walks.
A steep path winds up from the sanctuary (Walk 16)
The walks in this guide are suitable for a wide range of walkers. There is something for everyone, from easy leisurely strolls for beginners to strenuous climbs for experienced walkers up panoramic peaks. Each route has been designed to fit into a single day. See the route summary table in Appendix A for an overview of the essential data for each walk, including distance (km), ascent/descent (m), grade and approximate walking time.
Many of the routes (but by no means all) are waymarked with official CAI (Club Alpino Italiano/Italian Alpine Club) red-and-white paint stripes together with an identifying number. These are found along the way on prominent stones, trees, walls and rock faces.
CAI waymarking
Each walk description is preceded by an information box containing the following essential data:
Start and Finish.
Distance – in kilometres.
Ascent and Descent – This is important information, as height gain and loss are an indication of effort required and need to be taken into account alongside difficulty and distance when planning the day. Generally speaking, a walker of average fitness will cover 300m in ascent in one hour.
Difficulty – Each walk has been classified by the following grades, although adverse weather conditions will make any route more arduous:Grade 1: an easy route on clear tracks and paths, suitable for beginners. (This corresponds approximately to CAI Grade T: turistico.)Grade 2: paths across hill and mountain terrain, with lots of ups and downs. A reasonable level of fitness is preferable. (This corresponds approximately to CAI Grade E: escursionistico.)Grade 3: strenuous, and entailing some exposed stretches and possibly prolonged climbing. Experience and extra care are recommended. (This corresponds approximately to CAI Grade EE: escursionistico esperto.)
Walking time – This does not include pauses for picnics, admiring views, photos or nature stops. The ‘skeleton’ times given are a guide, as every walker goes at a different pace and makes an unpredictable number of stops along the way. As a general rule, double the times when planning your day.
Map – sheet numbers of relevant maps.
Access – details of how to get to the start of the walk, whether by public transport, on foot or by car.
Chiusure occupies a rather precarious position (Walk 26)
Lovely open terrain below Poggio Barbari (Walk 18)
In the walk descriptions, useful landmarks that appear on the map are given in bold. Altitude in metres above sea level is given as ‘m’, not to be confused with minutes, abbreviated as ‘min’. Approximate timings for sections of each walk are shown in brackets, in hours and minutes.
Finally, see Appendix B for an Italian–English glossary, which lists useful expressions and key vocabulary, including some common words that you might come across on maps, signposts or in tourist literature.
THE WALKS
The walk leaving Monteriggioni (Walk 23)
1 THE ENVIRONS OF FLORENCE
Vineyards line the way back towards Artimino, visible in the distance (Walk 2)
The hills around the bustling Tuscan capital offer a wealth of walking, worlds away from the chaos of the traffic-choked city. Fiesole dominates Florence from its commanding position high over the Arno and Mugnone rivers. It is a cool peaceful spot surrounded by olive groves. The Etruscans put it on the map in the 7th century BC and it came under Roman rule four centuries later. Its heyday was undeniably the Renaissance, as borne out by elegant palaces, villas and gardens.
A curiosity: during that period, a blue-grey sandstone known as pietra serena was extracted from the quarries on adjacent Monte Ceceri; it has been estimated that half the mountain was incorporated into Florentine monuments! Fiesole began to return to fashion once again in the late 1700s, when wealthy expats moved in. Nowadays, Monte Ceceri is a pleasant wooded park; it is visited in Walk 1, which traverses the gentle hills to Settignano.
Close by stands the mock medieval castle of Vincigliata, faithfully reconstructed in the mid 1800s on 11th-century ruins by eccentric English gentleman Mr Temple Leader. Illustrious guests included Queen Victoria and Henry James, who wrote: ‘The massive pastiche of Vincigliata has no superficial use, but, even if it were less complete, less successful, less brilliant, I should feel a reflective kindness for it.’
Stretching out to the north-west of Florence and dominating Valdarno is the low line of hills of the Montalbano ridge (nothing to do with the lovable anti-Mafia Sicilian detective). Clothed in olive groves, vineyards and woodland, Montalbano boasts some colourful history. Standout characters are Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci, who was born on its southern reaches, and the Florentine Medici clan, who had classical villas constructed in the east above Prato. Tiny walled Artimino stands on a hilltop overlooking a wide bend in the River Arno. An elevated ridge links the village with the splendid Villa Ferdinanda, a World Heritage Site. Completed in 1594 as a country residence for Grand Duke Ferdinand I, it was dubbed the cento camini (hundred chimneys), although it has but 66 in actual fact. The villa occupies the site of an Etruscan settlement, its cemetery/necropolis on the hillside below. Walk 2 is a splendid route linking all the sites.
A short crow’s flight west is charming low-profile Vinci, whose claim to fame is as the birthplace of Leonardo da Vinci. The local Museo Leonardiano has fascinating working models of his inventions. Starting in the village, Walk 3 drops in at the revered stone house where the great man saw the light of day, before climbing towards the Montalbano ridge. For more walks here, go to www.montalbano.toscana.it.
Bases
If you don’t mind the chaos of Florence, it can make a decent base, with excellent bus and train networks to the surrounding area. However, Fiesole is much quieter, with a good choice of accommodation, and is reachable by bus. Artimino has buses from Prato, and the railway, but limited accommodation. Vinci has a couple of hotels, a good bus service to Empoli, and trains.
WALK 1
Fiesole to Settignano
| Start | Fiesole |
| Finish | Settignano |
| Distance | 7.6km |
| Ascent | 180m |
| Descent | 300m |
| Grade |
1–2
|
