The mountain: for the people of Nuoro, it is not necessary to specifically name Ortobene, since it helps the town so much that it does not even allow you to conceive alternatives.
“It is our heart, our soul”, wrote the Nobel Prize winner Grazia Deledda. And it is above all the lung that allows Nuoro to breathe, covered by a forest of holm oaks which restores shade and coolness even on the hottest days. In the memory of the locals, even the memory of when the wind became treacherous, those wretched summers with the flames that tore away oaks and lentisks, leaving the granites naked, is indissoluble: and when the Firefighters called upon the Nuorese, they responded by mobilizing to save the wounded mountain.
“There's only one Ortobene in the whole world: it's our heart, it's our soul, our character, everything big and small, kind and tough and rough and sorrowful in us”Grazia Deledda
Just 15 minutes away from the town, the Ortobene offers visitors a glimpse of the entire province. You just have to reach the summit, the wind always takes care of the rest. The days in which the mist gets the upper hand are rare, and allows itself to hide the view: Oliena, Corrasi, Orgosolo, Dorgali, and of course, in the mountains, sea, crystal clear to the point of seeing the passing ferries. The summit is 955 meters above sea level, but there is no need to climb: to enjoy the view, just park in the areas which give a good view to savour the silence, broken only by the sound of the foliage or by the croaking of crows.
Ph. Ludovica Baratta
Almost at the top, climbing a few steps you arrive under the statue of the Redeemer which the locals call ziu Mannu, that is, the Great Uncle. Those looking for a religious experience reach out to touch the huge statue by Vincenzo Jerace, from the early twentieth century. And in fact the tip of his foot is still bright and shiny, because the bronze is polished by the hands of travelers. Those looking for refreshment, however, find a water source right next to the steps, in one of the many sources of incredibly frozen water even in the summer.
Ph. Ludovica Baratta
It almost seems that nature tolerates the presence of people, reiterating however with every step that she reigns supreme. In the undergrowth, the jays complain loudly when humans invade their territory. On the peaks, buzzard turn slowly, and they seem ostensibly to ignore the presence of bipeds. In the clearings, the land is plowed by wild boars in search of roots. To see them you have to look beyond the hairpin bends after sunset, but in silence. The only noise allowed is that of the highest branches that shake, to remind us that the wind is the real master.