Hiking the trails of Cinque Terre

Italy's Cinque Terre is an UNESCO World Heritage Site and also a national park covering both the land and waters of this coastal area.  Hiking trails run throughout the park in a well organized and marked network maintained by the national park. Many of the trails have existed since Roman times. The trails can be found at different levels of the steep hillsides. Some run close to the coast and even over hang the Ligurean Sea in places. Other trails run high above the sea affording huge views of the sea and the villages below. The terrain can be easy in places where the trails are paved with flat stones and accompanied by handrails. But most of the trails are very narrow without handrails and one must step very carefully. There are also 100's of steps mostly formed out of stones and large rocks.  

The trails run through carefully terraced olive groves and vineyards. It is hard to imagine how it is possible to tend and harvest since the land is very steep. 

The trails link the villages so it is possible to hike from one to another.  We chose to hike on two trails. The first hiking day was a five kilometer hike from Manarola north to the next village of Corniglia. Our second hike, on a separate day, was from Corniglia north to its neighbor Vernazza. Each hike took us about two hours to complete. 

At many points along the way it is hard to imagine you are really seeing such incredible beauty. Here are a few photos from the two hikes. 

Portofino

One of the favorite artworks displayed in our home is a watercolor of the Portofino harbor painted by my Grandmother on a visit to Italy in the 1940's.

Portofino,  watercolor by Margaret R. Hough 1940's

I found the painting still enclosed in Nana's sketchpad and indeed the penciled outline of an additional sailboat or two in the harbor indicates that this was still a work in progress.  Each time I see this painting I imagine Nana sitting comfortably at her easel gazing at the incredible view as she takes time to record this memory in watercolor. 

Portofino lies just up the coast from where we are in the Cinque Terre.  So one of the excursions planned for our visit with Lily was a visit to Portofino with hopes that we could locate the exact place her Great Grandmother sat while painting this view.

Cappuccino break in Santa Margherita-Ligure
before departure for Portofino

Although direct boat service from Manarola to Portofino is offered on certain days, the boat did not operate on the day we intended to travel so we took the train from Manrola to Santa Margherita-Ligure where we would be able to board a passenger boat for the 15 minute ride into Portofino harbor.

From the train station into the center of Santa Margherita-Ligure is a short walk.  We arrived just before Noon so we took the opportunity to enjoy a cappuccino in the main square.  There were so many interesting take away options that we decided to make an impromptu picnic lunch.  Liguria is famous for its focaccia and also for a crepe made from olive oil and chickpea flour.  We found a bakery that made both!  And sat in a waterfront park next to a prominent fountain crowned with an imposing statue of Christopher Columbus and enjoyed our lunch.

Arrival in Portofino

The boat trip into Portofino's harbor takes only 15 minutes.  As we approached Portofino there were many huge yachts moored in the harbor with uniformed staff members undertaking various tasks.  One of the tasks would be to transport the yachts occupants into town for shopping or dining.  Google tells us that the yacht owners included Dolce and Gabbana and a Russian billionaire.  Although there wasn't room at the dock for their massive yachts, there was for ours so we landed in the center of the town and immediately took off on our quest to locate the perch where Nana sat to paint her watercolor.

Getting close

Lily first remarked that it was obvious the buildings had changed color from the uniform white of Nana's painting. The colors of Portofino today are classic dark reds, yellows, light greens and ivory we associate with the Mediterranean.

We headed away from the harbor towards footpaths up into the opposite hills.   One stone path led from the harbor to Castel Brown - a local landmark.  The path led past large private homes with patios and gardens that would have provided a similar view.  But the stone walls were too tall to provide an easy view of the harbor.  Although there were several breaks in the wall where we could look down towards the harbor, the perspective didn't seem quite right.  Plus, the walkway and walls appeared to pre-date the 1940's so we were pretty sure Nana didn't choose that exact spot.  At one point Marlow actually knocked on a very imposing door of the villa with a grand patio overlooking the harbor.  The staff of the villa finally answered his knocking but assured us we were in the wrong place!

Not quite the exact perspective ..... keep climbing

After traversing up and down the walkway Lily spotted another slightly higher pathway above the path we were on.  So we walked back down towards the harbor and took this alternate route back up into the hills opposite.  This path led to a church and its adjacent cemetery.   At various points on the cemetery grounds it was possible to look down to the harbor.

Hmm, perhaps Nana found a spot in the cemetery to create her painting.

The cemetery has expanded since Nana must have visited the area.  It has grown into higher and higher points on the hill all connected by stairs and ladders.

And it is still expanding.  At the very top there were still crypts in various stages of completion.  Peering around one set of crypts we saw what seemed to be a good candidate but there was no terra cotta roof visible in the lower left corner of the view.

Just missing the prominent terra cotta roof.

But when peering around another set of crypts, and standing on an adjacent bench to look over the trees below, we were able to find what looks to be the exact place Nana sat.  We imagine that before the cemetery expanded up into the hills, the various plateaus were paved observation areas where Nana would have been able to sit in the shade and gaze down at the harbor.

Eureka!  We located Nana's perch!

Having completed our quest we headed back towards the port with great satisfaction and feeling quite entitled to some gelato!  

Lily has joined us!

Lily arrived at Pisa Airport about 7AM (Italy time) on Monday, June 10.  On our way out of Pisa we visited the Torre Pendant (leaning tower) and were able to climb to the top of the tower.  On the way back to the Cinque Terre (also known as 5 Terre, CT and Five Lands) we stopped for lunch in Lucca.  Upon arriving to our home for the week in Manarola, we immediately went for a swim in the sea to cool down.  

On Tuesday we hiked high above the villages of the Cinque Terre, on a footpath that probably dates from Roman times, from Manarola to the next village to the north, Corniglia.  The footpath took us through vineyards and gardens and was filled with incredible views.  

Today is Wednesday and we are about to take a two-hour boat trip up the coast to Portofino. 

Hiking through the vineyards between Manarola and Corniglia in the Cinque Terre.

In Pisa less than one hour after arriving in Italy.

OH NO! 

In Lucca at the Cathedral where Puccini worked as an organist.

Breakfast on our terrace

So many photo opportunities!

Trails dating from Roman times.

A dip in the pool (aka the Mediterranean/Ligurian Sea)

Yes, that is Marlow taking a dip in the Mediterranean

Marlow couldn't wait to jump into the water!

Our location on the Italian coast

The blue dot indicates where we will be for the next week.

Sunset in Manarola

At home in the Cinque Terre

We've arrived in Manarola.