We are in the historical territory of Villanova , an area with a strong historical and naturalistic impact with various oases, waterfalls and forests (so much so that it is the area of Sardinia where hunting is practiced the most). In our itinerary we have analyzed a large area and for this article we have taken Monteleone Roccadoria as a reference point from which to start, a small and beautiful town that unfortunately recently entered the TOP 10 of Sardinian villages in danger of extinction . Before making the itinerary I asked myself, what to see in Monteleone Roccadoria and especially in the surrounding areas? Many answers, many fascinating places and many emotions told in this article made available to everyone.
What to see in Monteleone Roccadoria
INDEX
MONTELEONE ROCCADORIA
What to see in Monteleone Roccadoria and surroundings? I'm sure the Dorias had a brilliant idea in building an incredible fortified wall up here, on the ridge of a limestone tuff relief. It is from this fortification that the name of the town derives, Rocca dei Doria, of which we have news in the fourteenth century. To get to the village you have to take a road that in the last 2 km has a series of uphill hairpin bends, just to make us understand how it could have been 600 years ago, without roads. Very little remains of the Dorias, the latest excavations of about 20 years ago have brought to light further ruins of the Doria castle, the only buildings to remain after the 3-year war against the Aragonese. Let's talk about the present. Monteleone Roccadoria is a jewel destined to disappear, unfortunately. Istat tells us 120 inhabitants, while local people tell us about 80, a few young people, many elderly people, a post office, a bar, a small supermarket. Yet this small village has so much to show, the ancient parishes of Sant'Antonio Abate and Santo Stefano are certainly worth a visit, as we said earlier the ruins of the Doria castle , do not forget the Bread Museum and finally the icing on the cake , the tuff quarry .
We are on the edge of Roccadoria, here you will find the imposing tuff quarry with its belvedere , now abandoned the mining activity this splendid cliff is famous throughout Europe especially among enthusiasts of sport climbing. Not only that, in the same area there is also the popular via ferrata regina , so every so often during the year there is life, why should this village disappear? To get to the quarry just take a short walk of about 10 minutes and the splendid panorama leaves everyone speechless, the world below us: the green of the plants, the mountains in the distance, the Lake Temo and in the case of sunset (as in my case) the sun slowly going down and giving way to the light of the full moon. Emotion, all surrounded by a frozen Ichnusa taken from the only bar in town. Movements are currently underway to try to combat the depopulation of the Sardinian hinterland countries, there were about 35 in 2017, Monteleone Roccadoria is one of those at very high risk of extinction and it is thought that in 20 years it will be a memory, a country ghost, like many already present on our island. What to see in Monteleone Roccadoria and surroundings? Much.
LAKE TEMO
A few kilometers away from Monteleone Roccadoria and along a dead-end road you will arrive a few meters from Lake Temo and here, beyond the spectacle from a natural point of view, there is really a lot of hidden history, indeed, submerged. Lake Temo was created after the construction of the high temo dam, an artificial dam located in the slopes of Mount Airadu. It is clear that at a geological level this area did not have to include any lake and for this reason starting from 1984 (the year in which the construction of the dam was completed) the basin hides an archaeological site of considerable importance, we are talking about the village of Tudera, the nuraghe Tanca 'e Sa Mura and 2 churches. Crazy right ?! It is possible to see the remains of the site only on condition that there is a lowering of the water level and usually it can be due to maintenance work or periods of drought. What to see in Monteleone Roccadoria and surroundings? I highly recommend you pay a visit to Lake Temo and its hidden village.
FOUNTAIN OF MUDEJU
What to see in Monteleone Roccadoria and surroundings? I would say to go to the fountain du Mudeju . I have known this place since I was a child and I always wondered how it was possible to drink this type of water directly from a fountain. What do i mean? It is naturally sparkling water, and the whole area has a history to envy. We are talking about sources that were once considered sacred, in fact in this same area some remains such as statues have been found (offered by people suffering from diseases and healed thanks to the benefits of water) from the Nuragic age to the Punic age. Currently there is a continuous flow of people who, with their bins, fill liters and liters of water also because, in addition to the goodness of the same, there is a widespread idea that it is important for the treatment of kidney disorders. In order not to make a mistake, I filled the only bottle I had in the car, SPECTACULAR.
