Hikes in Montale

Route that  from the parking lot of the old Schignano restaurant climbs along the ridge until reaching the springs of the Bisenzio. Return by a different route, drawing a loop that almost touches Migliana and diverting to the Massacorbi Waterfalls to add a small naturalistic gem.

Updated version of the San Jacopo Way as of April 21, 2021, from FLORENCE to LUCCA, with the addition of two new stages: LUCCA ➜ PISA and PISA ➜ LIVORNO (official version from the Way's website)Watch the videos of the individual stages here ➜ https://www.youtube.com/c/HIKE2ME

This hike, starting from the village of Valdibure—less than a 20-minute drive from bustling Pistoia—offers a “full immersion” in the ancient beech and chestnut forests of the Pistoiese region. The destination is the Spedaletto mountain hut. The trail, marked by the CAI, begins below Valdibure at the Chiesa San Giovanni01 or Via Casolari and passes a small sports field. Right at the start, the trail splits, and we continue on the left-hand path. After passing a water reservoir, we come to a fork where we keep to the right. A gentle ascent along the marked trail (r/w) leads us, after about 30 minutes, past gorse hedges and into an old chestnut forest. As the trail continues to climb, several massive beech trees come into view. Two smaller trails branch off to the left from the main path, which is steadily ascending; we ignore these. At another fork, keep to the right. We have now reached Colle al Orso at just under 800 m. After another 10 minutes, the main trail continues to the right, and a sign soon points toward Poggio di Acquifredula02(1,100 m) and the Cascina di Spedaletto refuge03, which is reached after a little more than one kilometer and crossing the SP 24. In the adjacent house, the farmer’s wife sells ricotta and cheese. The return route from Cascina di Spedaletto heads north, and after about 1 km, the road turns left—marked with a sign for Badia a Tona04 —and leads through the Riserva Aqcuerino. The path that follows turns out to be a nature trail through the woods, just under two kilometers long, running alongside a mountain stream that we’ll cross later and that ends where it meets the SP 24. We follow a road to the left—also known as Via Badia e Acquerino—for about 500 m until we reach a crossroads. Here, we take a trail that runs parallel to the road, slightly higher up, before rejoining the main road. Small paths branch off from the road, but the descent from this region toward the south on Trail 208 begins only at a yellow arrow on a beech tree05 on the left. It is also marked here and at a subsequent junction with the sign “Camino di San Bartolomeo”06. Here and at another fork, we follow the yellow sign. The trail continues downhill, and we cross the road’s switchbacks until we finally reach the hamlet of Baggio07. The Museo Carbonaia just outside the village highlights the area’s once-important charcoal-burning tradition. At the Church of San Michele, we leave the village and follow the San Bartolomeo trail. Now we descend via a dirt track toward Lupiccano (signposted) to the southwest, continuing on the trail marked with a yellow dot to reach Valdibure as quickly as possible, alternating between the dirt track and the road or staying on the main trail. On this section, the mountain vegetation slowly gives way again to olive groves and open fields. The small villages along the way suggest that the residents here were once able to live quite self-sufficiently. From Valdibure, the Chiesa San Giovanni01 is quickly reached via its access road.

Route based on the tracks from 150 to 161 actually covered by the Va' Sentiero team

Partenza e arrivo dalla Piazza di Montale.Difficoltà Media

Anello con partenza da Cascina di Spedaletto. Si sale fino a Cerchiaia (CAI 13, 00). Si scende poi passando per il rifugio delle Cave, dal Bivacco di Cerliano e dal Faggione (CAI 32, 00).

da Acquiputoli Monte Bucciana Rif. Le Cave Faggione (13/11/2022)

Il giro ad anello di poco più di 19 km e di difficoltà medio-alta, consigliato a chi ha esperienza di escursioni selvagge nei boschi. Il percorso inizia dalla Cascina di Spedaletto a quota 900 m e, dopo una breve pendenza in salita si arriva a toccare i 1000 metri per poi percorrere una lunga discesa di 6 km circa durante la quale incontreremo Cascina di Vespaio e nel punto più basso il Mulino dell’Almanacco.

Breve anello di 4 km di bassa difficoltà adatto anche ai bambini e a chi ha poca familiarità con le escursioni. L’anello parte dalla Cascina di Spedaletto e porta al vicino Poggio di Celso a quota 1100 m. L’anello e la sua altitudine sono perfetti per il periodo estivo, per godersi le quote più alte e la frescura della Riserva che assieme ai panorami di “alta quota” regalano una vera esperienza.