READING OF THE ITINERARIES AND LEGEND All itineraries have been walked along and checked at the time of the guidebook’s publication, however, the information and figures provided are subject to change due to unpredictable external factors, which might take place with time and changing seasons. Extreme weather, phenomena of rock instability or human intervention can dramatically modify the conditions and characteristics of the route. The information related to each itinerary are organized as follows: Horizontal opening band: progressive number, title of itinerary. Vertical left band: title of the itinerary, progressive number. Left hand vertical column: contains fundamental technical information to quickly understand the itinerary. Right hand vertical column: contains some technical notes, the detailed description of the itinerary and the elevation profile. Page in front: plan with all locations and waypoints crossed.
With figures and information organized this way, you will be able to better understand the characteristics of the itinerary and to check if it suites to your expectations, experience, physical effort and needed time to complete it. I encourage you to always verify that the itinerary that you are about to tackle is in line with your physical and technical preparation, to avoid finding yourself in difficult situations or environment. NAME OF THE ITINERARY The names of the 16 stages of the GR20 have been given indicating the starting and arrival location (or mountain hut). Generally, the names of variants and circuits indicate the starting place or the most interesting sites crossed by the itinerary.
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LEFT HAND VERTICAL COLUMN Difficulty It refers to the grade of difficulty according to the table on page 10. Physical effort This is a subjective value, which I tried to make as homogenous as possible, taking into account distance, vertical height gain and technical difficulty of each itinerary. It is expressed over four values, from easy, one star, to particularly difficult, where four stars indicate the need to be very well trained in order to cover the whole itinerary within the given time. Beauty
It is probably the most difficult value to be set for an itinerary; of course, the evaluation is subjective and rewards the landscape and the environment variety met along the way. All of the mountains, valleys, rivers and lakes of the island deserve four stars, but a classification was necessary; the expressed judgment it is often the result of an overall assessment.
Signposts You will find the type of signposts and their frequency along the path. Altitude at start and arrival It is the altitude expressed in metres a.s.l., from which the itinerary starts and where it ends. Maximum altitude It shows the altitude of the highest point reached by the itinerary; it is an important figure to know due to the characteristics of the territory. Pay attention to its value and always check the weather
