We will be visiting the Cinque Terre in September and would like to do the hike from Monterosso to Vernazza and wonder if anyone has done this trail lately. We're in our mid 60's but are very fit and walk daily.
We've read varying reports on the difficulty of the hike and would appreciate comments from someone who has done this recently.
From what we have read this seems to be the most challenging hike of all but also one of the few that is still open following the devastating flood.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32222 posts
Bob,
The hike from Monterosso from Vernazza is the most challenging of all the trails, mainly because it has quite a climb at the Monterosso end. I'm also in my '60s and have no difficulty with it, but of course I travel somewhat more slowly than the younger crowd. There are some narrow sections with no hand rails so a bit of care is needed. It's been a few years since I hiked there, but doubt that it's much different now.
Note that a Park Pass is required to hike the Sentiero Azzurro trails, which you can buy at the small huts at the beginning of the trails or at local T.I. or rail stations. I believe the stretch from Vernazza to Corniglia is also open at the moment, so you could hike that as well. There's an extensive network of trails in that area that extend further up into the hills, but the Park Pass is only needed to hike the "blue path" trails.
Just to clarify, the trails are routinely open and closed at various times due to weather which is not related to the devastating floods that hit Monterosso and Vernazza in October 2011. For example, the trail from Manarola to Corniglia has been closed intermittently for a couple of years, and the famous Via dell' Amore (Riomaggiore to Manarola) was closed due to a separate weather event in September 2012 which brought tons of rock down on the trail, seriously injuring four Australian tourists.
Be sure to pack lots of water for the hike.
Posted by
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, USA
14055 posts
Eeek, Ken. I thank you for the picture. My nephews hiked it last year and told me I would not like it and they were right. Definitely a no for me, lol.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32222 posts
@Pam,
Actually, it's not that bad. The views are definitely worth the effort!
Posted by
OP
KC, MO
22 posts
George and Ken thank you for your comments. We're ok with narrow trails, no guardrails and all that. We've hiked some pretty rough trails on the island of Kauai so we're no strangers to narrow paths.
We were just wondering about the recent conditions of the trail and the difficulty of the first part of the hike out of Monterossa.... we're not as young as we used to be!
We really want to see the views along the way so I think we will go ahead and plan on it and just take our time on the steeper parts.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32222 posts
Bob,
You're very welcome!
we're not as young as we used to be!
I can also appreciate that!