Along the Wave Trail

Open
Difficulty: Average
Length: 7.2 km

The Sentiero dell'Onda (wave trail) offers breathtaking sea views over Gallinara island and the marina. With gentle ups and downs, it runs through the dense Mediterranean brush of myrtle, holm oak and rockrose.

I suggest you a demanding, but very scenic circular trail that also passes alongthe Sentiero dell'onda. To access this trail you need to get to Piazza Stalla, at the junction between Viale Hanbury and Via Milano. From here, cross the narrow railway line underpass and start climbing along the mule track (way marker ) until you reach the village of Solva. Past the hamlet, you continue to climb along the ridge through the scents of the Mediterranean brush until you reach a mountain pass at an altitude of 350 m., where several paths converge. Take the one signed Sentiero dell’Onda ().

The trail is marked with red wave way markers () and weaves its way along the mountainside, parallel to the Via Iulia Augusta but much higher up. Just over halfway along the trail, you will cross the Alta Via Baia del Sole footpath ( e ) that climbs to Monte Bignone.

This trail is high up the hillside, rewarding you with wonderful views over the whole bay.

LBL_DETTAGLI_PERCORSO:

Difficulty	Average
Distance	7.2 km
Highest point	518 mt
Route time	180'

To reach the starting point of the hike which is just behind the railway line, you have to pass through a short tunnel in Viale Hanbury facing the gardens of Piazza Stalla then take the old mule track uphill to Solva. It takes about 25 minutes to arrive at the houses in the hillside hamlet of Solva ().

You pass the parish Church and the square where the annual ‘Sagra delle biscette’ (sweet fritters festival) takes place, a drinking fountain and the eastern part of the village crossed by Via Fugassa.

Beyond the old historic centre, the mule track runs along the ridge of the hill, passing recently constructed residential buildings set amidst olive groves and Mediterranean scrub. After walking one and a half kilometres and 300 metres in height difference, you come to a paved road at a bend, but you continue on uphill.

When you reach the last villa, in the shade of a group of pine trees, you come to the picnic area set up by the Società Operaia di Solva. The path cuts southwards from here down a slope lined with large drystone walls that enclose abandoned olive groves. After about 200 metres, you arrive at the hilltop near Santa Croce Church: at a crossroads at an altitude of 350 metres, there are signposts for the Church, the Bignone summit and the “Sentiero dell'onda” (follow the way marker ). This last track continues for over one and a half kilometres.

A series of long ups and downs begins with the path running along a very steep slope, offering extensive panoramic views of the bay of Sant'Anna, the harbour and Gallinara Island. After an initial stretch in the shade of holm oaks, the vegetation thins out into bushes and patches of scrub, revealing a view of the sea below. You are now getting close to the water divide between the Baia del Sole and the Centa basin, passing through groves of hornbeams, manna ashes and downy oaks that do not cause orientation problems: just remember to bypass the two turnoffs that lead downwards.

When you reach the ridge, you then join the Alta Via della Baia del Sole and follow the water divide uphill ( e ).

Under the cover of rapidly regrowing woodlands after wildfires, you climb uphill at a steady pace. An incredible scenic view from a panoramic terrace opens up, extending from the Gulf of Genoa to the Ligurian Alps, with the Albenga plain stretching out below.

A particularly steep slope seems to lead to the summit, but it turns out to be only an anti-peak; you have to continue further through the pass of holm oak woodland for 300 metres and only after another ten minutes, reach the eastern summit of the Mount Bignone at an altitude of 520 metres.

After exploring the ruins of military constructions, the route leads to the crossroads between the two peaks, marked by a votive shrine. After walking for another five kilometres, you start going downhill, which will take about three quarters of an hour: a gravel track meanders along the southern ridge of the mountain, winding its way through patches of senecones offering beautiful views of the Baía del Sole. The last few bends lead back to the crossroads where the “sentiero dell’onda” begins: you retrace your original route () back to the town again.