Our Top Florence Mugello Holiday included also a stop in Borgo San Lorenzo and Scarperia, Scarperia in particular is a very lovey small town listed in the 700 most beautiful citadels of Italy. Hope to be able to get back with another post on the matter soon.
After Scarperia we climb the provincial road 503 of the Giogo pass almost at 900 mt on the sea level. Sergio tells us that the area saw brutal fights between the German and American troops around 10th Sept 1944 . I’m a fan of WWII memorabilia and I promise I’ll get back with a new post devoted to the 85th American Infantry Division at the Altuzzo battle.
At Rifredo the Giogo road makes a rather sharp twist right to Badia di Moscheta. Then Sergio my Mugello&Tuscany driver (simone in Italian is a guy’s name) goes down a narrow secondary road for about 3,5 km before reaching the ancient vallombrosan monastery of Badia di Moscheta founded in 1054 by St John Gualberto. Moscheta is situated at 600 meters asl and it is surrounded by secular woods of chestnut, oak and beech trees.
Top Florence Mugello Holiday is also this oasis of peace and tranquility with streams, waterfalls, woods, wild valleys and rolling pastures, crossed by etherogeneous paths.
Badia di Moscheta is perhaps the most famous site within the Giogo Casaglia Park which stretches over an area of almost 7000 hectares . It covers the Apennine watershed that goes from the Giogo Pass in Scarperia to Mount Faggeta, along the crests and passes that descend towards Bologna and Romagna, in the upper part of the Santerno, Senio and Lamone basins, north, and the Sieve basin, south.
The landscape is characterized by peaks of slightly over 1,000 metres above sea level. These mountains were carved by the force of the waters. The result are canyons like those of the Valle dell’Inferno and the Rovigo streams. These canyons don spectacular waterfalls and cool natural pools. These refreshing reservoirs can become a real blessing on hot summer days like the ones in late July 2016. This is my second year in a row at Badia di Moscheta with Mugello and Tuscany.
Why not come by myself? Well the price for board and lodging wouldn’t be cheaper and besides Carmen @ Mugello&Tuscany provides excellent accommodation both in Florence and in the Upper Mugello. Furthermore I don’t have to worry about having a car as Carmen provides all the transfers for a reasonable price. Apparently this year tourists prefer to combine a couple of days in Florence with another 2-3 nights in Mugello. Nothing can be more different from Florence than this rugged yet somewhat heavenly naturalistic haven of Moscheta. Believe me try the Top Florence Mugello holiday and you won’t regret it. Read also part 3