The Vuglio Waterfall is a magnificent waterfall several meters high inside a natural cave in the municipality of Sangineto in the province of Cosenza.
It is relatively easy to reach and is a sight to behold.
Reaching the Vuglio waterfall
The Vuglio waterfall is located not far from the historic center of Sangineto and is reached via the “Dream Trail,” a beautiful nature trail created and maintained by the Pro-Loco of Sangineto.
To reach the trail entrance to the Vuglio Waterfall, you can type directly into your navigators “Trail of Dreams entrance” and you would be guided to the “Squirrel Junction,” practically a few meters from the trail entrance.
Park the car, and it’s time to enter a beautiful trail with lush green flora.
If you can’t find parking on the road near the trailhead, you can also park near the historic center of Sangineto and walk back to the trailhead; the distance to walk is not very long.
We embark on the path of dreams
From squirrel junction we make the small climb and set out on the dream trail. The road is well-trodden.
We proceed for a few meters and take the descent immediately to the right.
After descending a few meters the vegetation becomes denser.
The trail is not well marked
As we continue, we soon realize that the path is unfortunately not well marked and it is very easy to take a wrong turn, especially further on.
We pay close attention to the symbols drawn on the rocks at the side of the trail.
The "hidden" entrance to the Vuglio waterfall
Continuing on the trail, after a while we will come to a concrete pontoon bridge. It would be natural to continue by crossing the bridge, but instead NO!
To go to the waterfall, we must not cross the bridge, but go straight ahead.
We take the right path to the waterfall of dreams
We therefore continue straight on to the concrete pontoon without crossing it.
The passage is what you see in the photo, at the beginning of the fence , going straight ahead. The trailhead to the Vuglio waterfall is there, although somewhat hidden.
We must keep to the side of the creek at all times.
Continuing on the concrete pontine we would go to the dream trail but not to the waterfall.
Pay close attention to this passage, many people have been misled by this passage and misdirected.
On the right path to the Vuglio waterfall
We are now in the right direction and are on an attractive path with rich vegetation, sometimes wide and sometimes narrow, featuring several steps and pontines.
The trail is very pleasant to walk on. We are always by the side of the creek and all along the trail we hear its roar and flow.
You cross several wooden pontoons over the Sangineto stream that facilitate the trail by allowing you to walk along it without going through water.
We also find several ladders made from tree trunks that allow us to effortlessly tackle the small climbs present.
We arrive at the cave
The path to the waterfall cave is really short. After not even 30 minutes or so of walking, we arrive at the cave.
We don’t see either the cave or the waterfall yet, but we know we have arrived because the roar of the water is getting louder and because we see a flight of steps going to a hole at the top.
We take the last staircase and prepare for what we will see.
Here we are at the waterfall
After climbing the steps to the cave, with the sound of the waterfall getting louder and louder, we arrive at the cave entrance and finally see the waterfall although not in its entirety. And it is already a beautiful sight.
To see the waterfall in its entirety, we must descend into the cave by continuing the staircase that now descends downward, precisely inside the cave.
But first we stop for a while here at the cave entrance to admire the beautiful sight.
The cave is quite high and wide; the waterfall drop is several meters and the water noise is quite loud.
We descend inside the cave of the Vuglio waterfall.
We then descend inside the cave by walking down the few steps to the bottom.
We are now inside the large cave; the sound of the waterfall is louder and the air cooler.
The Vuglio Waterfall cave, as already written, is quite large; the vault is high and there is enough space. If you do not want to get your feet wet, it is possible to stay dry at all times, but you would miss the freshness of this clear turquoise-blue water with beautiful green highlights.
The Vuglio waterfall
From inside the cave one can admire the Vuglio waterfall in all its beauty.
The drop of the waterfall could be about 10 meters by evaluating it so on sight.
The rocks of the cave’s vault form a delicate interplay of balances and textures amplified by the light filtering through the fissure at the top of the cave from which the waterfall flows, creating beautiful reflections on the water and the droplets of it flying through the air all around us.
It is truly an enchanting spectacle, a real hidden but easily accessible gem.
Considerations on the Vuglio waterfall
The Vuglio Waterfall in Sangineto in the province of Cosenza is a truly beautiful and enchanting place.
Although it is not among the most publicized places in Calabria (and perhaps that is for the best), it is really worth seeing.
You can get there easily and with little effort, and the spectacle is exciting.
The only flaws are precisely the missing and misleading signage.
Useful links
Below are some useful links for planning your visit to Vuglio Falls.
