871 - Monte Corona

A short route that straddles the lower Cembra Valley and the Adige Valley. After the first forested section on Monte Corona, the route, which offers splendid views of both valleys, runs mainly on roads with little traffic that pass through the famous terraced vineyards of Mueller Thurgau and fragrant apple orchards, touching on the birthplaces of cycling champions Francesco Moser and Gilberto Simoni. From the village of Masen we head along the asphalt road in the direction of Faedo as far as Croce delle Serre where, bending to the left, first on a path and then on a forest road we climb the slopes of Monte Corona, from the summit of which there is a splendid panorama of the Cembra valley below and the western foothills of the Lagorai chain. From the summit, on a path that is not difficult, we rejoin the forest road that, with increasingly steep slopes, descends towards the Croce pass. Shortly after the pass, continue to descend between apple orchards and vineyards in the direction of the Spiazol farmstead from where, on the left, a short dirt track begins, leading just below maso Toldin. With a short ascent and then stretches of false level, passing several farms from which you can admire the Adige valley below and the Brenta Dolomites, and following the signs for the 'Sentiero della Rosa' (Rose Path), you begin to climb towards the hamlet of Palù di Giovo. Along the ascent, surrounded by vineyards, we find the small church of S. Giorgio, a place of hermitage since the beginning of the 1400s. When you reach Palù, take the road leading to the cemetery and climb steeply up towards the village of Ville di Giovo, from where the last stretch of dirt track soon takes you back to Masen.