Cerreto - Monte Nerone

2/6/2013 Beautiful and long itinerary throughout the most different landscapes. The ring trail is about 15Km long and it took us over 7 hours to complete it, also because the total ascent is about 1100m.
You start and finish from the village of Cerreto, a short distance from Pianello di Cagli, and go across most of the south-east side of Mount Nerone. From Cerreto take trail 24, climbing to the north and crossing just a bit after the start the Sentiero Italia. Unfortunately, due to the heavy rains and the grown up bushes, it is not easy to see the trail very well, also because (as unfortunately it happens very often in our mountains) le signs are very few.
The first part is anyway quite easy to follow, since it runs next to the road coming up from Pianello (to always keep on your right), while on our left is the ditch of Fosso del Campo d'Aio. We climb for a long while, constantly but pleasantly, and the almost complete lack of trees allows us to enjoy the beautiful view all around (for road bicycle lovers i strongly suggest this climb, already part of a Giro d'Italia leg a few years ago), among the ginestres and a few dry walls indicating the trail in some way. After getting very near to a couple of road bends you arrive, a little before the big cross you see in front of you among some trees, to a detour on your left, with the trails going down to the water. Once on the bottom we are in front of a fantastic scenery: a real hidden waterfall, just near the ford, and the creek that flows from it stops creating some pools big enough to dip.
Once on the other side of the water there are several evident trails crossing the lawn and taking to the left, just above the wood of Fondarca. You need to keep low on the trail that will tak you, once on the crest, right inside the wood itself. Here once again the many fallen trees and the lack of signs do not help to follow the map and the trail that should climb up towards the top of Mount Nerone. Warning. You need to be very careful not to miss the first detour on the right, hidden among the trees, to avoid continuing on the trail going back down to Pieia. Once on this trail, not with little difficulty, you need to keep the altitude and always keep walking on your left until you get out of the wood and you find finally some red sign on the cliff. The signs now become very clear and guide us up on the cliff in a quite tough climb. The view you get during the inevitable stops is anyway priceless.
The climb, even if quite hard, is pleasant except for one point where you need to pay attention, Warning because the rock could be slippery and behind is a very steep rift, hidden among the trees. With a couple of steps on the rock you find some vegetation to walk on, far less slippery and dangerous. We continue keeping the altitude to follow the side of the mountain, right over the stone houses of Pieia, until the trail takes a right again climbing amongst te wood. Here is another detour where we took a left (no signs again...) and continued to hike under the rock wall on our right, almost a real bastion, until the trail climbs again to right and finally gets out of the wood. Now all around is all open and you get an almost unique view on Mount Catria, Petrano, Cucco and the valley fo Cantiano. It's much worth to stop here for a while and enjoy the outlook. On the other side, just below us, is the road coming from Pieia, while right in front are the antennas of Mount Nerone.
The trail (as we discovered once on the other side) continues in front of us, inside the wood below. We prefer to keep a little higher and pass on the side of the trees, until we find the trail again and we proceed straight to find again the road coming from Pianello. Right where we find the road is also where the Sentiero Italia starts again, and we will take it to go back down. First a wonderful tagliatella at the Cupa hut though!!
The return trail follows basically the Sentiero Italia, running sometimes next to and sometimes on the road going down to Pieia. You arrive right inside this forgotten village, passing between (and enjoying all their beauty) the Sasso del Re and the Barcone (a real miniature of 'El Capitan'). From Pieia continue following the directions to Fondarca, always on the Sentiero Italia (this time very well signalled), in a continuous up-and-down in the woods and the ditches. It will take at least another hour for this last part and tired but really satisfied and full of everything, we are back in Cerreto.