On the way to Vagli Lake, Campocatino and Eremo di San Viano

In the morning, at Vagli di Sotto, visit to the suspension bridge and Vagli Lake, which, when drained for maintenance work, magically re-emerges as the ghostly ruins of a ghost town: Fabbriche di Careggine.

Then we drive for 15 minutes to Campocatino, a LIPU (Italian League for Bird Protection) Oasis located in the beautiful scenery of the Apuan Alps, enclosed to the north by the peaks of Monte Pisanino and to the south by Monte Sumbra.

We will walk along the Campocatino Nature Trail. This is a short circular walk that allows you to visit the entire glacial origin basin of Campocatino. Starting from the "caselli" of the old alpine pastureland, crossing the shelves that were once worked, we arrive at the beech woods at the foot of the wall of Mount Roccandagia. From here a walk of about 2 hours (tot 4km and 200m+) towards the Eremo di San Viano, a rupestrian church set in the rock at about 1090 metres above sea level. In this inhospitable place, the Blessed Viviano (Viano) lived his life as a hermit, feeding himself by the wild cabbages that miraculously grew in abundance on the bare rocky walls. 

On return from the excursion, packed lunch at Campocatino. 

To finish the day, a 15-minute drive to the "Olimpio Cammelli" Museum of the Identity of the Upper Garfagnana in Gorfigliano. This is a structure of absolute historical interest, because it is dedicated to the material culture of the Garfagnana territory, and exhibits objects and machinery relating to domestic life, peasant life and productive activities such as marble quarrying, dating mainly from the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century.