The Essence of Tuscany: Montalcino to San Quirico d'Orcia
Extra luggage, grape harvests and wading through a river...
If you have read my previous post you will realise that the start of the fourth day's walking included a small item of extra luggage, namely the key from the Hotel dei Capitani in Montalcino. This wasn't noticed until we were a few miles away so some hurried phone call discussions took place and the hotel said they were happy to send someone to our next destination to collect the key there - how obliging! Everyone we encountered on our travels was really friendly and helpful, adding to our wonderful experience of Tuscany.
Another thing to note - the mobile phone signal in the middle of the Tuscan hills was excellent - so much better than in my village at home in the UK!
Today's route took us on a 14 km walk from Castelnuovo dell'Abate through vineyards and woodlands, across a tributary of the Orcia river (actually through the water) over hills and through remote countryside to eventually arrive in the medieval hilltop town of San Quirico d'Orcia.
As we passed Sant Antimo the weather was perfect for walking, sunny but quite cool at first and we wondered whether we would get to see any of the grape harvest now the weather had improved. We walked close to the vines which were already ripe and ready to pick. Some farms had already harvested but there were still quite a few with the big black grapes hanging in clusters from the vines.
Luck was on our side and a couple of miles further on we saw a group of workers arriving to start the harvest. One man drove a tractor around the vines while a helper in the trailer threw out colourful crates to hold the grapes. Pickers started on some of the rows of vines and were soon cutting and collecting the velvety black grapes.
The countryside in this area is quite unique, lots of small hills with farms and vineyards on the slopes and farmhouses dotted around with rows of cypress trees leading the way up the tracks to the buildings. It is very photogenic! Most of the route today was overlooked by Monte Amiata seen below.
Another thing to note - the mobile phone signal in the middle of the Tuscan hills was excellent - so much better than in my village at home in the UK!
Today's route took us on a 14 km walk from Castelnuovo dell'Abate through vineyards and woodlands, across a tributary of the Orcia river (actually through the water) over hills and through remote countryside to eventually arrive in the medieval hilltop town of San Quirico d'Orcia.
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| The Abbey of Sant Antimo |
As we passed Sant Antimo the weather was perfect for walking, sunny but quite cool at first and we wondered whether we would get to see any of the grape harvest now the weather had improved. We walked close to the vines which were already ripe and ready to pick. Some farms had already harvested but there were still quite a few with the big black grapes hanging in clusters from the vines.
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| Sangiovese grapes ready for harvesting |
Luck was on our side and a couple of miles further on we saw a group of workers arriving to start the harvest. One man drove a tractor around the vines while a helper in the trailer threw out colourful crates to hold the grapes. Pickers started on some of the rows of vines and were soon cutting and collecting the velvety black grapes.
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| Grape harvest in action |
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| Crates of black grapes to make Brunello wine |
The countryside in this area is quite unique, lots of small hills with farms and vineyards on the slopes and farmhouses dotted around with rows of cypress trees leading the way up the tracks to the buildings. It is very photogenic! Most of the route today was overlooked by Monte Amiata seen below.
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| Val d'Orcia landscape |
After descending down one side of the valley the route crosses over a small but fast flowing river, which involved a little bit of wading through the muddy water and trying to remain upright despite the wobbling stones underfoot. Fortunately we had been warned that this might be required so had packed suitable footwear for the crossing, we waded in sandals carrying our boots.
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| Wet and muddy river crossing |
Along the way we spotted many different coloured butterflies around wildflowers at the edges of the fields.
San Quirico d'Orcia is an attractive medieval hamlet, again on a hilltop, roughly halfway between Montalcino and Pienza. Our hotel, the Relais Palazzo del Capitano, is housed in a number of village villas and houses. We were greeted with tea and cakes in the lounge of the Palazzo building and the receptionist was amused when we handed over the room key from the hotel in Montalcino. It turns out she is good friends with the son of the owner of that hotel and she was happy to make sure the key was returned safely.
Our room was the whole top floor of one of the medieval houses, which included a roof terrace with views over the borgo towards Monte Amiata. Well worth the five flights of stairs to reach it!
Wandering around the winding streets and alleyways we discovered a peaceful communal garden called the Horti Leonini surrounded on two sides by the town walls with the entrance next to one of the ancient gates, shown below.
Our evening meal in La Trattoria Toscana al Vecchio Forno was superb, the restaurant belongs to the hotel (again in a separate building) and, as guests of the hotel, we were offered complimentary prosecco when we arrived. Behind the restaurant is a beautiful garden that links through to the main palazzo building of the hotel and houses an outdoor swimming pool for the summer months.
A rich, deep red and purple sunset lit up the sky this evening. The best vantage point was in a small piazza with a statue of Tazio Nuovolari, the Italian racing driver, close to the western edge of the borgo.
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| Wildflowers and butterflies |
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| Yellow butterfly |
San Quirico d'Orcia is an attractive medieval hamlet, again on a hilltop, roughly halfway between Montalcino and Pienza. Our hotel, the Relais Palazzo del Capitano, is housed in a number of village villas and houses. We were greeted with tea and cakes in the lounge of the Palazzo building and the receptionist was amused when we handed over the room key from the hotel in Montalcino. It turns out she is good friends with the son of the owner of that hotel and she was happy to make sure the key was returned safely.
Our room was the whole top floor of one of the medieval houses, which included a roof terrace with views over the borgo towards Monte Amiata. Well worth the five flights of stairs to reach it!
Wandering around the winding streets and alleyways we discovered a peaceful communal garden called the Horti Leonini surrounded on two sides by the town walls with the entrance next to one of the ancient gates, shown below.
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| San Quirico d'Orcia |
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| Medieval alleyways of San Quirico d'Orcia |
A rich, deep red and purple sunset lit up the sky this evening. The best vantage point was in a small piazza with a statue of Tazio Nuovolari, the Italian racing driver, close to the western edge of the borgo.
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| San Quirico sunset |
Another early morning sunrise seen from the terrace was quite a different sight from the previous mornings. There was plenty of cloud around which complemented the terracotta rooftops.
As we left the village the following morning for the walk to our final destination we had better look around the hotel gardens and the Horti Leonini communal gardens.
Throughout the gardens there are works of art and sculptures, some permanent and some a temporary display I think.
Pretty yellow crocuses flowered in the gardens, a bright and sunny welcome to the next part of our walk from San Quirico to Pienza.
The final stage of this walking holiday will be in my next blog post.
This walking holiday was organised through Inntravel the slow holiday travel specialists.
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| Dawn over San Quirico |
As we left the village the following morning for the walk to our final destination we had better look around the hotel gardens and the Horti Leonini communal gardens.
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| Gardens at Palazzo del Capitano |
Throughout the gardens there are works of art and sculptures, some permanent and some a temporary display I think.
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| Modern sculpture, circles of local building materials |
Pretty yellow crocuses flowered in the gardens, a bright and sunny welcome to the next part of our walk from San Quirico to Pienza.
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| Autumn flowering crocuses |
The final stage of this walking holiday will be in my next blog post.
This walking holiday was organised through Inntravel the slow holiday travel specialists.
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