Story: In the Rovana Valley with Zita Sartori
Stop, hang up your hammock and delight in the view.
Swinging allows you to reconnect with yourself and nature.
Rent a hammock to experience pure sensations in the unique setting of Bosco Gurin. The Ggurijnar Hermi project gives you the opportunity to discover slow tourism, coming into contact with the locals.
Zita Sartori, founder of hammock-sharing
.jpg/jcr:content/Amache-Bosco-Gurin%20(3).jpg "Zita Sartori, founder of hammock-sharing")
Bosco Gurin is a village steeped in history and legends. The energy of the mythical Weltu people becomes apparent as you rest in your hammock.
Would you like to swing gently between two larches as you listen to the great tits? Enjoy the thundering sound of the river, breathe in the scent of the meadows and woods, read a book or even just doze, lulled by the rocking movement? It doesn’t take much: simply rent an ultralight hammock and set off to discover the twelve stations dotted around the village of Bosco Gurin.
Ggurijnar Hermi is a project developed by Zita Sartori. It was launched in summer 2021 and is making a positive name for itself in the tourist industry. Thanks to a widespread rental network integrated with the various businesses in the Walser village, visitors have the opportunity to come into contact with the local community before immersing themselves in the fairy-tale landscape in total harmony with nature.
An experience of sharing suitable for all, where you can relax, reconnect with yourself and appreciate the age-old history and culture that mark out this characteristic mountain village, which is the highest in Canton Ticino.
Putting up a hammock in natural surroundings and enjoying the landscape in total relaxation?
An idea born during the pandemic while Zita was writing her master's thesis and decided to go up to Bosco Gurin. She spent several months here and experienced the village, its beauty and the unspoilt nature. She took breaks from studying in a hammock and realised that she wanted to share this sensation with other people.
The hammocks are like flags that express the desire to introduce people to Bosco Gurin’s beauty and uniqueness. It’s an amazing spectacle. All you have to do is stop, put up your hammock and enjoy the view. This is why Zita decided to give the various hammock stations names in the Ggurijnartitsch language. The project name – Ggurijnar Hermi – also features the Walser dialect. Infact “Hermi” is what the “guriner” (inhabitants of Bosco Gurin) called the places where they stopped to rest, taking a break from making hay. They’re rest places used by Bosco Gurin’s inhabitants.
Originally from Bosco Gurin, Zita spent her weekends and summers here as a child. It feels like home for her and although she does not live there all year round, she feels her Walser roots very much.
I wanted a project with a cultural basis that would also involve the local inhabitants.
She wanted the project to have a cultural basis too and to allow people to discover the village and its traditions, to explore the area and, above all, to come into contact with the local community. That is why hammocks are rented from the bakery and not just there. They can be collected from and returned to three points in total: the village bakery, the Walserhaus Museum and the Bed and Breakfast Casa Moni.
12 hammock stations at the moment: some stations are closer to the village centre, so that they’re easily accessible for families. Others are further away and sometimes you need to take care when getting into the hammock. The hooks are placed along signposted trails, so that those who do the walk can stop and hang up their hammock.
It’s an experience that everyone can enjoy. Visitors passing through Bosco Gurin, but also local families, children and everyone holidaying in the village who wants to try a different activity between one trip and the next.
"Stop, hang up your hammock and delight in the view. Nothing else required."
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