Carpe

Leaving the built-up area of Toirano, along the provincial road to Bardineto, you arrive in the hamlet of Carpe. Carpe is a settlement that arose in medieval times near the Church of St Bernard, which was the community's landmark for centuries.Politically, Carpe's history has weathered more than a few storms. It was originally a fief of the Marquises Del Carretto of Balestrino, then an imperial fief. In 1735 it passed to the Kingdom of Sardinia, then went through the Napoleonic phase between the Ligurian Republic and the French Empire, before returning to the Kingdom of Sardinia. It later became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 as an autonomous municipality, only in 1905 being incorporated as a hamlet of Toirano.Carpe also bears the marks of the Second World War. On 6 February 1945, German soldiers carried out a roundup that caused great fear throughout the village.In those tense hours, the inhabitants entrusted themselves to prayer, turning to Our Lady. Thanks in part to the intervention of the local teacher Agnese Garassini, the community was ultimately spared. That day has remained etched in local memory, and every year on 6 February it is commemorated with a Mass and a procession.From Carpe, looking eastwards towards the sea, Monte San Pietro, with its ancient abbey, is clearly visible. On 1 May, the Mount is visited by many inhabitants of Toirano, who go there for the traditional feast of San Pietro ai Monti.If you are in the mood for trekking, you can reach the summit via two routes: the historical path that starting from the hamlet of Dari, or the dirt road beginning at Giogo di Toirano. Both afford you an incredible panorama stretching across the Ligurian coast—and on clear days, all the way to Corsica.