Trenino Verde gravel ride into the heart of Barbagia

Almost everyone comes to Sardinia for the sea and never sets foot in the interior. Yet the heart of the island, Barbagia and Ogliastra, is another world entirely: rugged mountains, forests, shepherds' villages clinging to the slopes, and a silence that has long since vanished from the coast. To cycle here is to choose the Sardinia without beaches, the one that stays empty precisely while the seaside fills up, and to follow the tracks of one of Italy's most scenic railway lines.

The Trenino Verde

The thread running through it all is the Trenino Verde, the historic narrow-gauge railway that crosses the Sardinian interior. The line linking Mandas to Arbatax slices through Barbagia and Ogliastra, climbing among the mountains, and its route, with its little stations, bridges and tunnels, sets the rhythm of the journey: you ride alongside it on quiet inland roads, picking up the small railway halts stop after stop as waymarks along the way. It is a slow journey by nature, made for those in no hurry.

The stages are the shepherds' villages and the great landmarks of the landscape. You pass through centres like Mandas, gateway to the interior, and reach an Ogliastra dominated by the tacchi, the distinctive flat-topped limestone plateaus with vertical walls that soar above the woods: the best known rise around Ulassai, Jerzu and Gairo, where the pale rock contrasts with the green of the holm oaks. It is these tabular reliefs, together with the villages gripping the hillsides, that give the region its character. Along the way you meet flocks, shepherds, and a culture that still lives on herding and wine, like Ogliastra's Cannonau.

Difficulty and terrain

Technically this is a demanding itinerary and should be approached with respect. It combines paved secondary roads with unpaved and gravel stretches along the railway corridor, so the natural choice is a gravel bike or a mountain bike. The territory is all mountain: long climbs, passes and constant ups and downs, with significant total elevation gain and few flat breaks. The distances between villages can be considerable and refuelling points sparse, so you need self-sufficiency and good preparation. In return you ride on near-deserted roads, where traffic is the exception.

To get there, look to Cagliari and the Mandas area for the inland side, and to Arbatax and Tortolì on the Ogliastra coast as the seaward end. A wonderful option is to combine the bike with the Trenino Verde itself, which runs as a seasonal tourist train, using the train to skip the toughest sections or to enjoy the landscape from another vantage point; it is worth checking in advance the operating periods and arrangements, which vary by season.

When to go

The best time runs from late spring, from May, to early autumn, through October. In May the interior is green, in bloom and still cool; in autumn the woods change colour and temperatures become pleasant again for climbing. These are also the months when the island is most authentic: while the beaches stay crowded until late summer, Barbagia and Ogliastra see almost no tourists, and the villages carry on at their normal pace. High summer is best avoided because of the intense heat in the valley floors and the risk of wildfires.

Practical tips

A practical tip: plan your stages carefully around the villages where you can sleep and resupply, because the interior is generous with scenery but stingy with services. Stop at the shops and cellars of the villages and leave time for encounters: here the shepherds' hospitality is as much a part of the journey as the limestone tacchi and the old stations. Set off early and manage your energy on the long climbs, because in Barbagia effort comes at a price, but the emptiness and silence you find are priceless.

Practical guides for Cagliari

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• What to see in Cagliari in 2 days
• Where to eat in Cagliari
• How to get to Cagliari