Weekend on Elba on a mountain bike + Pianosa

Three days on a mountain bike (from Friday to Sunday) on the paths and roads of Elba and Pianosa

Possible programme weekend on the Islands of Elba and Pianosa:

Excursion: West Elba.  The spectacular panoramic paths of Western Elba.
Route: Mariana di Campo – Solane – Santa Rita – Poggio – San Cerbone – Monte Perone – Sant’Ilario – Marina di Campo
Environment: scrubland, Mediterranean maquis, woodland.
Distance: 40.0 km
Total height difference: 930 m
Time: 4 hours
Technical difficulty: medium – easy.

Leaving from Marina di Campo we go up the Solane dirt track to Monte Castello 226 m, on arriving at Colle Reciso we continue on more or less flat land for 6 km surrounded my Mediterranean maquis, then we ascend along an old mule track to the town of Poggio 330 m.  After a short stretch of tarmac we arrive above the town of Marciana 410 metres.  We take the Valle di Pedalta forestry track and pedalling under luxurious chestnut trees we get to Saint Cerbone hermitage 531 m asl.
From here there is a steep descent, which will enthuse lovers of speed, we return to the village of Poggio.  We go up to Monte Perone on tarmac and then onto a spectacular path with some very technical stretches that brings us to an almost 15 km descent to the town of Marina di Campo.

Excursion: East Elba, panoramic paths, technical tracts along crests and the mines of central and eastern Elba.

Route: Marina di Campo - Monte San Martino - Mulino a Vento - Monte Orello - Buraccio- Capoliveri - M. Calamita - Lido - Lacona- M.te Tambone - Marina di Campo.
Distance: km 84,8,0
Time: 8 hour
Technical difficulty: medium-easy

We leave from Marina di Campo and after 3 km of a flat path we start to go up the Literno Valley along an old military road.  When we arrive on San Martino hill we leave the main road and head into a single track technical path which takes us to the crest of the central Elban dorsal.  
A spectacular path cut within the fire divide brings us to a windmill with the sea visible on both sides of the path.  Returning onto the dirt track road we leave Colle Reciso behind us and ascend to the summit of Monte Orello along a panoramic path which at intervals passes through pine groves.
After seeing a number of second world war forts we go down a spectacular descent towards Casa Marchetti, then up again along the Buraccio Valley until we reach Monte Castello, from here we enjoy one of the best views in all of Elba.  Following paths with  spectacular views we descend towards the town of Porto Azzurro, then on to Mola plain and up to the town of Capoliveri.  From this town we begin to follow the spectacular paths of  Calamita point, alternating wide panoramic paths with fun small paths that wind among vegetation.  We throw ourselves into the stupendous descent which became famous among mountain bike enthusiasts in September of ‘93 (when the world cup disembarked on Elba).  There are 1500 metres of panoramic descent with sheer drops to the sea, rich in bumps, meaning that we can reach high speeds and make spectacular jumps.
We return towards Marina di Campo, following the perfumed Capo Stella paths then up the dirt track from Laconella beach taking us up to 300 metres where we pass over the top of Monte Fonza, from here, with the sea always visible, we descend again to Marina di Campo.

We leave from Marina di Campo at 08.00 and after 35 minutes disembark on Pianosa with the bicycles.  Surrounded by an incredibly transparent sea rich in marine life.  We start to pedal on the brightest Island of the Tuscan Archipelago.  We visit the small harbour which in its simplicity is elegant and we also visit the abandoned town, with its buildings eroded by salt making it an even more striking and mysterious place.  After passing in front of the agronomist’s aristocratic villa we enter through the prison gate and visit the buildings and now abandoned farms of the ex agricultural settlement.  In this area we see a lot of red legged partridges, pheasants and hares introduced onto the island over two centuries ago when it was a private hunting reserve of the Grand Dukes of Tuscany.  Pedalling along easy paths we can admire the fine dry stone walls which are typical of the Island as we head to the Marchese castle, an elegant building built at the northernmost point of the Island, it has had multiple uses during its romantic history.  Below us is the beautiful Porto Romano bay, its crystal clear waters are exalted by the white crumbly rocks that delimit its border.  Returning south along the west coast we reach the Botte gulf and visit the ancient washhouses and the Roman aqueduct.  Our excursion continues along the beautiful Pianosa coast (where we can see many seabirds, for example Cory’s Shearwater) and then in the interior, surrounded by the intense perfumes of the Mediterranean vegetation.  As we continue we can see the guard towers built when there was a extra secure prison, then we return to the interior where Pianosa gives us the sensation of being able to reach both Elba and Corsica on a bike because as the land is flat and only slightly above sea level we can’t see the coast.
After pedalling between spectacular rocks that have been eroded by the sea (which tells us about the crumbly geological structure of the Island) and through thick pine groves, passing in front of the famous “Agrippa section” (high security prison), we return towards the town.  After visiting the remains of the Roman Villa of Agrippa we finish our trip on Cala Giovanna beach, the only place on Pianosa where bathing is permitted.