Sibillini trail 279: Santuario di Macereto – Monte Rotondo

The route of Sibillini trail 279

For the first one and a half kilometers trail 279 coincides with stage 1 of the Grande Anello dei Sibillini, across the pastures of the Macereto plains, and climbs little. Then the ascent becomes steady, at around 18 percent, up to about 1,855 m at km 5.5, below the Croce di Monte Rotondo. Around km 4 it meets trail 280, which runs from the Bivacco Piani di Pao to the Fonte Scentelle.

A short rolling stretch follows: at km 6.4 the trail crosses the Forcella della Banditella, at 1,790 m, where trail 321 arrives. The last kilometer is the steepest, about 250 m of elevation gain, up to the summit of Monte Rotondo, where trail 276 also arrives.

Trail 279 technical details

There is a drinking water point at the sanctuary; higher up, along the trail, there are none.

Points of interest along Sibillini trail 279

The sanctuary, according to the Comune di Visso, was built from 1529 around a small church of 1359, erected where, according to tradition, a mule carrying a statue of the Madonna from Ancona to the Kingdom of Naples knelt down and refused to move on. The Park notes that the ancient pilgrim route to Loreto passed this way, and that the sanctuary, octagonal and in the style of Bramante, is now unsafe and closed. From the Macereto plains, the Park adds, the walls of Monte Bove Nord can be seen, dropping 700 m to the Valle di Ussita and the Val di Panico.