Cycling through breathtaking landscapes in an enchanted and timeless setting.
The Trabocchi Coast is a stretch of coastline about 40 km long, extending from the Trave Rock in the territory of Vasto to the Ripari Bardella beach, located between San Vito Chietino and Ortona. It is famous for the presence of “trabocchi,” wooden fishing platforms erected on the rocks and equipped with simple fishing gear, used for hundreds of years by the local families and often transformed into picturesque restaurants.
The uniqueness of this stretch of coastline is primarily of a naturalistic kind. The hills plunging into the sea between the cliffs create a unique scenario in the central Adriatic region, between the Conero and Gargano, offering breathtaking views, such as the one from the Punta Aderci cliff, the highest one at 36 meters.
Another peculiarity is of an anthropic nature. Devoid of natural harbors and large sandy beaches, it has never seen the development of coastal centers, remaining largely wild and uninhabited to this day, despite the presence of millennial urban centers behind it (the cities of Vasto, Lanciano, and Ortona, significant since Roman times). The development of the trabocchi that dot the coast is probably due to the practice of building wooden piers to allow the docking of ships already in medieval times.
The area where trabocchi can be observed is fundamentally divided into two parts, north and south of the Sangro River estuary. The first zone covers the municipalities of San Vito Chietino, Rocca San Giovanni, and Fossacesia. The second is included in the vast territory of Vasto. In between, the coasts of Torino di Sangro and Casalbordino, prevailing over the river’s mouth, have long pebble beaches and do not have any trabocco except for the one at Punta Le Morge.
Until the 1990s, a railway ran along this stretch of coast, built in the 19th century practically on the rocks. With the retraction of the track in most of the route, the beautiful Trabocchi Coast cycle path, also called the Via Verde, was created, making it easy to reach spectacular places that were difficult to identify and access before.
In Vasto, you can travel the southernmost stretch of the Via Verde and get a close look at various trabocchi. You can also visit the two natural reserves of Marina di Vasto, the beautiful large sandy beach that is the city’s main tourist attraction, and Punta Aderci. All this with the opportunity for frequent stops and detours to visit romantic churches overlooking the sea, the second tallest lighthouse in Italy, Spanish watchtowers, or archaeological areas attesting to human presence in these places since the Neolithic period!
What are you waiting for? Hop on your bike and follow us on the four itineraries we’ve prepared just for you!
