The ancient Trades Path

<strong>The 'Sentiero dei Vecchi Mestieri' (Old Trades Trail) follows ancient paths that have linked the two sides of Valle di Cembra from time immemorial.</strong>

Whereas the existence of such paths helps explain, for instance, why in the past young people from Sover frequently ended up marrying young people from Grauno or Grumes, the presence of paths across the 'Dossone di Cembra' (i.e. the ridge separating Valle di Cembra from Valle dell'Adige) paved the way for seasonal workers to descend to the Unterland/Bassa Atesina (the area around Auer/Ora, Neumarkt/Egna and Salurn/Salorno). Following severe flood damages in 1966, the network of cross-river paths seemed to have been lost for ever, but extensive restoration work is now under way. The trail reweaves the ethnographic fabric of the Upper Valle di Cembra as it once was and makes it possible to see and/or visit various ancient man-made structures and tradesmen's workshops, some of which remained in use until the 1950s: limekilns (they are, admittedly, not easy to spot in a geological landscape that is so overwhelmingly dominated by the presence of Permian porphyry); watermills driven by water diverted from impetuous streams; and smithies. The trail also has a naturalistic facet which is just as fascinating as the ethnographic one: the gorge of the Avisio River is namely a striking example of pristine, wild, untamed landscape.