San Pietrino e la riconnessione alla natura

What we are proposing today goes beyond simple trekking to discover our hinterland.

As those who have been reading us for some time now know, our aim is always to offer something new to whet your appetite for Liguria. Together with Pamela Rossignolo, a Csen-certified yoga teacher, we wanted to experiment with meditative practice in close contact with the woods and the nature that surrounds us.

We set off from the town square in Boissano where we left our car in a nearby car park and, just past the parish church of San Paolo, we followed the red signs of the Sentiero Liguria, in the direction of San Pietrino ai Monti.

The trail is well marked and clearly visible; we cross the hamlet of Ca Di Gandarin, characterised by the presence of numerous finely restored stone houses, each with a superb view of the sea. The path, which is easy in itself, has a slight but constant slope, all on cobblestones.

Along the way, there are frequent remains of stone buildings that testify to the Boissanesi’s attachment to the land: some of the houses served as shelters both for the shepherds who brought their animals to the pastures on the slopes of Monte Ravinèt and Monte Carmo, and for the local woodcutters, who were very active in this area.

A reinforcement to this thesis is also the indication in history books of the name “abeveraiu” (drinking trough) with which this locality was indicated. In addition to these, there is another important building that bears witness to the strong presence of the Boissanesi in the area, namely the ruins of the small church of San Paolo.

The peculiarity of the path, as we were saying, all made up of a cobbled stone path, is also linked to its use in 1795 by Napoleon’s troops engaged in an epic clash with the Austro-Sardinian army in what is more commonly known as the Battle of Loano.

We arrive in 45 minutes at the meadowy slope in front of the small church of San Pietrino (it is said to have been built “in economy” given the impediment imposed by the people of Totoirano on the people of Boissano to be able to reach the church of San Pietro, not far away, due to the strong rivalry between the two municipalities) and the strong attraction between me and the ringing of the bell doesn’t take long to arrive! Here Pamela begins to introduce us to yoga through deep meditation; autumn is the time of year that most represents change, everything is transformed, the landscape changes colours, the leaves let go to the ground and the temperatures drop. Everything prepares for the winter rest and then comes back to life in spring, in a perpetual cycle of regeneration; this is why its voice accompanies us in a connection of our deepest self to the nature that surrounds us, letting us transport and abandoning what we don’t need anymore, giving us the possibility to discharge waste and negativity.

Barefoot we create contact with the earth, preparing a warm and welcoming place to retreat to then sprout more luxuriant than ever at the appearance of the first warmth of spring, transporting us with confidence to change, without fear. A 40-minute practice in which we learned his philosophy, trusting his voice and his professionalism. We returned to the car following a part of the terre alte path with a diversion to Villaggio Losano, giving shape to the ring we had planned to make, crossing the thickest and most humid woodland until we reached the quarry at Boissano.
Fonte: Due zaini e un camallo.