Ulassai, among the limestone heels and the Lequarci waterfalls

While the Sardinian coast swells with beach umbrellas in summer, the inland Ogliastra stays surprisingly silent. Ulassai, just over a thousand inhabitants in the province of Ogliastra, rests on a terrace of rock between the Tacco di Ulassai to the north and Monte Tisiddu to the south. The "tacchi" (heels) are plateaus of limestone and dolomite of Jurassic origin: pale, reddish walls that rise vertically above the woods, shaped by time into towers and overhangs. Walking at their feet, you understand why here the stone sets the rhythm of everything.

The Lequarci waterfalls

The main reason to climb all the way up here is the Lequarci waterfalls, in the locality of Santa Barbara, just outside the village. They are considered among the most imposing on the island: a drop of over fifty metres that opens across a front up to seventy metres wide, followed by rapids and cascades over a further descent. The flow depends on the rains, so it is not a spectacle for the height of August: the right moment is after the rainfall, when the sheet of water spreads across the wall like a veil.

The art of Maria Lai

There is then a second, cultural soul. In 1981 the Ulassai-born artist Maria Lai involved the whole village in "Legarsi alla montagna" ("Binding oneself to the mountain"), tying houses and streets with kilometres of blue ribbon anchored to the overhanging rock. That gesture, now recognised as one of the first works of relational art, left Ulassai a network of diffuse installations and an art station created inside an old railway building.

Caves and trails

The territory demands legs and respect. The Su Marmuri cave, among the largest in Sardinia, and the cliffs of the tacchi attract cavers and hikers, but the trails remain wild and poorly marked: better to bring trekking shoes, water and, for the longer routes, a local guide.

The slow pace

Coming to Ulassai means choosing the slow pace: sleeping in the village, eating with the families who run farm stays, leaving the car and climbing on foot. It is a concrete way to take pressure off the beaches and give value back to a mountain that, here, is still alive.

Related guides: Sardinia off the beaten track: inland villages and little-known destinations · Where to go at Easter without crowds: villages and weekends in lesser-known Italy · Barbagia in 4 days: a slow itinerary through the villages of inland Sardinia.

Getting there

Ulassai is a village of Ogliastra set among the limestone heels, in the south-eastern interior of Sardinia. You reach it by car along the scenic SS125 Orientale Sarda, then taking the slip road onto the provincial road towards Ierzu, Osini and Ulassai; the Lequarci waterfalls are a few minutes from the centre along a panoramic lane. The reference airport is Cagliari-Elmas, about two hours away, while Ulassai is also one of the stations on the tourist line of the Trenino Verde.

Practical guides for Cagliari

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