Spring hiking in Abruzzo

I’ve written many times about how much I love Abruzzo.

Abruzzo is the Italian region neighboring Lazio, where Rome is. This makes it the perfect weekend escape to nature from Italy’s capital.

I’m a frequent visitor here, and my husband and I decided to enjoy a long weekend here over the 1 May holiday weekend. We lucked out during our four day escape.

The snow still capped the Apennine mountains, including the Apennines’ highest peak – the Gran Sasso – but the sun was strong and the fields a lush green, with the first dotting of wildflowers.

It’s not a given to have such gorgeous weather at the outset of May. But gorgeous it was!

We managed tons of hiking during our days there, so much so that my legs were groaning when I returned back to Rome.

Snow-capped Gran Sasso peak

There is a wonderful loop through the Val Arano, near the town of Ovindoli, where we stay. This has beautiful views, and trailheads for many interesting hikes, including down to the Celano canyons.

Later this spring, this will be the site of filming for an upcoming David Cameron film, some dystopian story with zombie-like beings. Not up my alley at all, but I’m sure the scenery will be gorgeous.

Views over the high plains to Ovindoli from Rovere, Abruzzo

There are also biking and hiking trails between towns on these high plains. So, from Ovindoli, my husband and I walked to neighboring Rovere, where we had lunch and walked up the steep streets of the town to reach the castle ruins and sweeping views across the countryside.

The weather was perfect, and I decided to continue my hike when my husband turned back, and continued the path to the next town – Rocca di mezzo. This is another cute town, and I stopped off for a coffee to fuel my hike back, since the full loop is 18 km.

Next time, I’ll start earlier in the morning to continue the trail onto the next town of Rocca di cambio, the town at the highest altitude of the Apennines, which means the hike back will be much easier than the hike to town.

The views, the fresh mountain air, the sunshine and all of that fantastic exercise is such a wonderful escape for a city dweller like me, and I always return recharged from my mountain escapes – even if only brief weekends. I highly recommend an escape to the mountains of Abruzzo for those pleasant spring days.

See you out on the trails!

And if you’d like a novel that explores the history of this region, you may enjoy my story In The Shadow of The Apennines.