The Gennargentu National Park extends from the eastern sea shore of Sardinia close to Orosei and southwards, up to the mountains in the hinterland. One of the most interesting parts in the Sardinian hinterland is Supramonte. For nature lovers I suggest a very interesting trip by Jeeps car. You will be driven to the countryside leaving by Jeeps directly from your hotel.
If you stay in Orosei for example, following the main road from Orosei you pass by the marble quarries. The best quality Sardinian marble can be found right in the central part of the eastern coast and it is exported to Italy mainland and all over the world.
A first stop will be on the hill called Tuttavista (its name can be translated like the panoramic point). After a short walk we reach a panoramic point with a high statue of Christ – on one side there is an amazing view over Orosei Gulf, the sea and the rocks of Capo Monte Santo and on the other side there is the inner region called Baronia.
Baronia is famous for its gardens and fruit groves. There are plenty of lemon and orange trees as well as olive and almond trees (almonds are used in Sardinia to bake the almond cookies called Amaretti).
Then we proceed to Su Gologone and Lanaitto valley where we’ll take a visit to the nuragic archaeological site Sa Sedda e sos Carros – one of the most interesting and well preserved in this area.
The following stop will be at a Natural Monument: the karst spring called Su Gologone. It consists in a subterranean river that comes out here after flowing through a very wide and long karst system. Its flow rate varies a lot according to rainfall. For lunch we reach the forest area situated about 1000 mt. above sea level. It’s the place where shepherds keep their herds and for us is where we can taste a typical local lunch. It is the meal that Sardinian shepherds have been preparing for centuries: sausage and raw ham, salted cottage cheese, hand-made bread (spianata or carasau) semi-seasoned and seasoned cheese and roasted suckling pig. After lunch and a short time to relax or stroll around in the mountain we go back to the hotel.
The wide area which is part of Gennargentu National Park is a very suitable environment also for climbing, long distance trekking, trail running or Nordic walking since the last mentioned sport is becoming very popular among tourists as well as the local people.