.
Will you not have a car? I surmise you want to get to Lerici for restaurants? Tellaro has a few restaurants. For better hiking, I would head toward Montemarcello.
http://www.parks.it/parco.montemarcello.magra/Eiti.php
Here is my trip report and a few other resources:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-and-lucca.cfm

http://www.apathtolunch.com/2011/06/...o-tellaro.html

This shows the terrain: http://www.wandermap.net/en/route/14....93119/terrain

bettyo70

yorkshire: Thanks for your many links!

With only 2 nights based in Tellaro, I'm trying to plan a "loose strategy". Here's what I have so far:

1) Arrive in Tellaro on a Saturday. Check in and wander around the town. Have dinner at one of the seafood restaurants by the water (such as Red Fish Café). Relax and enjoy the views, exploring the alleyways as well as the coves.

2) On Sunday morning, after a big breakfast, drive to PORTOVENERE and park at one of the public garages. {Apparently there is "Cavo" parking, which offers free shuttle service to the center of town and may be more reasonably priced than the Hotel parking?] Then take a boat to PALMARIA. Hike around Palmaria for a few hours. Towards evening, head back to Portovenere and have dinner there before driving back to TELLARO.

And here is an Alternative plan to #2 (in case we want to avoid tourists in Portovenere):

Alternative-2) Sunday morning: head to SARZANA and explore that town for a few hours; walk around and have lunch.

After returning from Sarzana, do the hike from Tellaro to LERICI. Enjoy all the views. Have dinner in Lerici, then hike back home.

What do you think? Does the Alternative-2 Plan sound too crazy or just too much? We're pretty fit... but again, not knowing the Terrain yet... maybe it's overshooting?

A third Alternative could be to ditch Sarzana and Portovenere... and just spend the day hiking around Montemarcello, the Park, etc. Again, this would be on a Sunday in September so not sure if anything would be closed.

Grazie for any advice!

yorkshire

I am unfamiliar with Palmaria and Portovener so I can't comment on if that would be worth the journey. I can say that the Montemarcello peninsula is quite gorgeous, and I would be hesitant to leave without enjoying some hiking there. I like plan #2, but with some more research about where to have lunch (Sarzana is not far; so you could go there, Montemarcello, or Ameglia).
We took excellent sandwiches from a cafe in Montemarcello--I would try to do some digging to see what will be open and decide if you want to have a picnic or eat a big Italian style Sunday lunch. Ameglia is supposed to have some stellar restaurants.
I passed through Sarzana and found it charming, but on a Sunday you may find it dreary with everything closed.
ps see if your library has Food and Wine of The Italian Riviera & Genoa by David Downie.

bettyo70

Thanks, Yorkshire!

bettyo70

yorkshire: Just wanted to say thanks again for posting here on your hiking experiences. We braved the hike from Fiascherino all the way up to Montemarcello... it was indeed challenging! Did not see many people on this hike in mid-September... so it felt good having the trails to ourselves.

One note: the signage did get a little confusing at one point and we ended up in Boca di Magra! We had to backtrack. Also the trail was quite slippery at times due to prior rain. But what views and what a workout!

P.S. We did make it to Sarzana for a dinner and wished we had more time to explore the fortresses there. Cheers!

yorkshire

So glad you enjoyed it! It is just such a stunning area with very few crowds other than in summer (and even then, mostly Italians).

Keren

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