SI S04
Hiking
This is a medium-length stage with a significant elevation gain, reaching nearly 1500 meters in altitude while skirting the Vallo di Diano to the west. Starting from Piaggine, a long ascent, at times quite steep, leads towards Monte Motola, before entering a valley that provides access to the saddle separating it from Monte Vivo. The trail descends from the northern slope to around 1000 meters before climbing again towards Cocuzzo delle Puglie. At Piano della Montagnola, the ascent gives way to a slightly descending path that crosses Varco della Montagnola and continues gently downhill on a wider dirt road until it intersects with SS166. A brief climb of about a hundred meters leads towards Passo della Sentinella, where a small road ascends towards Monte Timpone. Bypassing the peaks, it passes beneath the monument commemorating the incident involving the helicopter ambulance of Asl Sa3 in 1997, and descends to Casone d’Aresta, home to an amateur astronomical observatory at the site where a shepherd's shelter once stood.
