PNRC refuge
Manganu refuge
At 1,600 m, the Manganu refuge guards the entrance to one of the GR20's finest passages: the climb to the Capitello breach and the Capitello and Melu lakes.
Essentials
The essentials
Key facts
- Altitude · 1,600 m
- Distance · km 64 from Calenzana
- On the trail · Between Ciottulu di i Mori and Petra Piana
- Capacity · 26 places
- Coordinates · 42.2199, 8.9804
- Management · PNRC · staffed refuge
Book this refuge
Bedding: dorm bunk, PNRC tent or bivouac (subject to availability).
Booking is compulsory on the Park's official system, by date and place. Refuges are staffed from 16 May to 4 October 2026.
A sleeping bag is required (no blankets provided); meals are ordered from the warden, not online.
On the ground
The refuge on the ground
It's the last stop before the chain of high cols and mountain lakes that make the northern half famous. Hot showers and half board on site; you set off early to clear the breach before the heat and the crowds.
The refuge opens the way, upstream, to the Lac de Nino and its pozzines, then to the Brèche de Capitello (Bocca alle Porte, ~2,225 m) dropping to the glacial lakes of Capitello and Melo.
Facilities — indicative, confirm with the warden
Our traverse
Passing through at midday
We passed Manganu in the middle of day 6, one of our longest days: 24.8 km from the Vergio col to Petra Piana, doubling up the official stages. A day to take very seriously — the idea was to leave very early; the accumulated fatigue decided otherwise. On this stretch the refuge marks a clear boundary: behind, Lake Nino and its pozzines, crossed in very kind weather; ahead, the climb to the Capitello breach, the most demanding piece of the day.
We didn't sleep here, and our diary doesn't dwell on the refuge: what came next held my only real energy crash of the GR20, saved by a long break facing the Melo and Capitello lakes. With hindsight, splitting the day here into two is clearly the sensible option — our single-push version is day 6.
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