Official GR20 stage · 1/16
Stage 1: Calenzana → Ortu di u Piobbu
Day one sets the tone: from the village of Calenzana, the GR20 climbs steadily and without mercy toward the Ortu di u Piobbu hut. A demanding opener for the days ahead.
Essentials
The essentials
Key facts
- Distance · 10.9 km
- Elevation gain · +1,376 m
- Elevation loss · -131 m
- Max altitude · 1,576 m
- Difficulty · Hard (4/5)
- Estimated walking time · 4h30 – 7h25
- On the trail · Stage 1 / 16
Download this stage's GPX
Official OpenStreetMap track, snapped to the PNRC refuges.
On the ground
On the ground
The stage is one long, steady ascent up to 1,576 m, on stony maquis trail that turns more mineral higher up. No cabled passage on this stretch, but the effort is sustained and sun exposure builds through the late morning — starting early helps on the lower section. The climb ends at the Ortu di u Piobbu hut, at 1,520 m, the first real landing point after the start.
Ortu di u Piobbu burned down in 2019: the hut has run on temporary facilities ever since, with no sleeping platforms — only bivouac or a rented PNRC tent for the night.
Water & resupply. Calenzana is the last real resupply point for several days: stock up at the village shop before setting off. A spring sits about a hundred metres from the Ortu di u Piobbu hut — as always on the GR20, confirm it's still flowing with the warden before leaving.
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