Gola su Gorropu

Location

Ogliastra
Italy
40° 9' 31.59" N, 9° 30' 28.0152" E
IT
General info: 

The Gorges of Su Gorropu, also called Europe’s Grand Canyon are located in the mountains of the Supramonte, surrounded by thick forests and wonderful oleander. This imposing natural abyss is a monumental limestone canyon, with up to 200m high walls on both sides. The canyon is 14 km long and is considered one of the deepest canyons in Europe. Inside the canyon, among white boulders, which have been smoothed and rounded by wind and water, runs the river Flumineddu. The descent is fairly easy and almost totally dry. The narrowest section has 4 rope descents separated by lakes, one of them undergound. One can discover grottoes and caves everywhere and often you can encounter big birds like the vulture, which will certainly attract your attention with its hoarse call.

Getting there: 

The corge can be reached on foot or by mountain bike and if you have some money to spare you can hire a jeep Taxi to be carried to the entrance of the gorge. The best time to explore the gorge is the early morning - from the trailhead you have to walk quite a way to get to the entrance. Not that the Flumineddu Valley is open to the sun, making it a very hot place indeed. Another reason for starting early is the popularity of the gorge. Though far away from anything the jeep taxis carry a lot of people to the entrance and the narrow walls throw back echoes all over the place.

Costs: 

Admission fee: € 2.50 - € 5.00 Lengthof time: 3.5h for the journey there

Interesting places nearby

The Chamrousse ski resort is at the situated just at the entrance to an area known as the Belledonne, only 30km from Grenoble.

The traditional mountain village of Charmey lies at the heart of La Gruyère. As a guest here you will benefit from a highly developed tourist infrastructure within a pristine landscape.

Château-d’Oex an outstanding snow region, excellent ski-lifts and pistes that connect to each other.

Enjoy the unique atmosphere of Châtel, a traditional styled mountain village which, in winter, transforms into ski resort.

The main village of Valmalenco is situated at 1000 m above the sea level; surrounded by forests and streams flowing close to it since it is the meeting point of two of them: Lanterna and Mallero.

Chur, the oldest city of Switzerland, possesses an own winter sports area on the local mountain. The high plateau (1600 metres above sea level) is achievable by ropeway, directly from the city.