Spring is the perfect season to discover the wonders of Selvaggio Blu, a five-day trek in the Gulf of Orosei, along the eastern coast of Sardinia. Adventure, a bit of effort, unspoiled nature and breathtaking landscapes await you!
Selvaggio Blu is a path in stages, drawn at the end of the eighties by Mario Verin and Peppino Cicalò, tracing the paths of the local shepherds, crossing cliffs overlooking the sea and climbing up isolated hills covered with thick vegetation. The openers recount the initial mistrust of the shepherds in revealing the hidden passages used to move in an area that seems in many places impossible to cross, overcome only with time, after understanding the attraction of this trek for tourists and then its potential for the local economy.
Nowadays, those wishing to undertake this trek can rely on local cooperatives and associations, which offer support in the provision of food (which takes place by sea or by land) and which provide expert guides. It is a service that each group can customize based on the experience people wants to do. The Selvaggio Blu that I am telling you, was a journey in almost complete autonomy: without a guide, but with the use of map and GPS, bringing in the backpack what is
strictly necessary, camping in the open air with mattress, sleeping bag and stove gas. In three points along the way, me and my friends, found supplies of water and food, thanks to the support of a local association.
The route of Selvaggio Blu starts from Pedra Longa and arrives at Cala Sisine, for a total of about 50 km. The stages are often long and tiring but the beauty of the landscape makes you forget the effort! Along the way you will encounter beautiful sheepfolds built in pebbles and juniper woods, hidden caves, bays with clear and clean water and you can cross landslides and cliffs, walking on sharp rocks and wooden walkways. In some places you can meet rocky walls to climb up, in others the only way to continue, is rappelling, along walls overlooking the sea.
The trail is indicate with blue markings on rocks and tree trunks, which are often barely visible, especially where the trail becomes more difficult and intricate. For this reason it is very easy to get lost, also because other paths and ancient mule tracks of the charcoal burners, cross the track like threads in a ball of yarn! The risk, if you lose the right way, is not to be able to reconnect to the original route, and then not to arrive at the end of the stage, due to the morphology of the territory, which creates impassable points for the presence of rocky jumps or dense forests. But with map and GPS, it becomes a real adventure, a fun treasure hunt that gives great satisfaction!
Selvaggio Blu: the trekking in the shepherds’ Sardinia in 5 stages
Here are the stages we have walked:
First stage: Pedra Longa – Us Piggius
It is a short journey of “approach” to the Selvaggio Blu. You leave the civilization to enter the Mediterranean spot. Passing under imposing rocky walls you reach a saddle at about 600m above the sea level, where you meet a sheepfold. We slept a little further, under a big oak tree.
Second Stage: Us Piggius – Portu Pedrosu
From here you start to really breathe the air of the Selvaggio Blu, walking on sharp rocks along the coast and descending into the “bacu”, deep beds dug by streams that slope towards the sea. It is a rather long and complex stage, where the trace of the path is not always visible. You will find fantastic passages on juniper woods and on climbing walls. The bay where we stopped for the night is a small paradise of clear water and fragrant nature.
Third Stage: Poru Pedrosu – Cala Goloritzè
Beautiful stage that goes through deep bacu up to a beautiful sheepfold, reaches breathtaking panoramic points, rises to Punta Salinas and then goes back to the famous Cala Goloritzè.
Here a dip in the sea is a must and for the night you will find fantastic pitches in the pine forest, overlooking the bay.
Fourth Stage: Cala Goloritzè – Bacu Sufelau
From the bay you walk into the solitary mountains and then, along a long ridge, move back towards the coast. Here you walk along very exposed ledges and under the vault of magnificent caves. After some descents and technical steps, you reach a characteristic rocky arch, which marks the entrance to Bacu Sufelau. We walked it all along, away from the sea, to sleep in a comfortable pitch in the forest.
Fifth Stage: Bacu Sufelau – Cala Sisine
Characteristic of this stage is the cross that runs along the coast and leads to the famous beach of Cala Sisine. You must cross very exposed points on the cliffs and rappel in several points. Getting to the beach is really a great satisfaction! The return to Santa Maria Navarrese can be done by sea or by land, relying on local associations.
The Selvaggio Blu is a trekking certainly not easy and not to be underestimated: it requires good physical preparation and an excellent sense of orientation, as well as spirit of adaptation. For five days you will not meet anyone, maybe just some other hiker! The landscapes that you cross are unique and make this trekking a real pearl in a land, Sardinia, already extraordinary in itself.
Author: Anita Cason
Pictures by Giorgio Cordin, Matteo Osele e Giulia Fattoretti