Hiking & Fishing in Sardinia | Tavolara | Isola dell'Ogliastra | Porto Flavia

Hiking & Fishing in Sardinia | Tavolara | Isola dell'Ogliastra | Porto Flavia | Grotte Is Zuddas

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In August I sailed with my friends for a week around the east coast of Sardinia, from Porto Cervo to Cagliari, stopping in different places along the way. Almost every morning at sunrise we went fishing in a small boat, or I went hiking, thus reducing my sleeping schedule to an average of a mere 4 hours per night. It was worth it though, for Sardinia is a remarkable place, where all manner of landscapes interact with each other and where there are spots of abundant wildlife and rare species.
One of the most impressive locations was Tavolara. Filled with legends and mysteries, the former kingdom is a landscape wonder. Part beach, part limestone mountain, the island is home to endemic species of thorny knapweed, a radiogoniometric NATO station and descendants of the King of Tavolara. In ancient times Tavolara used to be known as Hermea and later as Tolar, when Arab ships used it in order to attack other coasts. In 1815 it was visited by Joachim Murat in his attempt to capture the Kingdom of Naples and in 1836 it was given to the Giuseppe Bertoleoni as the Kingdom of Tavolara by Charles Albert, King of Sardinia. However, most of the population has been displaced in 1962, when the NATO station was built. Few families remain on the island, one of them being the Bertoleonis, who run the local restaurant.
Isola dell'Ogliastra was another Sardinian wonder that awaited us. Known in ancient times as Heralubra, or the Baths of Hera, the island has been visited since the 4th Century BCE, according to ceramic fragments discovered there. It has sheltered sailors for years and it is said that 600 gold sequins belonging to Saracen pirates have been found hidden amongst the rocks. Nowadays it is home to many rare sea birds.
The last day of our journey was a very hot and humid one. However we got the chance to visit Porto Flavia. Named after Cesare Vecelli’s daughter, the harbour was built in a remarkably short two-year period in order to facilitate better loading operations for the Masua mines. After studying the coast for a year, the engineer found the place that would allow safe mooring and designed the 2 tunnels and 9 reservoirs that were able to hold a total of 10 000 metric tones of ore. The harbour cut mining costs by an astounding 70%. It overlooks the Pan di Zucchero island, known as the Sugarloaf, a prime hiking and climbing destination.
We also went to the Is Zuddas Cave, which was sculpted by water over the last 530 million years. Deep inside Mount Meana, the cave is full of stalactites and stalagmites, but also features unique helictites, that make the ceiling of the cave look like an underwater world.
Sardinia is a fascinating place with a very interesting history and I am hoping to go back one day and explore its other islands, coasts, beautiful towns and inland mountains.
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