Category Archives: News

Only on our trails!

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Our Trail del Marganai staff wants you to experience time traveling without the need for a special machine, but simply “running”. Your feet will take you to discover the testimonies of human activities of the past and all this will happen with you runners surrounded by breathtaking natural landscapes! Enjoy and run!

The nuraghe Sa Domu e s’Orku is our starting point for all races of the Marganai Trail 2019. It is located on a small hill at the foot of Monte Mannu, a few minutes walk from the village of Domusnovas and it was built in several phases from 1600 BC up to 1000 B.C. It is the largest nuragic complex in the whole South-East, probably, in other times, it was one of the biggest in Sardinia. Nowadays, different parts collapsed and Mother Nature decided to “embrace” the ancient building, abandoned for about 3000 years, with its fragrant shrubs … hence the difficulty of accessing the interior rooms. The name of the building means “the house of the ogre” and it is said that the inhabitants of the area invented the name, in order to prevent the children from approaching.

 

 

 

The central tower, is part of a bastion with three towers, which is surrounded by a rampart that includes 5 more external towers, as well as two  curtains with independent entrances. The main tower has a diameter of 8,80m at the ground and a staircase leads from inside to the upper floor. Its entrance, now partially buried, gives access to the courtyard, where metals were melted. Around the nuraghe there are numerous traces of huts that were part of a village.

 

 

 

Good to know: these constructions have the peculiarity of being built without the use of mortar (dry-laid walls) and the massive stones could weigh several tons. Today, after millennia, over 7000 towers are spread all over the surface of Sardinia, thanks to the technical ability of the nuragic people (see for example the use of an architrave and the small opening above the entrances, that allows to distribute the weight sideways).

For information and guided tours:

Consorzio Natura Viva Sardegna: 0039.3480553309; Email: consorzionaturaviva@gmail.com

Many news for the edition 2019 Trail del Marganai

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Nuraghe Sa Dommu ‘e s’Orcu

The event is scheduled for March 10th, 2019 in Domusnovas, the heart of south-west Sardinia.

Many news for the 2019 edition of the Trail del Marganai.

First of all, the three distances for the competitive races are going to change: the 55 km replaces the 52 km, the 30 km replaces the 27 km and the 20 km replaces the 17 km.

The non-competitive 10 km route remains unchanged on the distance, but the itinerary could be different.

The reference point of the whole event remains “La Cartiera di Domusnovas”, run by the Consorzio Natura Viva, but the races will start from the ‘Nuraghe Sa Dommu’ and s’Orcu ‘, about 10 minutes from the Cartiera.

For the long race there part of the itineray changes before and after the refreshment stand of the abandoned mining village of Arenas. In addition there will be small changes crossing the abandoned facilities of Malacalzetta.

Finally, for all the races, the last descent changes, the one that from Punta San Michele leads to the arrival, and there will be a passing on the path that crosses the small rocky tunnel of ‘ Su passu ‘e su vagoni’.

The route for the Punic-Roman Temple of Antas will not change.

For the new intermediate race of 30 km, after the eighth kilometer, reached the mines of Sa Duchessa, you will abandon the dirt road to take an internal path, that in the last part turns into single track, to rejoin the path that leads to Punta Campu Spina, the highest point of all races.

The shorter competitive distance of 20 km shares with the other two races the departure from the ‘Nuraghe Sa Dommu’ e s’Orcu‘ and the new descent from Punta San Michele and the passage through ‘ Su passu ‘e su vagoni’.

As for the other editions, the gem of our trail remains the passage through the Cave of San Giovanni, a natural tunnel excavated from the water through the limestone rock of the mountain.

 

We are doing everything to confirm the trust you have placed in us the past editions, you just have to sign up.