The Practical
| We were invited again to join the select band of "The Stollers" for their 2019 trip, this time to the Val d'Orcia in Tuscany. The trip was organised by Colletts Mountain Holidays with flights from the UK to Pisa, and onward transfer by mini bus to Il Rigo, an Agriturismo close to San Quirico d'Orcia. The Strollers were out in force with Bruce and Liz, Ian and Jane, Robin and Aileen, and Sue, with aspirants Mick & Sue, Jim & Lesley in tow. Paul, and old friend of Bruce's, joined for his first "taster" of walking with The Strollers, and will hopefully join future ventures. New friends were made with Sue and Chris from Southend, Alan and Johanna from Nottingham and Steve and Frankie from near Ross-on-Wye. A great time was had by all! |
Travel Details to Italy
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| Date |
From |
To |
Flight |
ETD |
ETA |
| 12th October |
London Stansted |
Pisa |
FR584 |
08:50 hrs |
12:05 hrs |
| 26th October |
Pisa |
London Stansted |
FR587 |
12:55 hrs |
14:20 hrs |
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| *The Pipers travelled from Stansted and stayed on an extra week; others travelled from Gatwick on Easyjet and Paul drove from the UK.
The Colletts week was from 12th to 19th October. |
Tuscany and Val d'Orcia
Tuscany is a region in central Italy with a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants, with Florence as its capital. It is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its influence onhigh culture. It is regarded as the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance and has been home to many figures influential in the history of art and science, and contains well-known museums such as the Uffiziand the Pitti Palace in Florence. Tuscany produces wines, including Chianti, Vino Nobile di Montepulcian, Morellino di Scansano and Brunello di Montalcino. Having a strong linguistic and cultural identity, Tuscany is sometimes considered "a nation within a nation".
The main tourist spots are Florence, Pisa, Lucca, Siena, Versilia, Maremma and Chianti. Siena, Lucca, the Chianti region, Versilia and Val d'Orcia are also internationally renowned and particularly popular spots among travellers.
Seven Tuscan localities have been designated World Heritage Sites: the historic centre of Florence (1982); the Cathedral Square of Pisa (1987); the historical centre of San Gimignano (1990); the historical centre of Siena (1995); the historical centre of Pienza (1996); the Val d'Orcia (2004), and the Medici Villas and Gardens (2013). Tuscany has over 120 protected nature reserves, making Tuscany and its capital Florence popular tourist destinations with nearly 2 million tourists per year.
The Val d'Orcia extends from the hills south of Siena to Monte Amiata, a lava dome. Its gentle, cultivated hills are occasionally broken by gullies and by picturesque towns and villages such as Pienza (rebuilt as an "ideal town" in the 15th century under the patronage of Pope Pius II), Radicofani (home to the notorious brigand-hero Ghino di Tacco) and Montalcino (the Brunello di Montalcino is counted among the most prestigious of Italian wines). Its landscape has been depicted in works of art from Renaissance painting to modern photography.
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Agriturismo
| An "agriturismo" is essentially a farm stay. Typically an agriturismo is an independently-owned farm that the owners have decided to use partially - but only partially - for accommodation purposes. The accommodation side makes the farm viable in what would otherwise be very poor farming countryside. One of the best parts of agriturismo is that they are rural, and a great deal of the produce used for meals is grown locally. One of the downsides is that they are often in a very isolated location along dirt tracks and are sometimes difficult to find. Thanks to Colletts, our agriturismo was relatively easy to find being 3 kilometers outside of San Quirico d'Orcia, and offered friendly accommodation and good hoe produced food. Run in the main by Lorenza, and her daughter Louisa. Louisa's husband Matthias runs the farming side and also helps in the agriturismo. |
Il Rigo s.s. società agricola
San Quirico d'Orcia
Siena 53027 - Italia
Phone : +39 0577.897291
Email : info@agriturismoilrigo.com
Website :www.agriturismoilrigo.com
Il Rigo has two buildings, the main farmhouse Casabianca and the annex building Poggio Bacoca.
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The dining room
Breakfast
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The Walk Program
| |
Shorter |
Longer |
| Sunday 13th |
E2 Pienza Circuit Direct
Easy 10.5 km 3-4 hours
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M3 Pienza Circuit via Cappella Vitaleta
Moderate 14 km - 4-5 hrs |
| Monday 14th |
M5 Rocca d'Orcia to Bagno Vignoli Easy/Moderate 12 km 4-5 hours
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H3 Rocca d'Orcia to Il Rigo via San Quirico d'Orcia
Hard 16.5km 5-6 hours |
| Tuesday 15th |
M1 Cipressi Moderate 16 km 4-5 hours |
H2 San Quirico d'Orcia to Sant Antimo abbey Moderate/Hard 16km 5-6 hours |
| Wednesday 16th |
Free day |
| Thursday 17th |
M6 Monte Oliveto Abbey to San Giovanni d'Asso
Easy/Moderate 10.5km 4-5 hours |
| Friday 18th |
E7 Monticchielo to Montepulciano 10km 6 hours |
H4 Pienza to Montepulciano Moderate/Hard 14.5 km 5-6 hours |
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Walking Statistics (including Via Francigena leg)
| Day |
To |
Distance |
Time |
Elevation in meters |
| |
|
Km |
Elapsed
Hrs-Mins |
Moving
Hrs-Mins |
Gain |
Loss |
Min |
Max |
| Sun 13th |
Pienza Circular |
17.8 |
5H55 |
3H55 |
480 |
480 |
284 |
499 |
| Mon 14th |
Rocca d'Orcia to Il Rigo |
18.2 |
6H57 |
3H46 |
421 |
610 |
229 |
534 |
| Tues 15th |
San Quirico d'Orcia to Sant Antimo abbey |
17.8 |
5H46 |
3H51 |
397 |
492 |
190 |
433 |
| Wed 16th |
Via Francigena: Buon Convento to San Quirico d'Orcia |
22.4 |
5H00 |
4H49 |
541 |
272 |
137 |
416 |
| Thurs 17th |
Monte Oliveto Abbey to San Giovanni d'Asso |
11.0 |
5H35 |
2H19 |
342 |
312 |
303 |
381 |
| Fri 18th |
Pienza to Montepulciano |
16.0 |
4H21 |
3H40 |
645 |
514 |
331 |
605 |
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Total |
103.2 |
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2,826 |
2,680 |
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Maps
This Kompass map is quite good for getting the general lie of the land in Val d'Orcia,
but it is only 1:50,000 and does not give sufficient detail for navigating the walks easily
This map shows promise being 1:25,000 but unfortunately its presentation is poor and is difficult to use.
This was the best map that I could find with the interests of the walker at heart. At only 5 euro it is good value, and has the advantages of being 1:30000 and having all the numbered walking routes on.
I have highlighted the position of Il Rigo on this map
Evening drinks upon arrival
.L to R: Sue (I), Lesley, Jim, Sue (P), Paul, Bruce and Ian
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l to R: Sue, Paul, Bruce, Ian, Liz, Jane, Sue, Lesley and Jim
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