Why this ride
A 228 km round trip from Castelsardo - roughly 4 h 25 in the saddle. It goes by way of Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro, Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu, Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju and Necropolis of Puttu Codinu.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante and Necropolis of Puttu Codinu
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 228 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 25
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Sardinia Alghero to Bosa Coast Road
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For about 39 km this is Sardinia Alghero to Bosa Coast Road, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 39 km
- Named road
- Sardinia Alghero to Bosa Coast Road
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante
On the side of the main road below Castelsardo, in northern Sardinia, a huge reddish rock stands alone at a bend, and it really does look like an elephant, trunk lowered, as if about to drink. It is a block of volcanic trachyte that broke away from the hills above and was sculpted by wind and rain into its strange shape. What most passing drivers miss is that its base was used long before anyone thought of elephants: two prehistoric tombs, domus de janas, were cut into the rock in the Neolithic period, and in one of them carved horn shapes, the symbol of the bull, can still be made out.
Read the complete Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante is where the day begins. Next is Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro.
2. Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro
Most prehistoric tombs in Sardinia sit out in the countryside behind a gate and a dirt track. The domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parrocchiale are different: they are in Sennori itself, a few steps from the houses, carved into the soft limestone in what was once, as the name suggests, a garden belonging to the parish. A handful of chambers opens out of the rock, small rooms with low doorways, the work of Neolithic farmers who lived on this ridge thousands of years before anyone thought of building a church here.
Read the complete Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro comes up about 25 km into the recorded legs. Next is Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu.
3. Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu
Sardinians call them domus de janas, houses of the fairies, and when you crouch at the entrance of one you understand the name. They are tombs cut straight into the soft limestone by the island's Neolithic and Copper Age people, small chambers linked by low doorways, sometimes with carved false doors or bull horns on the walls. The necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu, just inland from Porto Torres, holds a couple of dozen of them scattered across a low rocky plateau among fields and scrub, one of the largest groups in the north of the island.
Read the complete Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 41 km into the recorded legs you reach Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu. Next is Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju.
4. Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju
Not far from Alghero, on the flat land behind the coast, lies the largest group of domus de janas in Sardinia. Anghelu Ruju is a necropolis of more than thirty rock-cut tombs, dug into the sandstone with stone tools around five thousand years ago and later reused for burials into the Bronze Age. The site was found in 1903 when workers were preparing land for a vineyard, and excavations revealed chambers with carved bull's horns, false doorways and painted ochre, together with pottery, figurines and personal ornaments now displayed in museums in Sassari and Cagliari. The bull motifs are thought to have been linked to fertility and protection, and they give these dim chambers a surprisingly powerful presence.
Read the complete Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju, about halfway. Next is Necropolis of Puttu Codinu.
5. Necropolis of Puttu Codinu
Domus de janas means houses of the fairies, and that is what Sardinians called the small chambers cut into rock faces across the island, believing them to be the homes of tiny supernatural women. They are in fact tombs, carved out by the island's Neolithic and Copper Age people some five thousand years ago, often with rooms arranged like houses, carved doorways, false roof beams and symbols such as bulls' horns. The necropolis of Puttu Codinu, near Villanova Monteleone in north-west Sardinia, is a group of these tombs cut into a low limestone outcrop amid fields and scrub, one of thousands across the island.
Read the complete Necropolis of Puttu Codinu write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Necropolis of Puttu Codinu sits at 102 km, about halfway. Next is back through Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju.
6. back through Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju comes up about 154 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu.
7. back through Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 189 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu. Next is back through Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro.
8. back through Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro, late in the day. Next is Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante.
9. Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 228 km.
Leg by leg
Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante to Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro
Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante → Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro to Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu
Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro → Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu to Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju
Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu → Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju to Necropolis of Puttu Codinu
Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju → Necropolis of Puttu Codinu is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Necropolis of Puttu Codinu to back through Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju
Necropolis of Puttu Codinu → back through Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju is 42 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju to back through Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu
back through Necropolis of Anghelu Ruju → back through Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu to back through Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro
back through Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu → back through Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro to Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante
back through Domus de janas of Orto del Beneficio Parro → Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.