‘Strada de la fan’ in Combai, a historical route among the chestnut trees
A historical path among the chestnut trees
Access: park in Combai, near the “Castagno d’Oro” restaurant. Walk for 200 meters in the direction of Valdobbiadene up to a bend where you will find the ascent sign for path 1024.
Difference in altitude: about 350 meters.
Journey time: two hours.
Difficulty: none
We present a trip suitable for everyone, also possible in half a day. It is an interesting route from a naturalistic point of view, but above all from a historical point of view, because you walk on a road built by the inhabitants of the area, with compulsory work, during the First World War in the period of Austrian occupation. The command of the Austrian Engineers designed the road, of which in many sections you can still see the pavement, the edge to drain the water, and some walls on the hairpin bends that have recently been restored. This road was to be used for the transport of the cannons that bombed beyond the Piave, and was called “de la fan” due to the hunger that especially the women and children fatigued by the construction work and poorly fed had to suffer.
Walking along the mule track (n. 1024, pay attention to any mountain bikes that come downhill), we immediately add the quiet medieval village of Colmellere. We go up from there following the signs and frequently encountering the classic chestnut trees, which already in ancient times, for food needs, had replaced the oaks.
Always slightly uphill along a wide dirt road we reach Casere Pardolin; after these on the left we find the sign of our itinerary, and from this point we walk right on the pavement laid during the great war; we feel a certain emotion reading the information and looking at the photos of the time on the tables that show the explanations on the dramatic history of the “street of the fan”. After a few bends we arrive at Case Costolada, at almost 700 meters, dominated by large ancient beech trees, in a magical forest of different species of trees. Here we make a necessary stop, to start descending on the right, meeting the ruins of old buildings, and finally entering the Pecol valley: after a steep section we arrive at the “Pecol sentà” where we find an excellent table with bench.
We continue the descent while the road becomes cemented, towards Combai, and before the village we take the right along the panoramic road along the coast. We stop to admire the capital of S. Vittore and go up to the village of Collmellere to complete the ring.
The excursion does not require special equipment and can be done with sports shoes.
NB. Anyone wishing to extend it, wandering on other scenic routes, can go up again after the Costolada houses, or turn left after the Pecol sentà in the direction of the Prade houses.
Itinerary of Cesare Biadene, hiker and mountaineer. Photo by Cesare Biadene
e-mail: cbiadene@fastwebnet.it
Article taken from www.marcaaperta.it
