In Genoese dialect they’re called crêuze—narrow cobblestoned paths that cross the hillsides along Italy’s dazzling Ligurian coast. These centuries-old mule tracks were originally used by farmers to transport grapes, olives, and lemons grown on terraces cut into the steep, mountainous landscape.

Today locals use the trails to walk into town from the rural interior. As I discovered late last October, hiking them makes for an enchanting way to experience the Portofino Peninsula, a rocky promontory about 15 miles east of Genoa.