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Mugello

The Mugello has a great deal to offer, authentic foods, the sites associated with the Medici family, museums, ancient country parish churches and solitary convents. The various towns and villages of the area are all easily accessible by bus and car: the A1 autostrada (highway) has an exit at Barberino di Mugello. There are also many very interesting state and local roads coming from elsewhere in Tuscany and Emilia Romagna. The old and fascinating Faentina rail route provides access to the territory of Mugello, both from the direction of Romagna, starting from Faenza, and from Tuscany, starting in Firenze. There are also a number of local public transport routes to enable movement around the area.

The Mugello is a combination of two distinct geographical areas, what is strictly speaking named as the Mugello, and the Alto Mugello or Romagna Toscana.
The Mugello valley, which refers to the mid and upper part of the drainage basin of the River Sieve, is a broad valley delimited to the north by the main Apennine watershed (from Monte Citerna to Giogo di Villore), to the south by the spurs of Monte Giovi and Monte Senario, and closed off to the west by the Monti della Calvana, beyond which lies the province of Prato. In the valley are the villages and small towns of Vaglia, San Piero, Barberino Mugello, Scarperia, Borgo San Lorenzo, and Vicchio. The countryside of the Mugello area is quite varied, and includes thick woodland, chestnut coppices, olive groves, wheat and sunflower cultivation. In the fertile valley floor are located the main inhabited areas and lines of communication.
To the north, in the upper part of the Santerno, Senio, and Lamone basins, lies the Alto Mugello, with Firenzuola, Palazzuolo sul Senio and Marradi. The large rock outcrops and peaks, though not rising much above 1000 metres, produce striking, sometimes imposing backdrops and profiles. The panorama is dominated by uncontaminated beech, chestnut, and oak woods, by extensive pasture land occasionally broken by juniper bushes and by rocky outcrops. The purity of the water and the luxuriant vegetation in this valley are also an ideal habitat for numerous species of birds and fish.

Picture by Sandro Santioli


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