The best MTB trails around Ferriere

In the summer period, you can easily walk across.

Beautiful place. Worth a stop.

Pleasant hut immersed in nature. We had a coffee, decent although it was inside a thermos, and a slice of potato cake. Good, but the portions are "for tasting"… For €3, a potato cake cannot be a tiny slice with just two bites… Portions aside, the place is worth a stop.

Arriving there is a surprising discovery, an open, restful, and expansive vision: the impression is of arriving in a separate territory, distinct from that in which the common human consortium takes place. There are some Prato Grande meadows scattered throughout the mountainous regions of Italy. Ours, here in the high Piacenza Apennines, extends at around 1,450 meters above sea level, on the right bank of the Nure stream, in the municipality of Ferriere; we are in the area of high-altitude prairies, within which it forms the ideal link between the expanses of Lake Moo and Prato Molle to the north, and that of Prato Bure, to the south. The northern peak of Mount Ragola (1,767 meters) dominates the southwest, imposing itself on hikers who approach it by climbing from the basin of Lake Bino, topped by characteristic rocky outcrops and graced, in July and August, by the fleshy flowers of the yellow water lily. On the eastern flank, Prato Grande is lapped by the Lardana stream, which here flows slowly, little more than a stream, before plunging into a charming waterfall where the plateau ends, near the Rocca dell'Aquila. Beyond Lardana extend the vast foothills of Mount Camulara, also known locally as Lazzarina. Soft underfoot in the summer, when dozens of cattle and Bardigiano horses graze, the meadow is covered in a steady, compact blanket of snow in the winter, which lasts until March, glowing pink on full moon nights. It is precisely on this splendid plateau that in 2006, the Pro Loco Ferriere, in an effort to enhance the area's tourism offerings, built the "Monte Ragola" mountain hut in collaboration with the Municipality. The idea stemmed from the awareness that the upper Nure Valley has always been a popular destination for hiking enthusiasts, as it is home to many of the most beautiful spots in the Piacenza Apennines. With this in mind, we built this mountain hut, which serves as a stopover and base for everyone, from experts to beginners, who wish to spend a day of sport and relaxation in our mountains. Since its inception, the refuge has hosted several groups of hikers who come to the mountain not only on foot but also by bicycle or on horseback, offering them a quiet and simple place to eat and rest before continuing their journey. Since the 2006/07 season, our tourism offering has not been limited to the summer months; our activities have never stopped in the winter either. Thanks to the management of a cross-country ski trail starting from the Zovallo Pass and the organization of various snowshoe excursions, many people have had the opportunity to experience our Apennines even in the particularly charming season of winter, all in complete safety. Source: Proloco Ferriere

http://www.castellodigambaro.it/ The name Gambaro is of Lombard origin and appears for the first time in a diploma of King Ratchis in 747, with which this territory was assigned to the monastery of Bobbio. In the late Middle Ages, Gambaro came into the possession of the Malaspina, a large marquis family originally from Lunigiana that expanded up to the Ligurian-Emilian Apennines. The Malaspina family is responsible for the construction of the current castle (probably at the beginning of 1500), powerful and severe, all in local stone, but also soberly elegant, with the typical Renaissance plan with a central courtyard and four towers at the corners. When the Malaspina of Gambaro died out in 1624, the castle passed to the Farnese ducal chamber and then, in 1687, to the Landi of Rivalta. The Landi, around 1785, sold the castle to the Bacigalupi, a family of Genoese who owned it until the 1930s. During the Napoleonic domination the castle was the seat of the “mairie” (municipality). The members of the Bacigalupi family usually held the position of priest, notary and local administrator. In the twentieth century the castle had various owners, it was the seat of a school and a farm. Finally, from the 1960s it underwent a more serious degradation, abandoned to collapses, demolitions and the removal of valuable architectural elements. The protection constraint was placed by the responsible ministry in 1985. In the last decade it has been restored to obtain a residential and reception place. The town of Gambaro is located in the province of Piacenza, in Alta Valnure at 860 m above sea level, in the municipality of Ferriere, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It is a regional and provincial border area as it borders the provinces of Parma and Genoa. The upper Valnure is wedged to the southwest at the base of the highest mountains of the Ligurian-Emilian Apennines such as Mount Ragola, Mount Bue, Mount Nero, Mount Maggiorasca. From the tops of these mountains on clear days you can see the Ligurian sea. We are an hour's drive from Piacenza and an hour and a half from Chiavari. The village is located four km from the capital Ferriere, on the provincial road n. 654 that leads to Liguria.

Always fresh water... Temperature of 6-9°

Even if the snow has frozen, a nice trek is guaranteed!

Situated on a plateau of mixed Beech and Fir trees and equipped with a wood stove and a sleeping loft. Small spring nearby