Series:

Walking Overseas

2 total works

Cover of Walking in Tuscany

Walking in Tuscany

by Gillian Price

Published 30 September 1998

A guidebook to walks in the Italian region of Tuscany. 43 graded routes range from 2.5 to 18km, and take in the Renaissance splendour of Florence and Siena, the World Heritage scenery of Val d'Orcia and San Gimignano and the stunning island of Elba. Alongside detailed route descriptions and clear mapping there is essential practical information on public transport and food and drink, as well as a comprehensive list of accommodation, and a useful Italian-English glossary. The guide is packed with interesting details about the area's wildlife, landscape, culture and history, making it a perfect companion to getting to know this beautiful region.

Tuscany is justifiably renowned for its glorious landscapes. Romantic hilltop villages clinging to rolling hills contrast with dense forests, rugged mountains and long, sandy beaches. This is a region that resonates with history - Etruscan remains, Medici villas, Renaissance towns and landscapes that inspired Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Dante. Add in the climate and superb food and wine and you have a perfect walking destination.

Cover of Walking in Italy's Gran Paradiso
A little over 100 years after Alpine pioneers George Yeld and Rev. W. A. B. Coolidge compiled their celebrated guide "The Mountains of Cogne", this detailed book retraces some of their itineraries. It opens up a wonderful world of rugged mountains and desolate valleys that are densely populated with an extraordinary variety of wildlife. First and foremost of these is the magnificent ibex, saved from extinction strangely enough by the establishment of a Royal Game Reserve last century. The Gran Paradiso National Park inherited some 450km of tracks from that period. The walks described here range from simple half-day strolls to full-scale traverses and plenty of rewarding panoramic peaks. The excellent network of refuges allows visitors to rest overnight at high altitudes, as well as feast on local gastronomic specialities. The majority of the walks are traverses or circular itineraries, and alternative accesses or exits are given where feasible. Timing for the reverse direction is also given in brackets at the end of each stage. Furthermore smaller chunks can easily be bitten off at will.