HomeItinerari The Pomonte valley and the shepherds’ paths
The Pomonte valley and the shepherds’ paths
What we are proposing is a long itinerary that is also a journey into the heart of the history of the Isle of Elba. The first part, starting from the splendid beach of Fetovaia, passes through the fertile Pomonte valley with its typical terraces, where the hazards of Saracen raids still re-echo, while the second part takes us through Villanovan settlements and old shepherds’ goat-huts overlooking the sea.
Altre immagini
Località di partenza:
Regione Toscana, Provincia di Livorno, Marina Di Campo, Frazione Fetovaia
Sentieri nell’Elba di sud ovest, published by the Associazione albergatori Costa del sole. Multigraphic, Carta turistica e dei sentieri, Isola d’Elba, 1:25000
Note:
The path starts from the road that descends from the provincial highway to Fetovaia beach, near the Hotel Galli
A path starts from the road that descends from the provincial highway
to Fetovaia beach, near the Hotel Galli, passing at the beginning
through houses but in just a few metres it becomes an earth track and
continues parallel with the provincial highway that links the villages
along the west coast of the island. We meet the road along the coast
and we pass below it, still proceeding parallel. We come out again on
the provincial highway and after 300 metres the path brings us to a
bend. We descend and reach Pomonte beach.
We follow via degli Oleandri and climb up again as far as the church
which we keep on our left. We are about to enter one of the wildest and
most fascinating areas of Elba and walk up the valley that develops on
the western slopes of Mount Capanne, visible above us. This is one of
the most beautiful valleys in the whole island, rich in crops growing
on terraces that have been given new vigour in recent years after being
left uncultivated for years. We pass the village and walk as far as
a bridge where the actual valley starts. Both on the right and left we
can see vines and, walking up the path with some sections in granite
and others in earth, we start the slow climb. We are walking along the
mule track that runs through the valley of the Moors, which takes its
name from the frequent Saracen raids that infested the area; the
village of Pomonte, as many others on Elba, was originally built on the
hills to avoid this type of attack. While we climb, on the north slope
of the peak we see colle di San Bartolommeo (it’s not a mistake, it
really is called that!) with its ancient church. In spite of its
current appearance, the place was once densely populated and the path
was the normal road that joined Pomonte to Valle Buia and to San Piero
in Campo. Along the way we climb in the company of Barione
torrent and we keep to the right when we meet the turn-offs. The
vegetation becomes thicker due to the constant presence of water and we
walk in the shade of chestnuts, holm-oaks and numerous species of ferns
before starting the steep climb that leads us to the south slope of the
valley, with a path that is sometimes paved in granite. Thus we reach
the top near a goat hut; this is where the shepherds live, a wild and
magnificent area, from where we can see the sea in every direction.
We go on, from the first goat hut until we reach col della Grottaccia,
an important crossroads. We turn right to reach the area of Le Mure, an
ancient Villanovan settlement on which the most recent goat huts have
been built, with a historical continuity that keeps these places alive.
We continue descending passing the ridge before us to the west and from
here we go down further towards the Pomonte valley. After just a few
metres we leave the path to turn left , heading for the cork valley
where we find numerous prehistoric tombs, again in the company of the
precious goat-huts. From here the road descends steeply, bringing us to
the centre of Fetovaia, where we can have a refreshing swim from its
splendid beach that we saw during the last part of our walk.
This
itinerary is part of a collection that the magazine “Trekking”,
together with the APT (Provincial Tourist Authority) of the Tuscan
Coast, has dedicated to the most beautiful trekking routes in this
area. A series of itineraries that will help you discover lovely places
and will introduce you to a district that has great environmental and
cultural appeal.
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