Nature, heritage and local character of the Oletta and Poggio d’Oletta plains

Starting from the former Saint-François Convent, this walking route takes you, between the villages of Oletta and Poggio d’Oletta, to the remains of agricultural and pastoral areas from the recent past, as well as, much further back in time, the ruins of the San Petru di Mozenzana Chapel, dating fromthe 7th century. A leap forward to the18th century brings us to the events of 25 and 26 September 1769. Inscriptions on the south façade of the convent recall the tragic story of the Poggio heroine Maria Ghjentile, whose ruined house stands in the hamlet of Monticello. Returning tothe 21st century, walkers will have had the opportunity to discover, along the route, vineyards and olive groves – ‘the two pillars of the Mediterranean terroir’ – with a superb, multifaceted wine cellar serving as the highlight.

Details

n°108601916
Creation:
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 5.02 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 1,079 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 1,086 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 866 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 233 ft
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ City: Oletta (20232)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 42.636657° / E 9.347447°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 4348OT
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Description of the walk

Parking at the Saint-François d’Oletta Convent – Departmental Road 82 between Oletta and Saint-Florent.

(S/E) Leave the car park by following Strada di u Cunventu southwards. Cross a bridge and turn right onto a track, then take the path that climbs to the right through the woodland

(1) Leave the path on the right and continue along the Strada di u Cunventu track. Pass a remarkable double thatched hut (pagliaghju) before reaching the next junction, 200 m further on. Turn left onto the Sentier de la Concia.

(2) At the highest point, the path splits into two. Turn left, towards Funtana di Mersulaccia. Further down, reach the fountain and turn right. Stay on the path until the next junction, following the signs for ‘plaine’.

(3) At the junction, leave the climb to Monticello on your right and head down to the left towards “plaine”. At the next junction, turn right at a tree with several wooden signs. Take the grassy path to the T-junction signposted “le tour de Cotolone”. Continue straight on, first through a reed bed and then under a canopy of cork oaks, until you reach the junction at the highest point.

(4) At the highest point, after passing the ruins of a farmhouse, turn left, following the orange markings and the red-and-white barrier tape. At the next junction where the footpath meets a track, head down the track to the left. At the next junction of tracks, turn left and head down the newly created track. At the next fork, head down to the right towards the west, skirting the Cotolone hill.

(5) Almost at the end of the loop around Cotolone Hill, at the inverted ‘Y’-shaped track junction, take the track on the right. Follow the signposts and the red-and-white barrier tape. At the end of the track, continue along the path which runs alongside a vineyard and then curves round it. At the gate to the vineyard, carry on straight ahead, following the local footpath lined with dry-stone walls. Leaving the path, head up to the left along a new track and reach the highest point, the northern boundary of the municipality of Oletta.

(6) Enter the territory of the municipality of Poggio d’Oletta. The view opens out onto a plain planted with vines and olive trees. Descend to the level of the first vineyard plots, leaving the vines on the slopes of Monte Magna to your right. Cross the dry Mezzano stream

(7) A few metres further on, take the path on the right into the vineyard and follow the municipal path, which is heavily overgrown and impassable. The wine and olive oil cellar, almost at the far end of the estate, is open to visitors. After going round it on the right, reach the last olive grove. Open and go through the large galvanised gate: the owners have given permission to pass through.

(8) After the gate, turn left onto a path and follow it for 200 metres, flanked by tall scrub. At the end of the path, visit the ruins of the San Petru Chapel, then return to the path and follow it up to the highest point. At the junction of the paths, turn left and head uphill towards the south-east. At the end of the climb, the path continues towards the hamlet of Monticello, which is visible in the distance. At the junction of the path and track, continue to the left, pass an earthen platform used for parking, and reach the Stradella di u Montemegna road, which has a steep incline.

(9) At the end of Stradella di u Montemagna, rejoin the Monticello road. After about a hundred metres, turn into the second alleyway on the right, Carrughju Giovanni Guidoni, and, 50 metres further on, you’ll see the ruins of Maria Ghjentile’s house. Retrace your steps, turn right and reach the RD38 – Stradda di Bastia.

(10) Leave the RD38 by taking the local footpath immediately on the right between two private properties. Follow the sign for “Chjassu di Maria”. Then, at the end of a descent of about 500 metres, you’ll reach the footpath junction you passed on the way there.

(3) Continue down to the right, towards the “convent” (wooden sign). Further on, on the flat section, continue in the same direction until you reach the nearby crossroads, where the path meets three tracks.

(11) Ignore the tracks to the right and left and take the one in the middle, still heading towards the “convent”, following the yellow paint markings. At the lowest point, cross the river via the ford, following the markings. Descend along the left bank, then take a dirt ramp leading to the local footpath.

(12) At the end of the local footpath, continue left onto the Stradella di i Frati and head towards the convent square. Leave the Stradella di i Frati on the left to return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 361 ft - Oletta, Car park at the - Ancien couvent Saint François
  2. 1 : mi 0.25 - alt. 420 ft - Junction of the footpath and the Cunventu track
  3. 2 : mi 0.64 - alt. 617 ft - Junction with the Sentier de la Concia – upper section
  4. 3 : mi 1.11 - alt. 430 ft - Plaine junction – Monticello/Poggio
  5. 4 : mi 1.58 - alt. 446 ft - Crossing of tracks
  6. 5 : mi 2.07 - alt. 312 ft - Y-junction
  7. 6 : mi 2.78 - alt. 384 ft - Vineyards
  8. 7 : mi 3 - alt. 361 ft - Communal footpath
  9. 8 : mi 3.39 - alt. 479 ft - Gate after the olive oil cellar
  10. 9 : mi 3.93 - alt. 715 ft - Stradella di u Montemagna
  11. 10 : mi 4.19 - alt. 843 ft - Junction of the D38 and the Maria trail
  12. 11 : mi 4.69 - alt. 384 ft - Crossroads between footpaths and tracks
  13. 12 : mi 4.93 - alt. 328 ft - Stradella di i Frati
  14. S/E : mi 5.02 - alt. 361 ft - Oletta, Car park at the - Ancien couvent Saint François

Notes

Water points:

(S/E) Water taps in the car park.

Between (2) and (3): Funtana di Mersulaccia.

Off the route: fountain after (10): follow Strada di Bastia for 200 m.

No shelter along the route.

Worth a visit

-(S/E) Former Convent of Saint François

-Between (2) and (3): the Rivarola family tomb and Funtana di Mersulaccia

-Between (3) and (4): former cork oak plantation and the ruins of a farmhouse

-Between (4) and (5): tower on Cotolone Hill

-Between (5) and (6): tower on Monte Magna hill

-From (6) to (8): olive and wine estate and its cellar

-Between (8) and (9): remains of the7th-century San Petru di Mozenzana chapel

-50 metres before (10): ruins of Maria Ghjentile’s house

-Between (10) and (S/E): the historic path taken by Maria Ghjentile on 26 September 1769

The story of Maria Ghjentile-Belgodère
On the night of 25–26 September 1769, Maria left her home in the hamlet of Monticello in Poggio d’Oletta and took the village path leading down to the Convent of Saint Francis in Oletta.
The day before, her fiancé and four companions had been found guilty of plotting a conspiracy against the French troops. They were sentenced to death and executed, with orders that they be denied a proper burial.
Maria, aged 20, refused to abandon her fiancé’s body and decided to defy the ban. At nightfall, she evaded the guards’ vigilance, retrieved her beloved’s body and buried it in one of the crypts of the Franciscan convent.
Beyond this incredibly courageous act, Maria went to the authorities to turn herself in and clear the name of the executed man’s parents, who had been arrested on suspicion of having removed their son’s body.
Impressed by this young woman’s courage and sense of honour, General DeVaux granted Maria his pardon and declared her free.

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