Pàlcoda, an abandoned hamlet in the hills of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of northern Italy, is reachable only on foot, and the path that leads to this isolated little ghost town is of particular natural beauty. Upon reaching your destination you can’t help but imagine what the town looked like in its heyday, and awe at the force of nature after its decline.

The town was first inhabited in the 17th century, and at its peak was home to some 150 residents. Hardship set in shortly after the First World War, when a postwar economic crisis curbed the demand for hats, taking away the main source of income for the people of Pàlcoda. The village was completely abandoned by 1923, and the empty buildings were used as a refuge when the Second World War came along.

Aside from that, the town has belonged to nature alone for nearly a century, and the remains of the old houses are now taken over by vegetation. The overgrown ruins are an interesting contrast to the newly renovated old church, which was refurbished in 2011 and opened to those intrepid visitors who make the journey to this hilly ghost town.