Trail 336, Cessapalombo: Torrente Fiastrone – Grotta dei Frati

The route of trail 336

From the streambed the trail climbs immediately, with an average gradient of 18 percent, and has no level sections. The first 400 meters coincide with stage 5 of the Cammino Francescano della Marca. At the top it reaches trail 335, which leads in about 250 meters to the Grotta dei Frati: the cave is at 620 m, next to a small church.

Trail 336 technical details

Trail 336 is one of the three trails of the Park's hiking route E2, "Il silenzio degli eremi" (The silence of the hermitages): from the Lago del Fiastrone to the Grotta dei Frati on trail 335, then down to the stream on trail 336 and up to Monastero on trail 341. It is 7.7 km, 800 m of elevation gain and 3 hours and 10 minutes one way; difficulty EE.

From the dam to the junction for the Lame Rosse, route E2 is passable; from there to the junction for the Grotta dei Frati there are isolated interruptions that can be bypassed. From the junction for the Grotta dei Frati to Monastero, the section formed by trails 336 and 341, the interruptions are many and make the route impassable.

Points of interest along trail 336

The Grotta dei Frati, overlooking the gorge, was a hermitage of the Clareni monks, dissident Franciscans, who abandoned it in the early 17th century because of the hostility of the local population. Trail 342 also starts from the point where trail 336 touches the stream; it enters the gorge and is closed on the section in the streambed.