and both areas were jointly referred to as the Kingdom of Sardinia.
Sardinia's history and heritage is often celebrated by murals painted on the walls of houses
A succession of wars led to the unity of states on the Italian peninsula, and by 1861 the Kingdom of Sardinia became the Kingdom of Italy. After the Second World War Italy became a republic in 1946, and Sardinia was granted a greater measure of autonomy than any other region. The coastal areas were malarial until 1950, but the disease was wiped out by a comprehensive spraying program. Tourism developed from that point, but wavering economics caused many Sardinians to leave the island. In the 1960s new industries flourished, including oil refineries and chemical plants. Some marshland areas were reclaimed for agriculture, while some agricultural areas were covered by industrial estates. On the highest and most rugged parts of the island, there was little change, though rural populations declined as people moved to the expanding urban areas. There are almost 1.7 million people living in Sardinia, mostly in a handful of towns, but there are also ten million visiting tourists each year, most of whom come for the beaches.
Landscape
Sardinia's landscapes are rich and varied. Most upland regions are well forested, but many parts feature dense, bushy scrub, or macchia, and plenty of bare rock. Most of the routes in this guidebook climb above 500m (1640ft), and may climb above 1000m (3280ft), with three routes converging on the highest mountain, Punta La Marmora, at 1834m (6017ft).
Some of the lower sunny slopes have been adapted to support vineyards, while low-lying areas are often intensively cultivated, producing all types of fruit and vegetables. The forested areas often feature clearings, which might be stocked with goats or pigs. Sheep and cattle are generally grazed in grassier areas.
No matter what types of landscape are encountered, the overall aspect is remote and rugged, removed from habitation. The terrain is ideal for walking, as long as good tracks and paths are followed. Trying to walk across country, without the benefit of trodden routes, often results in great difficulties.
Outside the area covered by this guidebook the mountains are lower, but no less rugged. As fewer walkers head for these other areas, there are not as many waymarked trails – none at all in some places – and fewer opportunities to discover a good range of walking routes. However, there are plenty of beaches that are much easier to reach than most of the beaches visited on routes in this guidebook.
Trees and Flowers
Sardinia's forests are overwhelmingly oak, ranging from evergreen holm oak to thick-barked cork oak, with deciduous oaks favouring the higher mountains. In some places pines are notable, either natural or in plantations. In limestone areas, gnarled juniper trees are common, and their trunks and branches endure long after they die. Lentisc trees often form dense, bushy scrub. Tall, straight alders generally grow alongside mountain watercourses, while at lower levels dense growths of oleasters almost choke the seasonal riverbeds. Cultivated trees include olives and all manner of fruit and nut trees. Oranges and lemons are grown as much for their ornamental value in gardens as they are in fruit groves. Almond trees sprout masses of flowers in spring.
Young holm oaks often have spiky leaves as a defence against grazing animals
The low, bushy, impenetrable macchia is often rich in species. These include aromatic and colourful lavender and rosemary, bushy broom and sticky cistus, dense and thorny species, and a range of delicate and colourful flowers that come and go through spring and summer, including crocuses and cyclamen. Some areas may be completely overwhelmed with stout asphodels.
Birds
Sardinia is well placed on migration routes, so that between September and March all kinds of birds can be observed.
There are great differences between the species that are attracted to the coast and to the mountains. Sardinia's low-lying marshlands and lagoons provide a habitat for the greatest number of species, including flamingos and herons, but are not visited on any of the walking routes in this guidebook. The cliff coast is often difficult to access, but provides good nesting sites for a variety of species.
Inland, opportunities to observe birds increases, and wooded areas support woodpigeons, woodpeckers and partridges. Open areas may feature shrikes, finches and warblers, with kites and kestrels hunting. Cliffs are often home to choughs and crag martins. The mountains are the preserve of ravens, while raptors include sparrowhawks, goshawks, eagles and vultures.
Animals
Sardinia's countryside is extensively grazed by domestic stock, including sheep, goats, cattle, pigs and horses. Some feral goats might be seen, as well as herds of horses grazing high in the mountains, and in one particular region, Sarcidano, an unusual breed, the Sarcidano horse, survives. Very occasionally it might be possible to glimpse wild boar, but these shun human contact. A rare breed of wild sheep known as mouflon has been reintroduced to Sardinia, along with small red deer, or cerv.
Goats graze throughout Sardinia, and their milk is often used to make a variety of cheeses
There are snakes in Sardinia, more noticeable on the hottest days and absent on colder days. They are not venomous, and shouldn't be a problem for walkers, as they will generally move quickly out of the way. There are lizards in many places, and frogs wherever there is access to water. Spring and early summer are good times to see plenty of butterflies, while in some low-lying places mosquitoes might occasionally prove annoying.
Lizards are abundant and often take advantage of open areas to sun themselves
National Park
Many maps of Sardinia show the outline of an extensive parco nazionale, or national park, encompassing the broad-shouldered schist mountains of Gennargentu, the Supramonte and the rugged limestone uplands and coast of Ogliastra. There was a plan to designate this area as a national park, but it came to nothing, so the lines drawn boldly on so many maps are meaningless. There is no doubt that the area deserves protection, but many of the comunes, and people whose livelihood depended on the land, opposed the plan, fearing that their rights would be restricted. Graffiti slogans – ‘no al parco' (‘no to the park') – appeared in many places and can still be seen today.
Getting to Sardinia
Flights
Few direct flights operate between Britain and Sardinia, especially in the winter months. Most flights serve Cagliari, in the south of the island, and Olbia, in the north – either of which can be used to access the area covered by this guidebook. Rather fewer serve Alghero, and this airport is the most remote from the routes in this guide. Airlines include Easyjet www.easyjet.com, Ryanair www.ryanair.com, Jet2 www.jet2.com, BMI Baby www.bmibaby.com and British Airways www.ba.com. If the little airport at Arbatax is developed in the future, it would offer immediate access to the bulk of the walks covered in this book. At the time of writing, it is served from Rome by Meridiana www.meridiana.it.
Ferries
