Trekking

The Chianti is not only a land of vines, olive groves, churches and castles. The Chianti is also nature, dense forests and a lush countryside, a unique pleasure to be absorbed, as you walk through the hills of the Black Rooster between Siena and Florence. The traveller to this seemingly isolated is accompanied always by its flourishing nature, but is surprisingly also greeted often by the sights of medieval hamlets, old farms, renaissance villas and remnants of an ancient past long forgotten. These Itineraries are available all year round

Val d’Orcia, the soft hills of the val d’Orcia, crossed by the old roman road of the cassia and guarded by old villages and medieval fortresses, offer some of the most well-known and characteristic landscapes of Tuscany. With its Cypress trees crowning the hill tops and running along country roads with geometric precision and the neat rows of vineyards of Montalcino as well as the dense and wild forests of the monte Amiata all make up this protected territory which offers many different experiences. Some of these itineraries are available all year round.

The cities, Siena, San Gimignano, Montalcino and Volterra, discover a different way of visiting our favorite cities and witnessing its most spectacular views and the hidden beauties. Follow itineraries along ancient walls, through vegetable gardens and vineyards but without ever distancing yourselves to much from the town, you will cross fields and forests, discovering millennia old ruins of cities long forgotten and preserved by a nature proud of unveiling its ancient glories. These itineraries are available all year round.

The Montagnola, is an area of great naturalistic heritage, one of Tuscany’s treasures. The Montagnola is an important centre for the extraction of marble, above all the beautiful Giallo di Siena, present also in the city’s Duomo. Following the paths of this area you will remain enchanted not only by the attractive landscapes, the Romanic churches, the castles and the medieval villages, but also by its fascinating woodlands testifying the true vocation of this area. Here we find, Monteriggioni, and far from the hordes of tourists, Sovicille, as well as many other small centres worth visiting. These itineraries are available all year round.

Val di Merse, a very evocative region for the continuity and extension of its forests, interrupted only by the ancient walled villages like Brenna, Orgia, Torri, Stigliano and by fortifications like the tower of Montarrenti or by isolated churches like the Hermitage of Santa Lucia or the abandoned ‘lost Duomo’ of Montespecchio. The wealth of this area derived from its many waterways, in particular the Merse river which became the centre for the milling of cereals thanks to its many water mills. These itineraries are available all year. For the more adventurous it is possible to bathe in the river during the summer months.

Val di Farma. The wild valley of the Farma river, between Monticiano and Roccastrada was since the middle ages, an important centre for iron mining. This is an area of interesting rock formations and, due to the presence of a particular and more humid microclimate, is also a haven for some rare plants considered ‘relics’ by botanists, these species that millions of years ago made up entire forests are now comprised of only a handful of specimen. Along the banks of the river Farma you can also find the ancient hot springs of Petriolo, bathed in since the times of the romans for their healing properties. These itineraries are available all year.

The Crete Senesi are a basic and harmonious landscape. The Crete are clay soils, very friable and subject to erosion of wind and rain, Man and beast which have over the centuries shaped forms that communicate emotions, like a sea of earth with fortifications, farms and villages riding on its waves. Agriculture has always had a strong link to this area, but the crete also offer pastures for sheep farming and the small wooded areas, uncovering the inebriating truffles found under its soils as well as the travertine quarrying in Rapolano. These itineraries are not recommended during the hottest months or after extensive rain.

The Maremma, in southern Tuscany with its plains and its nature reserve with hills descending to the sea into a myriad of rocky and sandy beaches which extend for almost 25km of coast and accompanied by marshes, shaded pine forests, farm land and pastures, a haven for many animal and plant species. This fertile area offers a marvelous variety of history and culture, an open air museum sculpted by nature. This area has been populated since millennia starting from the Roman-Etruscan remains of Roselle. These itineraries are available all year round.

Special Treks, Truffle Hunting. Cross valleys, forests, ditches and crevices in search of this precious and rare tuber. In these silent areas, where nature every year reaches out to regain its space and in doing so offers us the truffle liberating its distinct, inebriating and intense smell that escapes the freshly unearthed ground around it. Tuscany has since many years, are traversed by the wise truffle hunters, these shady and reticent characters, hide a wealth of local lore, stories and imaginary tales of enormous truffles.
In search of the golden nugget, The prized White Truffle. The season goes from 10th of September to the 31 of December. It is possible to find other kinds of black truffles also in the periods from 10 January to 30 April and 1 June to 8 August. In case of truffle finds, you receive your share of the hunt.