Maiori – Sanctuary of the Avvocata -Vallone San Nicola -Erchie
Duration: 8,2 km
Walking time: 6h 30 ‘
Route – 840 meters in altitude and over 9 kilometers to cover make this route challenging. No technical difficulties but good training. Logistics – By public transport: by ferry or bus from Salerno to Maiori, and return from Erchie by bus. With only one car: leave the car at the point of arrival and continue by bus to Maiori or get to Maiori and return by bus from Erchie. With two cars: leave the first car on arrival and continue with the second one to Maiori. Services and Refreshments – Bars and restaurants in Maiori and Erchie; some fountains in the stretch between Maiori and the sanctuary.
——— Departure from the Maiori seafront at the height of the Santa Maria a Mare obelisk, near the mouth of the Rheginna Major river. Go up the Corso Rheginna for about 200 meters up to via Casa Mannini, on the right. In the last stretch of the road you can see the ruins of the Baluardo di San Sebastiano, the ancient defensive walls of Maiori. After crossing via Nuova Chiunzi , take via de Jusola on the opposite side and, after passing two ancient wooden crucifixes, turn right into via Addolorata. After 50 meters, near a fountain, go up to the left along via Grade dei Pezzi. On the right there is a plaque dedicated to the ancient Jewish community of Maiori. Proceed without deviating, until you leave the town, following the main route formed mainly by steps. The route becomes flat for a while and, leaving an isolated pink and white house on the right with a distinctive circular window, it starts climbing again until it crosses the ridge near a house on the left. A few meters later you reach a fork where you take the wide staircase to the left (walk no. 5 continues to the right towards the Abbey of Santa Maria de Olearia). Through cultivated terraces, you continue to climb passing near a small house painted in red, wade through a small stream and, shortly after, you reach a clearing with the ruins of Santa Maria de Stellis or Santa Marina, an ancient farm of the convent. Behind the ruin, following the most beaten path, after about ten minutes, you go around a limestone and reach a source, the “Acqua ‘o Castagne” (the source of the chestnut tree); looking at the source, turn right and, after about twenty minutes, at a crossroads, take a sharp left. A series of markings mark the path which, however, is clearly identifiable. You pass the base of a rocky wall and, at the bottom, resume the climb towards the sanctuary, leaving the “Grotta delle Soppressate” (salami cave) on the left. From the sanctuary, as already mentioned for routes 2 and 3, there are more than one ways to return to the inhabited areas. This route includes the descent towards Erchie. What was said for the previous walk is valid but, for the reader’s convenience, the description is repeated. Leaving the gate of the sanctuary area, follow the wall to the right and, after a few meters, take a hint of a path to the left which, among the vegetation, descends along the side of the above Monte dell’Avvocata. Subsequently, a stretch of path crosses a grove and then enters a fern. You pass a ruin and shortly after you come to a crossroads. On the right begins an alternative way to return to Maiori but continue straight to skirt the mountain descending progressively to the ridge. From here to keep the way is not easy. The nature of the terrain allows runoff waters to form many real false paths. Paying attention and taking into account that you have to descend slowly towards the valley with a wide curve to the left, proceed on a slight slope, gradually losing altitude. In one way or another you arrive at the path that leads in the direction of the stream until it joins a clear track that goes up the valley. Here you turn sharply to the right and follow the path. After five minutes there is a detour to the left (marked with yellow signs, it leads to the ford of path no. 3 to continue to Cetara). Ignore the deviation and continue towards the sea. After passing a group of unfinished buildings, you reach the coastal road. Buses stop in the immediate vicinity. To the left in a short time you reach the hamlet of Erchie.
