SENTIERELSA
SENTIERELSA
SentierElsa has become in recent years one of the most sought after tourist attractions in the Val d’Elsa. The reasons for this trend are all in the particularity of the place that offers breathtaking landscapes in unspoiled nature, where you can move with agility and safety. An equipped path of about 4 kilometers in a protected area, to get in close contact with this secluded and suggestive environment. The path starts from the San Marziale bridge and flanks the bed of the Elsa river up to the town of Ponte di Spugna. The Steccaia and the Callone Reale open on the bridge of San Marziale, a majestic work of hydraulic engineering of the past, which allowed the channeling of part of the river water which was then used for irrigation. Leaving behind this ancient building we find ourselves in front of the first beauty that the path reserves, the spectacular Diborrat waterfall. From the highest observation point you can admire the waterfall in all its splendor. There are 15 meters high and about 10 meters deep, for this waterfall set between rocky and humid walls where the vegetation becomes more and more luxuriant. Remaining on the path, the path descends under the waterfall, where you will find the suggestive Grotte dell’Orso, so called due to the vague resemblance to the profile of this animal. If we look closely, in the vicinity of the Caves, moving slightly away from the river, we can glimpse an area equipped for picnics, a little spartan but comfortable with a huge flat stone, usually used as a table. From the picnic area continue along the path that reserves some gradients up to the Gore Rotte, full of bridges and wooden passages to be tackled safely. The Sentierelsa route continues for another 2 kilometers until reaching the locality of San Giorgio, where it is possible to cross the river. From this point you pass some sections (Conchiglia, Masso Bianco etc.) up to an adventurous ford of the river called Apollo. The path ends near the ruins of the old Ponte di Spugna, and then takes us back to the city.
A unique and suggestive experience that of Sentierelsa, with a path suitable for anyone along the bed of the Elsa river, between steps, fords and fences, where you can spend pleasant moments in harmony with the nature of the place. Thanks to the particular climatic-environmental conditions in this protected area, it is also possible to admire unique flora-botanical species and a varied fish fauna. An unmissable route for young and old.