Tuscany North

The Finest Valley and Mountain Walks

Rother walking guides are pocket-sized, in full colour and include 50 walks, varying from day-long hikes, mountain and valley walks, some easy some more demanding. Each walk has accompanying mapping, usually 1:50 000 and colour photos capture the 'feel' of each of the countries.

Non solo vino! Tuscany is Italy's countryside of classic art and culture offers many highlights for the hiker and mountaineer. The country's "greenest" region is marked not just high and low mountains, but also by countless nature reserves.

Marvellous garden scenery around Florence and hills covered in cypresses can be explored on foot - from the Giardino di Boboli in the south of the Medici metropolis, to the Roman ruins in the high Fiesole, from the birthplace of the ingenious Leonardo to the floral paradise of the Monti della Calvana. Large forests and hidden valleys lure hikers to the Casentino and Mugello. Between the La Verna monastery and the nature reserve by the source of the river Arno you can trace the footsteps of Dante and Saint Frances.

Versilia is one of the most spectacular landscapes Italy has to offer with an altitude difference of nearly 2000 metres between the wide sandy beaches surrounding Viareggio, the world-famous marble quarries around Carrara and the summit of the Apuanian Alps.

This new hiking guide unveils spectacular but quiet walking destinations. The Garfagnana and the Lunigiana seem almost like the Alps: the rough lime terraces of the Apuanians are in great contrast with the long-drawn, forest-green and flower-covered sandstone crests of the Apennines. Ancient villages, caves and hundreds of lakes render the Lucca and La Spezia hinterland a paradise for a special kind of walking.