Path Description
DEPARTURE: Iglesias 188 m (asl)
ARRIVAL: Fluminimaggiore 61 m (asl)
TECHNICAL DATA:
Length: 34.3 km
Difference in altitude: +1078 m and -1207 m
Maximum gradient + 13.8%
Minimum gradient -16.2%
Highest point: Passo Genna Bogai (Iglesias) 554 m above sea level
Possible detours to visit notable points:
1st VARIATION: SAN BENEDETTO – BAUEDDU - (ARENAS) - ANTAS
Stage Length with Variant: 47.5 km
Elevation Gain/Loss: +1405m / -1533m
Max gradient: 15.1% / -15.5%
Average slope: +4.6% -3.9%
Variante junction (San Benedetto junction on SS 126) at Km 4.58 of the stage
Variante exit (Tempio di Antas junction on SS 126) at Km 14.8 of the stage
Highest point (on the San Benedetto – Malacalzetta dirt road): h: 625 m (asl).
COME AND GO ON THE BAUEDDU – ARENAS -BAUEDDU VARIANT ROUTE
Length of the GO and GO route: 7.9 km
Start/end point (Baueddu): h: 512 m (asl).
Highest point (Arenas church of Santa Barbara): h: 578 m (asl).
STAGE DESCRIPTION:
We start from Iglesias, at Piazza Quintino Sella near the monument dedicated to the famous statesman and going left we take Via Eleonora (SS 126) where it is possible to glimpse parts of the Pisan walls, near one of the watchtowers and defenses, and continuing we leave the city.
We continue on a slight uphill path until the end of the town and then take the hairpin bends that take us near the former Crobu hospital (287 m above sea level), a structure that in the past housed the department for patients with microcytosis (mainly children) and was a national centre of excellence.
Once past the entrance to the former hospital, the route begins to descend along a series of hairpin bends through the woods in this area, skirting the dam basin, which is crossed by the SS 126 bridge over Lake Corsi, before climbing north.
After travelling approximately 4.5 km from the starting point, the SS 126 presents a crossroads on the right (267 m above sea level) for 1* San Benedetto (Iglesias), where the variant begins that leads to the Baueddu area and subsequently allows you to reach the mining village of Arenas.
If you do not wish to take the alternative route, you can continue on the SS 126 which, from the San Benedetto crossroads, continues on an almost constant climb with an average gradient of +4.8% for approximately 6.10 km until reaching the Genna Bogai pass (557 m above sea level).
This road, full of hairpin bends, climbs the local mountains, which are extremely lush with vegetation, and passes through valuable oak and cork oak forests.
After crossing the pass, the descent begins, and after several hairpin bends, always nestled in the lush vegetation of the area, you first pass the mountain village of Sant'Angelo (a hamlet of Fluminimaggiore) and then the turnoff for the town of Antas, the end point of the Variante. After this intersection, continue until you reach the intersection, which, turning left, leads you into the underpass of the SS 126, which shortly after leads you to the entrance to the Su Mannau Caves.
At the Su Mannau equipped site, after checking the opening times and closing periods, you can visit the cave, which in addition to featuring unique karst concretions (the cave flowers in particular) also has an important archaeological section.
The Su Mannau caves are a karst complex of approximately 8 km that is divided into two main sections originating from two distinct waterways, the Rio Placido and the Rio Rapido.
Only partially accessible, in the rooms open to visitors it is possible to admire concretions, stalactites and stalagmites (the tallest measuring 11 metres), columns that rise up to 15 metres, aragonite crystals, and underground lakes.
This particular site is also important for its archaeological significance. The remains of several votive oil lamps of Nuragic origin, as well as artifacts from the Phoenician and Roman periods, have been discovered within it. It is highly likely that in ancient times (about 3,000 years ago), the site was a hypogeum temple where Nuragic priests performed ancient rites related to sacred water.
The route continues along the dirt road that leads from here to the Su Zurfuru mine, a fine example of a mining system restored into a museum and open to visitors upon reservation.
Once back on the route, we continue slightly uphill on the panoramic dirt road full of mining sites, which reaches the Pubusinu spring (the second largest in Sardinia in terms of water flow) and the house of Engineer Carlo Marx (in Sardinia since 1875 and died in 1900, the scholar who was the first to understand the close correlation between the formations of the Iglesiente metal-bearing ring and the related deposits of silver-bearing galena and lead, and who was the architect of the introduction of mechanical processes in Sardinia's washeries), now a renowned farmhouse.
After refreshments at the spring or at the farmhouse, we descend along the dirt road on the opposite side to the one we took to climb to Pubusinu and continuing on this easy dirt road we descend towards the village of Fluminimaggiore where this stage in the mountains ends.
1st ROUTE SAN BENEDETTO – MALACALZETTA – BAUEDDU - ARENAS
Once you take the road that leads to San Benedetto (Iglesias), you begin to climb and, after tackling a few hairpin bends, you arrive at the mining village of San Benedetto, where just before the entrance to the village there is a water source.
At the beginning of the town, on the right of the path, in the most prominent building displaying the insignia of the Vieille Montagne mining company (the Belgian company that acquired the mining concession in 1872), there is one of the two Posadas of the CMSB Foundation where, upon reservation, you can stay.
The mining village of San Benedetto, which took on the character of a modern center with the construction of the school in 1907, is still partially inhabited and clearly displays traces of its mining past, such as the remarkable Zimmermann Shaft and the ruins of several industrial buildings, including the large washery. The center of the village remains the church of Santa Barbara, which is still open for worship during certain periods of the year.
Taking the dirt road from the western outskirts of San Benedetto, past the sports field, you begin to climb the mountains that dominate the small mining village to the north. After passing the site that houses a small Domus de Janas necropolis (not open to visitors because it is privately owned), views open up of the valley below and the opposite side of the slope, where you can still see the characteristic features of the area's mining past. The suspended Decauville station, in particular, stands out, where the rusty wagons can still be seen today.
The dirt road climbs for approximately 3.7 km from 380 m (asl) above sea level in the village of San Benedetto up to approximately 625 m (asl) with an average gradient of 6.5%.
From the highest point, you overlook the valley below and, through a passage to the north, you descend on the other side towards the abandoned mining system of Malacalzetta, first encountering the ruins of the industrial buildings and the small washery with its stone arches. Then, crossing the small valley, you can see the ruins of the various buildings, including residential ones, that made up the mining system.
We then continue on the same dirt road towards the Baueddu area where the crossroads offers two roads, one that goes up towards the mining village of Arenas 2* and the other that goes down towards the archaeological site of Antas and the locality of the same name where it is possible to rejoin the route of this variant to the stage from which it derived.
Once you arrive in Antas, before continuing towards the SS 126 road, we highly recommend visiting the important archaeological site of the Antas temple and the Nuragic village of the same name, served by a comfortable and spacious equipped area.
The Temple of Antas is a Punic-Roman temple dedicated to the worship of the eponymous Sardinian god, Sardus Pater Babai (Sid Addir to the Carthaginians). The archaeological site also includes a Nuragic village and necropolis, a Punic temple, a Roman temple, and Roman quarries.
Once the visit is over, we continue along the asphalt road that passes along the edge of a beautiful valley marked by some centuries-old elm trees and soon reach the crossroads that leads us onto the SS 126, resuming the route of the stage towards Fluminimaggiore.
2* COME AND GO BAUEDDU – ARENAS -BAUEDDU
For those wishing to continue from Baueddu towards the mining village of Arenas, the dirt road descends and ascends, winding through holm oak and oak forests, finally arriving at Arenas where, just before the small village, you can still admire the Pozzo Lheraud castle.
In the small mining village, which, although renovated, is now completely abandoned, beyond the small Alpine-style church dedicated to Saint Barbara, you will find the building used as a Posada by the CMSB Foundation, where it is possible to stay by reservation.
After visiting the village and the surrounding mining area, we return by retracing the route we took and return to the Baueddu crossroads, then continue downhill on a dirt road towards the archaeological site of Antas and finally rejoin the stage.
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