The way of the lakes

12,600 hectares of high Apennine belt: an intact place

by Silvia Ugolotti

It is called Hundred Lakes Park, a middle land on the border line between Reggio Emilia and Massa Carrara.
It is made up of forests, pastures and bodies of water of glacial origin.
Established in 1995 as the Upper Parma and Cedra Valley Ridge Park, it has expanded the boundaries of its territory over the years and combined its commitment to protecting the Apennine ridge habitat with the task of enhancing the rural landscape and its products.
Today this fascinating protected area, rough and wild, is a paradise for trekkers and naturalists.
It stretches between the Po Valley and the Tosco-Emiliano ridge: characterized by elevation bands ranging from 400 to 1650 meters above sea level, it offers varied and fascinating itineraries and unexpected visions: when the wind cleans the air, the sea, the coasts of the Gulf of La Spezia and Palmaria Island can be seen.
From Monticelli Terme it is a sixty-minute drive through green and unspoiled landscapes to walk along a dense network of trails involving the entire ridge between high altitude peat bogs, grassy saddles and beech forests to reach the highest mountains, such as Tavola and Orsaro and Lago Santo.

The lake at altitude

At 81,550 square meters in size, Lago Santo is the largest glacial lake in the province of Parma and Emilia-Romagna and the largest natural lake in all At 1,507 meters above sea level in the municipality of Corniglio, it lies in the western part of the Tuscan-Emilian Apennine National Park and is topped a little further south by Mount Marmagna and the Apennine ridge that divides the province of Parma from that of Massa Carrara.
On its banks is the Rifugio Mariotti with beds and excellent food.
It can be reached on foot or by a chairlift that departs further down from Rifugio Lagdei, another historic stop with a restaurant where authenticity and respect for mountain traditions are at home.

The path of the hamlets

In a valley basin of the Cedra Valley at 820 meters, between Mount Sillara, Alpe di Succiso and Mount Caio is Monchio delle Corti, a strategic stop to move among small hamlets such as Valditacca, with seventeenth- and eighteenth-century buildings leaning against the church, and the Da Rita restaurant, the realm of Raffaella Olivieri, who prepares new menus every day, based on the raw materials available and the creativity of the moment, reviving in the different recipes the pleasure for genuine things.
To visit some of the Corti di Monchio while walking, there is the Sentiero delle Frazioni(parchidelducato.it).
The route is about four kilometers long and can be walked from Pianadetto toward Rimagna, passing through Valditacca and Trefiumi, or in the opposite direction.
Along the way, several panels illustrate the natural environment, history and rural architecture.
As you pass through the narrow lanes of the hamlets, you will discover some of the most significant aspects of the architecture and urban planning of these small mountain villages, the natural ecosystems that surround them, and the folk traditions that permeate them.

The poet’s house

Seven kilometers and a twelve-minute drive here is Casarola, another hamlet of Monchio delle Corti: “We arrived at our house towards evening and before my eyes was a vision of a fabulous village, detached not only from the plain but from the world.”
Stone houses, ancient lintels, coats of arms, majesties and chestnut groves to stroll and be inspired by, Attilio Bertoclucci spent many years of his life in this small village.
With his wife Ninetta and sons Bernardo and Giusuppe, he hosted artists and intellectuals such as Pasolini, Benigni and Bassani.
Rings develop around the house he lived in to be walked-from the culture trail to the nature trail-while a route in stages from Attilio’s house to the cemetery follows the traces of the simple life the poet recounted in his verses, some carved on nineteen stone slabs.