Circular trail Rezzoaglio - Monte Roccabruna - Monte Gifarco - Brignole

This is a trail that develops in the lower part of the Val D'Aveto, bordering the Val Trebbia. It can be done all year round but is not recommended in wet conditions due to the final climb to Monte Gifarco, which can be slippery.

The starting point is Rezzoaglio, about an hour's drive from the Lavagna exit, following the SS 586 from Carasco, with parking available around the church.
The village, which has bars and grocery stores, is also reachable by bus from Chiavari.

Keep the church of San Michele Arcangelo on the right and follow the paved road toward Esola, crossing the bridge over the Aveto River until you find a path with a railing on the left that climbs toward the hill where the hamlet is located.

Esola is a delightful discovery with its narrow streets, stone houses, and ancient washhouse.
Crossing the lower part of the village, continue uphill to intersect the carriage road and proceed toward the upper houses, then follow a dirt road through fields, passing a lovely chapel with a drinking water tap.

At a junction, the trail marker indicates the path, a forest road that climbs, sometimes steeply, through the woods to a spacious plain where you need to find the trail marker to continue in the right direction.

Always keeping an eye on the trail markers on the trees, continue climbing and enter a beautiful beech forest, the backdrop for the ascent to Passo Esola (about 2 hours from Rezzoaglio).

From here, you can head in different directions; our route follows the marker through another section of forest before reaching the ridge and continuing flat, with Monte Gifarco ahead, until a junction where you proceed right, following .

The trail now climbs directly to the summit, walking without difficulty on rocky terrain, reaching the summit cross of Monte Roccabruna (1415 m). Characterized by exposed rocks, it offers a wide view encompassing Val Trebbia, Val D'Aveto, all the peaks of the Apennines, and, towards the sea, the entire coast.
A spectacular view invites a lunch break here.

Descend a few meters along the same trail to the junction where, near a large rock, you will find an unmarked path on the right that leads in ten minutes to the slopes of Monte Gifarco. From here, always keeping the right, you reach the challenging section: a narrow rocky gully that requires the use of hands. It's a short climb, but it can become dangerous if the rock is wet, especially on the descent.

The rocky summit of Monte Gifarco (1380 m) is not only renowned for its panoramic views but also for a curious sword embedded in the rock that attracts many hikers.

Retrace the rocky section to return to the base, and this time follow a short connection back to the trail marked with , which was left earlier to climb Roccabruna, and follow it to the right.

The trail gently descends to Passo Gifarco, where you ignore the detour to Fontanigorda and continue left, always guided by the marker , to reach Passo del Fante plain (1261 m) shortly.
Take the left trail that descends to another meadow, even larger than the previous one.

You cross it by entering the woods without a well-defined trail, so pay close attention to the marker to navigate the descent.
If markers are not visible for some time, it is advisable to backtrack to the last one seen.

For about 6 kilometers, the route is a series of ascents and descents through the beech forest, crossing several streams, a couple of which are more challenging and may be difficult to pass after rain.

Reaching a dirt road, continue descending toward the first houses of Brignole, accessed by crossing a chain.

The typical village of Val D'Aveto is worth a visit to admire the architecture of some houses, ancient portals, and the church.
Here, you can also find a drinking water tap.

Following the carriage road, reach the SS 586, which you follow to the right for about a hundred meters until the hamlet of Molini, consisting of a handful of houses, where you take the trail that climbs to the left.

This is a flat woodland path that avoids the paved road, and in just over 20 minutes, passing through the locality Calcinara, with a final crossing on a small bridge, ends at Isolarotonda.

Here, the state road is found again, which in a few minutes leads to Rezzoaglio, where the itinerary ends.

In Rezzoaglio there are certain exceptional places where you can buy local products from the Val d'Aveto, such as meat, cheese, and honey.

The path on Google Map

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