The Fontanone di Goriuda
An eighty-metre waterfall that comes straight out of the rock. The path takes ten minutes, and you can step into the cave and find yourself inside the waterfall.
- From the houseabout 40 km · 50 minutes by car, Val Raccolana
- When to goSpring and early summer, when the melting snow makes it most powerful.
- Where it startsVal Raccolana, just beyond the hamlet of Piani, towards Sella Nevea
- LandmarkTrattoria Al Fontanon, on the left
The ratio of effort to spectacle here is the best in this whole guide: ten minutes of path and a hundred metres of climb, for an eighty-metre waterfall that comes straight out of the rock face.
It does not rise from a stream running on the surface: it is born inside the mountain. The whole Canin massif is karst, a sieve: water sinks into it, runs for kilometres through unseen galleries, and re-emerges here, all at once, from a hole in the rock.
Come in spring, between April and June, when the Canin snow is melting. That is when the flow is at its greatest and you can hear the roar from the car park. In late summer, after weeks of dry weather, it can shrink considerably.
And there is the thing this place has that almost no other waterfall does: you can step into the cave and find yourself inside the waterfall, with the water falling in front of your eyes.
Walking boots, not negotiable. Near the waterfall the rock is permanently wet and slippery: it is an easy place to reach and an easy place to hurt yourself in the wrong shoes.
The Fontanone di Goriuda in pictures
Frequently asked questions
How far do you have to walk to reach the Fontanone di Goriuda?
Only ten minutes, with about a hundred metres of climb. It is one of the shortest walks in the area for what you find at the end: an eighty-metre waterfall.
Can you go inside the Fontanone di Goriuda waterfall?
Yes, that is what makes it special: you can step into the cave and find yourself inside the waterfall. You do need walking boots, though, because the rock near the water is always wet and slippery.
When is the best time to see the Fontanone di Goriuda?
Spring and early summer, between April and June, when the melting Canin snows bring the waterfall to its fullest flow. In high summer, after weeks without rain, it can shrink a great deal.
We run a holiday flat in Tarvisio, in a well-served, strategic spot in the heart of the village. We know these places because we go to them: the distances, the car parks and the opening times above were all checked at source, one by one.
See the flat