The Itinerary

After leaving the car at the Montegufoni parking area and before starting the walk, it is recommended to make a brief detour to closely observe the exterior of the Acciaioli Castle. This will allow you to appreciate the elegance and grandeur of one of the main historical and artistic attractions of the Municipality of Montespertoli.
The walk begins from the parking area and shortly after crosses the intersection with the two large animal statues (a lion and a she-wolf), which once served to alert travelers to the entrance of the Montegufoni estate, a noble residence of one of the most important families in medieval and Renaissance Florence. Near the two statues, along the road descending to the villa, a brief detour leads to the remains of the Montegufoni spring, somewhat hidden by vegetation. Although it might seem a minor feature compared to the imposing Acciaioli villa, it is one of the vital places where the deep identification of the small local community was anchored for centuries. The soil’s geology allows for the emergence of substantial quantities of water, used by the local community both through the fountain system and perhaps other methods for transporting water to the villa-castle.
Returning slightly, we pass the two statues and continue on the municipal road, which soon reveals the 19th-century Villa delle Calvane (now a resort) surrounded by cypress trees. Beyond it, especially on a clear day, it is worth pausing to admire the view of the highest Tuscan mountains that lie before us, despite our modest altitude (186 meters above sea level): from left to right, you can see the Apuan Alps and then the Apennines with Monte Giovi, Alpe delle Tre Potenze, Cimone, and Corno alle Scale. Closer to us, below the Apennine ridge, is the ridge dividing the Valdipesa from the Florentine basin, with the wooded hills of Roveta. To our right, even closer, is the small valley of the Borraia stream, with the country road running along the small ridge where the 16th-century villa del Turco is located, in a landscape now simplified by modern vineyards placed one after another.
A small brick bridge hosts a second site dedicated to collective memory and local identification: a memorial stone in memory of partisan Settimo Agostini, killed here on July 27, 1944, during a gunfight with the Germans.
Shortly after deviating from the municipal road, we pass to the left of the nearby Poggio al Forno (now Poggio al Pipi), which, due to its morphological significance, once formed the center of a man-made landscape from which geometric lines radiated, outlining the numerous small plots dedicated to various crops in the context of sharecropping agriculture. Aerial photos from the 1950s-60s capture this image well.
Today, however, the landscape as shown by Maps is entirely banalized, consisting solely of small vineyards; only the forest patches, confined to the small watercourse valleys, have retained the same design as in past centuries.
Descending towards what was once the rural nucleus of Sant’Andrea al Colle, home to the now-suppressed church annexed to San Lorenzo at Montegufoni in 1583, which was reduced to a simple chapel with religious functions celebrated until the 1950s. Walking westward, the view expands over the opposite side of the Virginio valley, between Piano di Cencio, Masse, and Morzano, featuring large areas of abandoned land with extensive landslides and clay pits now disused for the needs of the modern kiln below. Upon reaching Sant’Andrea, continue descending, skirting the forest and passing by the former Cantagrilli farm complex. The route then starts a steep descent through the forest, eventually emerging from the vegetation to overlook the Virginio valley floor, crossed by the provincial road.
Our route stays a suitable distance from modern roads, continuing under the ridge until it leads us to a modern and seemingly anonymous building.
In reality, it is not so anonymous, having a history spanning several centuries and an important function as a mill. This is the Molinuzzo, a former Acciaioli mill that was powered by the Picco stream, which still runs by it from the fields above.
We ascend to the small Montegufoni cemetery, with the villa’s tower visible to our left, indicating the final destination of the route. Before reaching the elegant complex, to our left is a valley woodland (where the Borraia delle Calvane flows) mentioned in early 19th-century Lorena maps as Ragnaia; the hillside covered by pine forest behind it is also named in the 19th-century maps as Uccellare. Both terms refer to ancient hunting grounds associated with the presence of a manor villa, which always had nearby areas dedicated to bird hunting, reflecting the importance of hunting in previous centuries, a practice that was a hallmark of European royalty, including the Medici.
Arriving at the Church of San Lorenzo at Montegufoni, dating from the 13th century, now showing the forms of its 17th-century expansion; we pass by the villa, surpassing a tabernacle made in the centenary of the apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes, using a 14th-century bifora from the castle, and shortly after, we reach the parking area where the route ends.