The Route
It begins in the Apennine mountain chain, at its highest pick Gran Sasso d’Italia, then crosses the entire Alpine Arc and finishes in Trieste. It covers the most difficult half of Grand Italian Trail, which entirely has been hiked only by one person – Lorenzo Franco Santin – who needed two attempts to complete it in 2017.
Total distance: over 3 500 km, about 180 000 m difference in level
Timeframes: May – Aug/Sep 2018 (about 120 days)
Start: Settefrati (FR) – Finish: Lazzaretto (TS)
The stages:
- Gran Sasso d’Italia – the highest mountain of central Italy
- Amatrice, Castelluccio and the zone of the terrible 2016 earthquake
- River Tiber’s springs
- Apennine between Tuscany and Romagna crossing the Italian National Park of Foreste Casentinesi
- Alpi Liguri Natural Regional Park
- Monte Viso and River Po’s springs
- Gran Paradiso National Park
- Detour from the Grand Italian Trail to reach Courmayeur and Aosta Valley
- Alta Via n1 Aosta Valley reaching Mont Blanc, Matterhorn and Monte Rosa
- Alpe Veglia and Alpe Devero Natural Park
- Como Lake and Monti Lariani Trail 1 and 2
- The Bernina Range
- Stelvio National Park
- Detour to cross Adamello-Presanella Alps and Brenta Dolomites
- Detour to walk the TRANSLAGORAI (a 50 km path and 4 500 m difference level in a very wild region with the presence of bear, lynx and wolves)
- Re-catch of the Grand Italian Trail by Arabba (Dolomites) or:
- Possible detour to Fassa Valley and it’s Unesco World Heritage Peaks (depending of the time available)
- Fanes-Sennes-Braies Natural Park and Tre Cime Natural reserve
- Carnics Alps and the sites of the first World War
- Finishing line at Trieste
