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WARNING: trekking is not like walking! If you can't overcome a passage, go back!
Some of the tracks presented here are set along mountain trails where some passages may require holding to ropes or climbing short ladders, and may have exposed passages without safety protections. These tracts can be a serious danger if faced without the right equipment, awareness and physical condition.
ITINERARIUM® has no responsibility regarding the tracks presented here, their dangerousness, accessibility, praticability and safety. Who decides to take these tracks does it at their own risk.

Hike to Monte Fenera among caves, towns and its peak

Ciotarun, Ciota Ciara: the oldest prehistoric site of Piedmont

Valsesia

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length icon Length:
7 Km
time icon Our time:
3h00' walking
climb icon Total climb:
600 mt
height icon Min and max height:
380 mt - 900 mt
track ring icon Type of track:
ring track
surface icon Surface:
trail
panorama icon Panorama:
caves - mountain - towns
coverage icon Cell network coverage:
very poor
winter icon Traced in winter:
no
bike icon Traced by bike:
no

The itinerary winds along the western side of Monte Fenera, the oldest prehistoric site in Piedmont, included in the Natural Park of the same name, protected by the Sesia Valley Protected Areas Management Authority.

Mount Fenera is mainly made up of sedimentary rocks: an extraordinary testimony to when the sea still invaded the Po Valley until it reached the valleys and right here, in Valsesia, it deposited various sediments, so much so that it is possible to find forms of molluscs and subtropical flora.

This place is full of particularities, among all the numerous caves formed following the phenomenon of karst, that is, the chemical process that water exerts on particular rocks, in this case limestone-dolomite rocks. The water penetrates deeper and deeper, creating galleries, wells and caves, even large ones.

In the Ciotarun Cave, the remains of the Cave Bear, bison, hyena and even numerous human remains were found, including a tooth, a sign of the presence of Neanderthal man, who lived here about 300,000 years ago. Today these remains are exhibited at the Archaeological Museum of Turin.

Numerous remains attributed to Neanderthal man have also been found in the Grotta della Ciota Ciara, or "clear cave". This cave has, in the Tower Room, spectacular stalactites and stalagmites and the Bat Room, as the name indicates, is frequented by bats who spend part of their lives here.

The caves are not free to access.


Traveled on: Apr 6th, 2024
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