The activities offered by Settimio Rienzo and his association are aimed at groups, not so much for the development of the business, but mostly because only a guide can help people truly discover, understand and appreciate a land. “It is a fact that many of our more diffused and less known cultural assets would be closed or inaccessible if it weren’t for local guides. Plus – points out Settimio – the value of being part of a group is enhanced through walking, and seeing new ties and solidarity develop is amazing. Being in a group is not a form of constriction, but a form of sharing. Living an experience with others is a journey in itself and the relationship that comes out of it can even lead to another journey together”. After summer 2020, many asked if they could join us again this year, on a new trail but with the same guide. Dynamics of friendship and respect develop that make you remember a journey through the things that happen with people”.

Being an initiative of responsible tourism, the cost of the tour, in addition to overnight stays and meals, also includes an ethical component, a sum that hikers leave to the association for it to give back to the land through maintenance investment or the purchase of signs, which need to be updated every year. This way, hikers contribute to the extension and upkeep of the trails, but also help strengthening local organisations, “who are our partners. The trail on the Pollino massif, for example, is being developed together with a local organisation” explains Settimio. In the Basso Cilento, in addition to Lucio Sorrentino’s association, others are also involved in the Cammino di San Nilo. Roberto and Miriam, for example, besides taking in guests in their B&B in Battaglia (in the province of Salerno), Palazzo Gallotti, are also running a project for the conservation of the otter, a near-endangered species, and have opened a trail in the Valle della Lontra, (Otter Valley) between Morigerati and Casaletto Spartano (in the province of Salerno), along the Bussentino creek. In Centola (again in the province of Salerno), groups can rely on the holiday farm run by one of the winegrowers of the Associazione Terre dell’Aglianicone, working for the conservation and promotion of this vine variety native to Cilento.

During summer 2020, the Cammino di San Nilo was walked by approximately 300 people. However, the mild temperatures of the Basso Cilento make hiking a suitable option all year round. At the beginning of February, when we met up with Settimio, the temperature was twelve degrees. “We imagine accessible trails, connecting village to village. Nature here is luxuriant, with areas of great biodiversity, even at five hundred metres above sea level, there is no need to go high up in the mountains. The distance between villages is never more than 10-12 kilometres”. Built during the Middle Ages, they connected monasteries and travelling monks could reach them in a day’s hike. And so, follow the monk.