Metello, Lago Bargetana, monte Castellino, CAI 74

Departure from Metello (1000 meters), a typical Garfagnana village, nestled in a narrow valley, made up of a few houses, a church and little more. From the small parking lot at the edge of the village, we will start pedaling immediately uphill (a few meters of asphalt) on a dirt roadway that, with modest gradients, will slowly gain altitude. At times the road will come out of the dense forest, skirting small cultivated plots and alpine pastures, also giving us a glimpse of the panorama we will see higher up.

When we reach Rifugio La Foce we could make a brief stop for a coffee, without weighing ourselves down further given the last stretch of ascent to be made to reach the first summit of the day: the Focerella (1749 meters). We are on the Apennine ridge, and once here, turning our gaze behind us, we will be able to observe theentire Apuan chain from north to south, with its sharp peaks and jagged profile. We will continue downhill, on a narrow path in the middle of the vaccinieto that covers the northern slope of Mount Prado. We will reach Rifugio Bargetana not before regaining some meters of altitude, sometimes even pushing our mountain bikes because of rocks and roots in our path. Also at this refuge we may make a short regenerative stop.

Resuming our march, we will head toward Lago della Bargetana (1800 meters), a small body of water located within the spectacular basin of the northern slope of the aforementioned Mount Prado , which, at 2054 meters, is the second highest peak in the Reggio Emilia Apennines (after Cusna) and the highest in Tuscany. From here it will take us about twenty minutes with bikes on our backs to get to the Sella del Prado (1897 meters), which, as the name suggests, is a wide pass located halfway between the peak of Prado and that of the modest Mount Castellino (1947 meters). A steep descent, on CAI 00 trail, will shortly take us back to Focerella. We will continue, then, still on this trail to climb (with a short push) Mt. Ravaianda (1768 meters). This will be the last effort of the day. It will begin, in fact, the descent back to the starting point.

From Ravaianda, still on CAI 00, we will descend to the Romecchio Pass (1685m asl) and, from here, we will take the beautiful CAI 74 trail. Initially it will look a bit wilder, then it will become a very well-maintained natural trail perfect for mountain-biking. Never too complicated, although a few tight hairpin bends might put the less savvy in a bit of a bind. We should lose about a thousand meters of elevation before returning to Metello; once we get to the village, right at the end of the trail, we will meet a small tavern where it is recommended to stop for a final snack of typical products.

Water availability along the trail: Rifugio La Foce (km 7.80) - Rfugio Bargetana (km 10.50)