3 days of exploration from the Adriatic Sea to the Alta Murgia National Park

Day 1 The path of the cliffs and surf school

1. 1

   Spiaggia La Torretta

   1 hour

   In the morning, we will leave from the medieval port of Trani, dominated by the Swabian castle and the famous Cathedral on the sea, both built in the 13th century. We will walk along the Trani seafront towards the south, to reach the Falesie path. Along this rocky coast with high and continuous walls overlooking the sea, far from the city, it will be possible to admire the colorful bee-eater. A species of slender and colorful bird that can reach a length of 25–29 cm including the two elongated feathers of the tail. A brown-yellow colored plumage above and blue below with yellow, green, black and orange shades. Beak blackish and curved downwards. These magni fi c birds with their unmistakable "crane-crane" lines nest along the rocky walls. Known as bee eaters. This splendid coastal panoramic path presents another magnificent surprise! after reaching a shady pine forest on the sea, the ff charming wild orchids will emerge, these deceptive plants that with their strange shapes and colors always manage to attract in addition to insects .. passionate about nature and photography;) The route will end in Torre Olivieri, a lookout tower located on the coast, in the Lama Paterna, an erosive furrow typical of the Apulian landscape, which conveys rainwater from the Murge karst plateau towards the Adriatic Sea.

2. 2

   Contrada Boccadoro

   2 hours

   In the afternoon we go to surf and SUP school. learning to ride the waves and admiring the sunset with other fans around a bonfire.

Day 2 Caves, blades and dolmens

1. 1

   Dolmen Della Chianca

   1 hour

   In the morning from the ancient Posta Santa Croce we will walk along the roads of transhumance in Puglia, an unprecedented path between the Murgia and the Adriatic in a very little known place despite the proximity to the urban centers of Bisceglie and 2
   Corato. A little off the beaten path and extremely interesting for the landscape and historical relevance it includes. On our way we will immediately find the Dolmen La Chianca, a prehistoric megalithic tomb from the Bronze Age. Crossing one of the typical blades of this area we will reach a vast complex of karst origin characterized by the presence of caves where in 1955 a femur belonging to an adult individual of Homo sapiens neandertalensis was found.

2. 2

   Zona Pantano-Ripalta

   1 hour

   In the afternoon we will coast the sea along a fantastic coast full of sea caves that were inhabited since the Neolithic period, as evidenced by the materials found by Majellaro and Prelorenzo. We will discover the Caves of Ripalta. Along this stretch of the Via Francigena you can also admire the typical Apulian rural landscape with its dry stone walls, straw huts and small houses. We will continue on a short stretch of pebble beach, and then through a fantastic meadow of spontaneous orchids we will be able to reach the coves, small bays created by the blades, erosive furrows typical of the Apulian landscape, which convey the rainwater from the Murge karst plateau towards the Adriatic Sea.

Day 3 The streets of Castel del Monte

1. 1

   Castel del Monte

   1 hour

   In the shadow of Castel del Monte along a ring route through the typical "blades" of Puglia. Immersed in the Alta Murgia National Park, we will meet farms, jazzi, straw stacks and ancient cisterns along cattle tracks, forest paths and mule tracks. We will reach the ancient Masseria Sei Carri, in a landscape of clay hills, olive groves, vineyards and woods. On the farm they grow organic barley, wheat, oats and produce excellent cheese and delicious ricotta. Here we will find out how to get bread, pasta and desserts starting from the ears. We will test ourselves with the knowledge and exploration of country life and with the processing and cooking of personally prepared products.

2. 2

   Castel del Monte

   1 hour Admission ticket not included

   After lunch, to digest, we will reach the nearby Castel del Monte. An octagonal stone crown, isolated on a hill in the Murge, from which a vast panorama dominates. Its construction was commissioned by the Swabian emperor Frederick II in the thirteenth century. To be part of a castle network to control the ancient main roads traveled by soldiers, knights, pilgrims, traders.