Pale: Waterfalls, Churches and Rocky Landscape

Pale Among Water, Trails and Rock

Pale offers different ways to experience its landscape and history. The Via Lauretana leads downhill from Pale to Belfiore along an old route cut into the travertine deposited by the waters of the Menotre. The course of the trail through the terrain is therefore part of the experience, as are the places along the way.

The Menotre, Waterfalls and Nature

Kingfishers and grey wagtails can be found year-round along the banks of the Menotre in Parco dell’Altolina.

The trail to the Cascate del Menotre is about 2 kilometres long and can be walked downhill from Pale or uphill from Belfiore. This means the route can be approached from two different directions without changing the geographical relationship between Pale, Belfiore and the waterfalls.

The “Natura Le Cascate del Menotre” trail begins at the car park farther down the valley and leads to the centre of Pale. The route to the Cascate del Menotre takes about an hour, providing a clearly defined time frame for orientation.

Next to the 14th-century walls of Pale Castle is the Aula Verde Altolina. It organises educational activities, workshops and excursions.

Churches and Historical Traces

The small church attached to the Eremo di Santa Maria Giacobbe was built around the second half of the 13th century. To this day, the community of Pale makes a procession to the Eremo di Santa Maria Giacobbe on the Feast of the Assumption and on 25 May.

The Church of San Biagio is almost completely integrated into the structure of the old castle of Pale. Inside, it has a monumental 17th-century organ. The Chiesa della SS.ma Trinità is smaller and was built around 1295.

The Grotte di Pale are also among the area's distinctive geological features. They are an underground karst phenomenon created by river water and infiltration water.

Crafts, Memory and Climbing

Fulling mills have been documented in the Valle di Pale of the same name since the 13th century; they later developed into paper mills. La Croce di Pale is a 16-metre-high iron cross. It was erected on the summit of the mountain that gives it its name to commemorate the Jubilee Year 1900.

For climbing, the Falesia di Pale offers routes ranging from grades 4c to 7c+. Alongside the trails by the Menotre and the historic buildings, this makes a clearly defined rocky landscape with varying levels of difficulty another focal point of your stay.

Other Places

Nocera Umbra, Beroide, San Leo Bastia, Fratta Todina, Rivotorto, Grutti, Terzo San Severo and San Biagio De La Valle

To the main travel overview: Perugia.