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THE “SAINT ROCCO RING” ROUTE
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The circular route extends over the territory
of Osoppo for about 7 km, around the San
Rocco Hill. This route guides you through the
distinctive features and characteristics of a
peculiar area located in the centre of Friuli:
the geographic area called “Campo di Osoppo-
Gemona”. This is a flood plain completely
surrounded by hills and mountains and
characterised by a substantial geodiversity
and biodiversity.
This area is also rich in historical-artistic
points of interests. The route can be divided in
three sections. The first dirt-surfaced section
largely coincides with the embankment on the
left bank of the Tagliamento River. It goes from
Colonia Park (1) to the point where various
paths converge, and is only a short distance
from Saint Rocco’s church (2), at the top of
the homonymous hill. Ruins of an ancient
hermitage, originally attached to the small
church, mentioned in various documents of
the 13th century, can still be seen. From the
embankment, you can grasp a view of the river
bed, that has preserved its original morphology
of intertwined channels, and the Carnic Prealps
profiles in the background.
The intermediate section consists of a small
ring that develops in the most important
naturalistic area of the itinerary. It unwinds
along dirt roads with a few small concrete
stretches, tracing the path of a network of
trails, hangars and emplacements used during
Second World War by the German air force.
Next up is the northern sector of the Springs
of Bars (3), a spectacular humid environment
listed in the Site of Community Importance
“Valle del Medio Tagliamento”, with swampy
meadows and hygrophilous woods, surprisingly
interspersed with the steppe-like environment
of the dry lowlands. Different species of wild
orchids that bloom in the Osoppo area from
April to June can also be observed along the
route.
The final section reaches and crosses the town
of Osoppo, hit by the 1976 earthquake and,
as per other towns in Friuli, rebuilt exactly to
how it originally was, demonstrating that the
reconstruction motto in Friuli was “where it
was, how it was”. Along the ring final stretch,
there are two religious buildings: the small
church of Saint James (4), dating back to the
15th century, at the foot of the Fortress Hill
(5), and the three-nave parish church (6),
mentioned in a document of 1275.
Route general data
7 km 2h 30’
dirt road
paved road
pet
friendly
Osoppo
www.comune.osoppo.ud.it