The Beach & Nature Reserve of Punta Aderci, Vasto

THE BEACH & NATURE RESERVE OF PUNTA ADERCI 

AND A RATHER NICE LITTLE EATING SPOT

Punta Aderci Nature Reserve

Sometimes, somehow, things just don’t go to plan.  But you end up having the best day ever.

It’s August, it’s hot.  Afternoons are for siesta or escaping the heat, both of which we’ve mastered to a fine degree.  This afternoon, however, we felt like exploring.  Take the snorkels, drive a little further south down the coast, find a rocky cove and just, well, snorkel and snooze.

But instead we ended up an hour later, late afternoon, at Punta Aderci, Vasto’s beach side nature reserve, stunningly beautiful, but no snorkeling.  Who cares?  Not us.  A glorious time we had.  We just swam and snoozed, walked and explored.  

With 285 hectares of protected dunes, beaches, cliff tops, flora and fauna Punta Aderci is the perfect chill out zone.  No sun beds to hire, nor parasols; just bring or make your own from the abundance of beautifully and naturally crafted driftwood dotted along the shore.  

Wonderful driftwood for the creative

If you fancy being slightly more active than we did, try volley ball, or walk or cycle the gentle 6km  walkway that follows the shoreline and hill tops. 

Samphire

Be warned though, it is a nature reserve with flowers not to be picked.  Torment indeed for a forager, with the cliff sides dripping with samphire, tantalisingly within reach!

As the sun was going down, we finally dragged ourselves off the beach, had a wander along the top, before taking a slow pootle home and finding a lovely little restaurant for fish to eat and sea views to die for.

The Punta Aderci trabocchi coastline at its most beautiful

THE FINER DETAILS

Where:  Punta Aderci, Vasto, Abruzzo

Distance from Kokopelli:  Approx 75km / 1 hour drivetime

Directions:  From Kokopelli, follow the directions to Tomato Beach (see info folder): ie go through Roccamontepiano (forking left at the junction in the middle of the village), take the first right about 1km outside the village heading towards Fara Filiorum Petri.  At the T junction just before Fara, turn right, then almost immediately left, following the signs to Francavilla.

Stay on this road (SS263) following the signs to Francavilla all the way, until you pick up the A14 Autostrada signs.  Take the A14 in the direction of Bari.  After about 50km, take the exit Casalbordino-Vasto North and follow the signs to Punta Aderci.

The terrace of the Ristorante Caldora

Eating:  Ristorante Caldora, Vallevò

Directions:  from Punta Aderci, pick up the SS16 Adriatica road heading back towards Pescara.  After about 25km you’ll come across a row of a few restaurants.  Ristorante Caldora is signed from the road but down a little side street off to your right.  The restaurant terrace overlooks the sea and the trabocchi giving spectacular views along the coastline.  

Walking Guide - Short Cut Scamble to the S.Liberatore

SHORT CUT SCRAMBLE TO THE SAN LIBERATORE

Start Kokopelli

Distance Approx 2 km

Time 30-45 mins

Grade Short, but a bit of a scramble in places - prepare for a bit of bum sliding!

Turn right out of Kokopelli and follow the tarmac road past the little chapel.  Just past the chapel look out for a gravel track where the tarmac road forks off to the left.  You’ll see a piece of blue gingham fabric tied to a tree.  Take this rough track.  About 10 metres along look out for another piece of gingham identifying the path you need to take on your right.  

From now on, your challenge is to look out for the blue gingham indicating the way.  There’s also some red paint daubed on a few trees, which also help to find the right routes.

At this tumbled down cottage, pick up the path that takes
you to the right-hand side of the house

There is one spot that does get a bit tricky to find the path.  This is where some loggers have been cutting and stacking logs right across the path.  You will go up a bank with a log pile at the top.  Pick your way around the left side of the pile and look for your next marker straight ahead and slightly to the right.

Scramble up the bank to the left of the log pile

...and look out for the route straight on but slightly to the right

Once you’ve successfully negotiating this part it should be plain sailing all the way.  Look out for the sneaky peak of the San Liberatore through the trees.

There she is!  The most beautiful Abbey of San Liberatore

You will need to cross a small stream, but it’s not too difficult. 

Eventually, you will come out onto a tarmac road.  Turn left for the San Liberatore (and the Chateau de ma Mere restaurant & bar if you fancy a bite) or right to Serramonacesca.

If you’re not quite done with exploring, there is a diversion well worth doing.  Just before you come to the tarmac road as above, look out for a tiny track to your right.  It does get rather over grown, but if you don’t mind beating your way through the undergrowth the rewards are well worth it.  

A secret swimming hole with a spectacular waterfall:

Well worth the reward

One for the kids...

Kokopelli for the kids?  Not a market we've expected, considered or even courted, but one that is most very welcome!  Indeed, the more we think about it, the more we realise why we are being contacted by, and enjoying the company of, more and more families.

Abruzzo is perfect.  It is a wonderful natural playground.  We have woods and wilderness, open plains and shady plunge pools.  We have mountains, and wolves and bears and chamois.  We have natural beaches, blue flag beaches, sandy beaches, rocky coves.  We even have woodland fairies!

And Abruzzo, like the rest of Italy, absolutely loves children.  You'll be welcomed wherever you go.

And as for Kokopelli itself?  My own children spent their summers in the natural playground of Scottish Grampians, free and safe to run around, explore, play make-believe, build and discover.  No TV, no internet.  In other words, just to be children as children should be.  This is what we have at Kokopelli.  Freedom and space.

If you do happen to fancy something a little more "laid on" then the following, all within the Majella National Park, should keep your children (the big and the little) more than happy, the adults too!

The Majella National Park 
(ie our home and playground)


Festa of the Gnome!  Three days of woodland fairies, picnics, storytelling, theatre and games    http://www.abruzzotucur.com/festanazionaledeglignomi.html

Treetop adventure park with walkways, bridges and tunnels in a Tyrolean scenery:  http://www.parconaturalemajella.it/parco-avventura-majella

Another treetop adventure park:  http://www.majagreen.it/Home.html

Excursions into the Majella, hiking, mountain biking, summer camps, environmental education, visitor centres, nature and wildlife museums, acheological sites, botanical gardens, these guys have it all.  The emphasis, of course, on the environment and sustainable tourism:  http://www.majambiente.it/



Whitewater rafting on the Aventino river:  http://www.rafting.abruzzo.it/


A little bit further afield

Kayaking, and other active adventures on the Tirino and within the Tirino valley:  http://www.ilbosso.com/

Aqualand!  Needs no explanation, waterslide fun for everyone:  http://www.aqualandvasto.com/

Falconry in L'Aquila.  Monthly walks with falcons, buzzards and a wolf!  http://www.falcong.it/#

...and then, of course, there are the beaches:

Abruzzo summer - Kokopelli Style:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhQWCyhtxLo

Planting by the Moon & Stars

With help from my friend and neighbour, Paola Pomilio, I've been reading and learning about planting by the phases of the moon and the stars.  With its roots in folklore and superstition, yes, you're right to be sceptical but, and it's a big but, following the rhythms of Mother Nature has got to be good, right?

So, I learn and I try.  And today is a good day to start.  A new moon.

Full moon at Kokopelli

The new & full moons:  when the sun and the moon are lined up with the earth, at the time of the new and full moon, the tides are at their highest.  Just as the moon pulls the tides, so it also pulls upon the water in the earth causing moisture to rise in the soil, and hence stimulate growth.  Makes sense?  Tests have even proven that seeds will absorb the most water at the time of the full moon.  So more than just folklore.

Mother Nature knows best.

Increasing moonlight (a waxing moon): the increasing moonlight, that follows the new moon, combines with the high moisture content of the earth to create optimum conditions for balanced root and leaf growth.  As such, this is the time to plant above ground crops that produce their seeds outside the fruit:  lettuce, spinach, celery, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, sweetcorn, cucumber and so on.

Kokopelli tomatoes

Decreasing moonlight (a waning moon): after the full moon, although the moisture content of the soil is high, the moonlight is decreasing.  The focus of energy therefore goes from the leaves to the roots.  A good time for your root crops: beets, carrots, onions, potatoes, etc.

So far, so good.  Couple the phases of the moon with the constellations of the stars and you start to fine tune.

Working with nature.  Beautiful.

The Zodiac constellations:  the moon cycles through all the constellations that make up the zodiac during a lunar month.  Each sign of the zodiac is considered to be an earth, air, fire or water sign and, as the moon passes through each, a window of opportunity is given for various gardening tasks.

Earth signs (Capricorn, Taurus, Virgo):  The best time for below ground growth, so perfect for root crops, planting and transplanting seedlings.

Air signs (Libra, Aquarius, Gemini):  when the moon is in an air sign, this is a good time to harvest, cultivate and preserve.

Kokopelli Figs

Fire signs (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius):  harvesting during a fire sign, a barren and dry period, will help to prevent spoilage, it's a good time to weed, till the soil and to prune; but it is also still a good time to plant crops grown for their seeds.

Kokopelli herb garden

Water signs (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces): the best time for the healthy growth and planting of above ground leafy annuals.

So there you have it.  Moon planting in a nutshell.  If you'd like to explore further, most of the information was pulled from the following sites, who go into fabulous but simple detail:
http://www.gardeningbythemoon.com/lunarfacts.html
http://www.the-gardeners-calendar.co.uk/Moon_Planting.asp#

Happy planting!