Taibon Agordino
A natural Paradise in the middle of the Pala Group
The Municipality of Taibon Agordino (Taibòn in Agordino dialect) is one of the 16 Municipalities of the Agordino area (Province of Belluno, Veneto Region); located in the Conca Agordina at the foot of some of the most impressive peaks of the Dolomites UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site, Taibon Agordino is a natural pearl to be discovered and enjoyed.
The beauty of this territory and the proximity of the vertical walls of the Dolomite peaks gives this small village a unique, fascinating charm that allows the place to compete with the majorities of the Dolomitic tourist destinations. A great number of beautiful natural attractions and features makes this place the ideal resort for mountain lovers looking for pristine, untouched and quiet places.
Description and position of the Municipality of Taibon Agordino
The Municipality of Taibon Agordino lies at 628 meters above see level at the confluence of the Cordevole and Tegnas Rivers; with its 90 square kilometers of extension, Taibon Agordino is one of the widest Municipalities of the Province of Belluno. Taibon Agordino is located on the border with the Trentino area (the Pala Group is shared indeed with the Primiero area) and it is a place that is definitely worth a visit.
As for the Dolomites UNESCO World Natural Heritage, Taibon Agordino is surrounded by some of the most renowned peaks of the Pala Group (Pale di San Martino in Italian): Mount Agner, Pale di San Lucano, Rosetta plateau. These peaks are part of the 3rd of the 9 Dolomitic systems officially recognized and protected by the Dolomiti UNESCO Foundation, that is the Pale di San Martino – San Lucano – Vette Feltrine and Dolomiti Bellunesi System. To the north, Taibon Agordino includes also part of Mount Civetta, the well-known “Wall of the Walls”.
Taibon Agordino has 1800 inhabitants that dwell in small hamlets scattered on its wide territory; some of these congregate with some hamlets of the nearby Municipality of Agordo.
History of Taibon Agordino
The placename Taibon seems to derive from the Latin “Tabullo”, according to the historian Giorgio Piloni, and subsequently from the vernacular form “Taibono” (Historia Bellunese, 1607). The area seems to have been inhabited since the Roman Era.
At the dawn of the Modern Era, Taibon Agordino was included in the Regola di Sottochiusa, the union of the Southern Municipalities of the Agordino area. The boundary between the Regola di Sottochiusa and the Regola di Soprachiusa was located in the territory of Taibon Agordino and more precisely in the hamlet of Listolade, where the “Chiusa” (a defensive construction) was located. This place was the setting of an important historical event, that is the opposition of the Agordino people to the passage of the troops of Filippo Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan, in 1439.
As many of the Agordino villages, Taibon Agordino housed a metallurgical complex. The melting furnaces of Taibon Agordino, called Forno di Val, were located at the beginning of the Valle di San Lucano and were active until the beginning of the 17th Century, when Venice (who ruled upon the Agordino area) closed it down to the benefit of the nearby Valle Imperina Mining Complex (see History of the Agordino for further details). The supply of wood and coal for the melting furnaces was indeed a huge problem at the time, and Venice decided to support the melting furnaces of Val Imperina instead, belonging to the Crotta noble family. At that time, the wood for the coal production was obtained mainly from the Malgonera Forest, which is nowadays a State Reserve of the Veneto Region, and from the Val d’Angheraz, and the Crotta family needed that wood for their melting furnaces.
In 1861, with a courageous act by Mayor Pio Soccol, Taibon Agordino was among the first Veneto Municipalities to proclaim their independence from Austria and the annexation to the Reign of Italy. The Elementary School of Taibon Agordino are still dedicated to Pio Soccol.
The main source of livelihood has been for centuries agriculture and breeding: the Municipal coat of arms still depicts a cow grazing with three crossed ears of corn. These works, that also marked the rhythm of the village itself (for instance, seeding was made on Saint Mark’s day; haymaking on San Lucano’s day), were assigned to women; the male labour force was employed indeed in the mines, forestry and sawmill works, handicrafts, wood processing and dairy production. A lot of Taibon people were forced to emigrate, and many among these were “conthe”.
In 1908, the hamlets of Pra and Lagunaz were destroyed by a massive landslide that collapsed on the houses and forced the inhabitants to flee from other areas of Taibon Agordino. This sad episode, as well as the rebuilding of the elementary School is portrayed on a fresco made by the local artist Dunio on the current Elementary School.
After the fierce 1966 flood, the economy of Taibon Agordino has completely changed: most of the people deal nowadays with industry and have abandoned both agriculture and breeding. Even if this remains a village mainly devoted to industry, many local associations promote tourism in the area, and Taibon Agordino has started recently to take advantage of its marvelous territory for tourism purposes.
Monuments
Among the most interesting monuments of Taibon Agordino there are the Church of Santi Cornelio and Cipriano, the Church of San Lucano and the Peden Fort.
the Church of Santi Cornelio and Cipriano, located at the entrance to Taibon Agordino coming from Agordo in the namesake hamlet, was founded probably in the 12th Century and it is thus one of the oldest religious buildings of the Conca Agordina. The current shape of the church goes back to the 15th Century, when the building was rebuilt and adorned with new frescoes. Abandoned in 1943 after the building of the new Municipal Church, the Church of Santi Cornelio and Cipriano has been further restored in recent times and it is now visitable on scheduled times.
The Peder Military Fort, also known as Batteria Listolade, is a military post built in 1890 with the aim of defending the Reign of Italy from possible invasions from the north. The Peden fort, heavily armed with several large medium-range calibres, never entered the active conflict during the Great War and was blown up by the Italian Army after the Battle of Caporetto in 1917. The remains of the imposing military complex, still visible, have been restored and are now an open-air museum of the Great War that can be reached with a pleasant 10-minute walk from the hamlet of Col di Peden.
The Church of San Lucano is another renowned monument of Taibon Agordino. This building is located at the access to the namesake valley and it is dedicated to this ancient Saint of the Roman Church. The church and the surrounding meadows are the setting of the local annual Patronal festival that takes place on the last weekend of July.
See Church of San Lucano > Click here
Two further curious attractions of the Municipality are represented by the Sass del Userta and the Sass de le Cros. These two sites can be reached through a nice mule track, recently restored after the Vaia Hurricane, along the CAI Path 769 to Rifugio Scarpa – Gurekian. The Sass del Userta is considered to be the shelter of the legendary Userta, a outlaw and hitman from the 17th Century; the Sass de le Cros is a rock with hundreds of engraved crosses, that would represent the victims of the Userta, according to the legend. This is of course just a story, and the crosses seem to have been engraved by the Taibon people throughout the centuries as ex-voto (voting offering).
Nearby the current Town Hall, in Pietro Nenni Road, rises the small but interesting Taibon Agordino Ethnographic Museum. This museum, housed inside an historic building of the Municipality, offers a complete overview on rural life in the Dolomites in an easy and immediate way. The museum is open all year long on reservation (click here).
Taibon Agordino is built up by several and sunny hamlets and by the enchanting Valle di San Lucano, a long, landlocked glacial valley characterized by a verdant and untouched nature and by the steep walls of the surrounding Dolomites peaks (Mount Agner and Pale di San Lucano).
The commendable restoration of the several picnic areas of the Valle di San Lucano, together with the creation of new parking lots and the passion displayed by the local volunteers in cleaning the paths of the valley allow guests to fully enjoy this natural paradise. Mountain biking, snowshoeing, norkic walking, hiking, climbing and paragliding are popular activities there, and local events are frequented and beloved by the guests of the area.
The paths which are suitable for mountain biking have been recently mapped by Dolomites Heart, local MTB enthusiasts. 26 paths have been identified, cleaned and mapped, and the maps have been shared for free with the guests of the valley (they are available at the local Tourist Information Offices).
If you’re looking for a charming Alpine destination to spend a holiday dedicated to relaxation, sporting activities, enchanting mountain landscapes and silence, then Taibon Agordino is the right place for you.
The Valle di San Lucano is undoubtedly the best natural attraction Taibon Agordino offers; this long glacial valley, pressed by the Agner and the Pale di San Martino, is rich in natural attractions of a unique beauty. Wide forests, charming mountain streams, unbelievably steep walls convey to the visitor a satisfying sense of inner peace and contact with nature.
In recent times, the Valle di San Lucano is collecting an increasing success among the enthusiasts of wing suiting: Mount Agner offers indeed the highest vertical wall of the Dolomites (1600 ft), and the valley houses a wingsuit festival each year.
The San Lucano Valley offers 3 picnic areas, the most beloved one is located near the charming Laghetto delle Peschiere.
The Val Corpassa
The hamlet of Listolade, the northernmost one, is the access point to the Val Corpassa at the foot of Mount Civetta. From here, guests can reach the Rifugio Capanna Trieste by car and then the beloved Rifugio Vazzoler with a 1 and a half hour walk. The Val Corpassa is the first stage of the Transcivetta Karpos, one of the most beloved running competitions of the Dolomites.
Tourist Information Office:
Ufficio Turistico di Agordo
Tel. 0437 62105
ufficioturistico@agordo.net
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Valle di San Lucano
The Dolomites in Agordino
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