Un luogo magico dove, 100 anni fa, la vita scorreva lenta ed in armonia con la natura.
Walking in San Vito Lo Capo can reserve incredible surprises.
Discovering this territory, on a Sunday in May, we left from Macari to reach the Riserva dello Zingaro . A beautiful climb took our breath away, but it was really worth it, because once we reached the top, above the pass, we could admire the two seas that stood out in front of us: the gulf of Macari to the west and on the opposite side the gulf of Castellamare with a view of the blue waters of the reserve.
This breathtaking landscape alone was worth all the effort we had already made, but discovering some small orchids gave us an additional reason to be happy.
But our destination was a timeless place that we had heard about for a long time, but which had not yet revealed itself to our eyes.
In the upper area of the Zingaro Reserve , in fact, there is the fascinating Borgo Cusenza : a handful of little houses where time has stopped.
After crossing the pass, a nice descent took us to this group of houses very well preserved and maintained, but today totally silent. We were welcomed by the inactive ovens in front of the closed doors and a small museum of this very precious peasant civilization. The scent of the many aromatic plants, with eyes closed, took us back many years ago when this village resounded with the voices of children and many people at work.
It's a little gem that makes us understand how difficult and hard life was in places like this, just 100 years ago.
Its peculiarity consists in having been a very isolated Baglio , located at about 400 m above sea level, and it is remembered as a totally self-sufficient community where, until the end of 1800, 14 families lived autonomously.
The inhabitants of the village cultivated cereals, in particular an ancient grain, timilia, and vegetables; the village was surrounded by expanses of olive trees and vineyards.
They also had a small cellar for the production of wine with a press from 1876, an oil mill and a mill for cereals. In addition, the community was dedicated to raising animals that gave them meat, milk and means of transport.
They were also experts in the ancient art of weaving, creating baskets and ropes using native plants.
After experiencing this enchantment we went down towards the sea, from a path along a very steep and rugged, but extremely fascinating, canyon. Cork trees with fantastic shapes
stood out on our left, while on our right we admired prehistoric caves that still bore traces of the man who had inhabited them.
Among these enchanting views we reached the sea below us in a flash between stories from ancient books and photos of a landscape that never tires of surprising.
A fantastic swim in the blue waters of the Tonnarella dell'Uzzo cove (the first cove you come across when you reach the northern entrance to the Reserve) completed our beautiful excursion.
by Roberta Zaccarini Fazio #walkingwithoutborders
Useful information
Departure for the Zingaro Reserve from Macari – Arrival: North Entrance of the Zingaro Reserve (San Vito Lo Capo side).
About 400 meters of ascent
about 650 meters descent
Total Km. approximately 12
Duration approximately 6 hours: 4 of which are actual walking.
Tips: Bring at least 1.5 litres of water, trekking boots and, if possible, walking poles.
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