Eremo di San Marco

Andy visited Ascoli for a few days before heading to another farm, this time in Cagli. While he was here, we visited L'Eremo di San Marco, a grotto (cave) that has an old church built into it. The footpath leading up to it is gorgeous- oak and chestnut forest, a similar feel to what we found in Monte Rufeno, but denser and more forest-y. The view of Ascoli from the grotto is phenomenal... there is also a place where the path goes to a ledge just below the grotto that is a little scary because it drops straight down- a true cliff.

I've been so frustrated by the lack of footpaths/hiking close to Ascoli, and I finally found the footpath from the city that leads to this grotto (and also to Colle San Marco, a big hill that you can see from Ascoli). I had heard from several people that there was a footpath, but nobody could tell me where it started. One guy told us to follow the red and white strips... "what does that mean?" we thought. On the way back to Ascoli from the grotto (we drove), Sandy and Jonathan dropped us on the road so that we could follow the footpath down and figure out where in the city it ended/started. It was a little tricky, but we followed hand-painted red and white strips on the trees, buildings, poles, and rocks that marked the way to go. Finally, my Ascoli nature fix!