Cardoso: Chestnut Forest, Mountain Trails and Local Culture

Chestnut Forest and Views of the Apuan Alps

The Cardoso basin is dominated by chestnut forest, consisting predominantly of relatively pure stands. Several trails offer different perspectives on the landscape: the Cardoso–Orzale–San Leonardo loop provides views of Monte Forato and Monte Procinto. From the Santuario di San Leonardo, situated in a scenic location, you can see the group of Nona, Procinto and Matanna, as well as Pania della Croce. The Cardoso Casalina–Monte Forato loop offers views of the Foro and the Panie; from Casa Puccio, the view extends to Procinto and Nona.

Hiking Trails with Clear Starting Points

The road from Casalina leads to the starting points of the trails to Monte Forato and the Santuario di San Leonardo. A hiking trail to the site of the Trogna rock carvings and to the Santuario di San Leonardo begins in Cardoso. From the turnoff to the sanctuary, it takes about 15 minutes to reach the site of the rock carvings. From Trogna, the trail continues to Orzale and returns to the starting point as a loop. Another connection is the Sentiero della Castagna: it leads from Pruno to the hamlet of L'Orzale and joins Sentiero 117 shortly below the hamlet. In addition, on July 13, 2020, a hike led from Cardoso to the Cascata dell'Acqua Pendente, continuing to Pruno and back to Cardoso.

San Leonardo and the Churches of Cardoso

The Santuario di San Leonardo is owned by the community of Cardoso. The Madonna di San Leonardo is venerated in the sanctuary. The festival in honor of San Leonardo is celebrated on Whit Sunday or the following Sunday. The church of Santa Maria Assunta in Cardoso also dates from the 18th century. Two other dates are set for planning a stay: the Festa delle Rose takes place on the first Sunday after Pentecost, and the bocce game on Easter morning.

Bridge, Pietra del Cardoso and Casa Colleoni

In the hamlet of Pontaccio in Cardoso, there is a bridge dating from the second half of the 14th century. Another special feature is the Pietra del Cardoso: its occurrence in the Apuan Alps lies in a deposit within the municipality of Stazzema and extends across the hamlets of Pruno, Cardoso, Stazzema, Mulina and Pomezzana. Casa Colleoni is an old mountain pasture building in Cardoso, already mentioned in the 18th century, and houses the ethnographic museum “Museo dell'Alpeggio e dell'identità apuana”. Casa Colleoni welcomes small groups for cultural, hiking-related and gastronomic tourism, as well as to promote local products. At the mill, the diversion of the river course led to the conversion to electric operation; it was fully functional and ground chestnuts and corn.

Art and Events Throughout the Year

A graphic art exhibition entitled “Fra le rossastre nubi – stormi di uccelli neri… L’ambiente contadino versiliese di fine ’800 nella grafica di Filadelfo Simi” opened at the Palazzo della Cultura in Cardoso. The exhibition included around fifty graphic works by the artist Filadelfo Simi. In January, the event “Epifania del Pennato” recreates ancient rites of the Liguri Apuani and provides explanations about finds of rock carvings in the Apuan Alps.

More Destinations to Compare

If you would like to compare Cardoso with other places in your travel plans, you can find Montecarlo, Renaio, Villa Collemandina, Camaiore, Coreglia Antelminelli, Castiglione di Garfagnana, Stazzema and Seravezza here.

For the higher-level travel overview: Lucca.