Epic Hikes of the World ( PDFDrive )

The limestone crags of the Monti Lattari poke into a deep-blue sky. Surefooted
goats graze on herby pastures, far from bothered by the verdurous,
vertiginous valleys on all sides of them. And, over by the side of the kerb, a
film crew zooms in on a testosterone-red Ferrari that’s noisily negotiating the
tarmac curves.
Well, this is the Amalfi Coast, after all. Glamour central. A place of 50s beauties
in cats’-eye shades and tanned Adonises all loose trousers and louche charm. An
Italian sports car fits right in. But, actually, automobiles of any type are a relatively
recent feature here. Until 1815, when Ferdinand II of Bourbon ordered the
construction of the Nastro Azzurro (Blue Ribbon), there was no road access to the
remote hamlets and tiny fishing villages clinging around these cliffs. Before that,
the only way to get between them was to walk. The irony is that, now that human
highways have conquered the headlands, what do many of us visitors choose to
do? We go old-school and use our feet.