Monte Pollino from Colle dell'Impiso
From the beech wood of Colle dell'Impiso you cross the great pastures of the high plains to Colle Gaudolino, then climb the ridge among the Bosnian pines to the summit that gives the park its name, with views from the Tyrrhenian to the Ionian Sea.
- Difficulty
- E Hiking
- Length
- 11 km
- Elevation gain
- +880 m / −880 m
- Time
- 5–6 hours round trip
- Route
- Out and back
- Altitude
- 1457–2231 m
- Season
- Summer Autumn
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The story
The Pollino National Park, created in 1993 across Basilicata and Calabria, is the largest in Italy. Its symbol is the pino loricato (Bosnian pine), a Balkan pine left up here since the last Ice Age, whose plated bark recalls armour, the lorica of Roman legionaries. Some of the oldest trees in Europe grow on the slopes of the massif.
Why go
Because it is one of the finest climbs in the southern Apennines, among thousand-year-old pines and horizons over two seas.
Practical information
- Start
- Colle dell'Impiso (about 1570 m), reached by car from Rotonda
- Finish
- Summit of Monte Pollino (2248 m); return the same way
- Best time
- June–October
- Parking
- At Colle dell'Impiso, along the road.
- By public transport
- You need a car.
- Water
- A few springs on the high plains, not always flowing: bring at least two litres.
- Shade
- Beech wood in the first part, then pastures and rock in the sun.
- Huts and refreshments
- No staffed huts along the route.
- With children
- Only with fit teenagers: almost 800 metres of ascent, at altitudes above 2000 metres.
Weather at the start
The forecast for the next 7 days at this spot: sky, temperatures, rain and wind.
Forecast by Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0), from the models of national weather services. Your browser downloads it directly from Open-Meteo, and only when you ask. In the mountains and at sea the weather changes quickly: check the official forecast as well before you set off.
What to see on the route and nearby
More hikes in Basilicata
- 1From the Sassi of Matera to the Murgia, across the GravinaE 3.7 km · +190 m · 2–2.5 hours · point to point
- 2Path of the Seven Stones, from Castelmezzano to PietrapertosaT 2 km · +270 m · 1–1.5 hours · point to point
Routes © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via Waymarked Trails and BRouter; elevations from a digital terrain model. Times and elevation gains are indicative: waymarks on the ground and closure orders always take precedence.