Trails - Parchi della Val di Cornia

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Trekking in Tuscany among mines, archaeology and nature

Strolling through clearings and woods, seeing the remains of typical mining activities of the territory, walking to Rocca San Silvestro.

There are many trails between nature and archaeology inside the Archaeological Mining Park of San Silvestro.

All visitors can choose the most suitable trail for their needs, according to their interests and different difficulty levels, from the easier trail to the more challenging.

The ideal place for hiking in Toscana!

Via del Temperino

Time: 20 minutes (easy)

Via del Temperino connects the Archaeological Mines Park of San Silvestro ticket office to the exit of the Temperino mine.

It partly follows the route of the railway that transported the minerals in the early 20th century and passes above the Temperino Mine through a delightful wood of Mediterranean scrub.

The large slag heaps of waste material that can be seen along this trail bear witness to the centuries of mining activities in the area.

Via delle Ferruzze

Time: 1 hours 10 minutes (hard)

Via delle Ferruzze in the Archaeological Mines Park of San Silvestro connects Pozzo Earle to Valle Lanzi.

It twists and turns along the line of the metalliferous seams and allows visitors to admire the main archaeological and mining features of the area, from the entrances to the antique and medieval mines to the impressive opencast mines, from the remains of the extraction shafts to the tunnels.

The dominant colours are the yellow and red of the slag heaps encountered along the trail, now abandoned and half-hidden by the lush Mediterranean scrub.

Via dei Lanzi

Time: 1 hours 10 minutes (moderate)

Via dei Lanzi is a loop in the Archaeological Mines Park of San Silvestro; it starts and ends at the washeries of Valle dei Lanzi.

Along this trail there are the traces of the medieval extraction wells, the Medicean works and the huge plants of the British mining company, Etruscan Copper Estate Mines, that worked in the Campiglia mines for 7 years at the start of the 20th century.

The name of this trail and the valley recalls the mining activities of the 16th century: indeed, the German miners brought in by Cosimo I De’ Medici were called “Lanzi” by the locals.

Via dei Manienti

Time: 1 hour (hard)

Via dei Manienti is the trail in the Archaeological Mines Park of San Silvestro that leads to the entrance of the Rocca San Silvestro castle.

It ends in Valle dei Manienti, where there is a medieval mine worked by the inhabitants of the castle, close to which there are the remains of ancient marble quarries.

Archaeologically important, Via dei Manienti is also one of the most characteristic and interesting nature trails in Tuscany due to the presence of the typical plants of the Tyrrhenian coastal scrub, many of which are highly aromatic.

Quarries of Monterombolo trail

Duration 1hr 30 min (moderate difficulty)

This trail connects Rocca San Silvestro with the funnel -shaped quarries of Monte Rombolo. These quarries were excavated between the 1940s and the 1960s. The crystalline limestone was used as molten in the Piombino steel plant. A wonderful place where the mining landscape combines with the amazing view on the Val di Cornia valley and on the Elba Island.

Via delle Fonti

Time: 1 hour (easy)

Via delle Fonti is a trail through woods and clearings that connects the entrance of the Archaeological Mines Park of San Silvestro to the town of Campiglia Marittima.

Skirting the ruins of the 19th century aqueduct and the springs that supplied Campiglia with water until recent times, you reach the old town of this centuries old village, dominated by its medieval Rocca.

Trails in the Archaeological Mine Park of San Silvestro

Trails in the Archaeological Mine Park of San Silvestro

Trails in the Archaeological Mine Park of San Silvestro

Trekking in Tuscany among mines, archaeology and nature

Via del Temperino

Via delle Ferruzze

Via dei Lanzi

Via dei Manienti

Quarries of Monterombolo trail

Via delle Fonti

Trails in the Archaeological Mine Park of San Silvestro

Trails in the Archaeological Mine Park of San Silvestro

Trails in the Archaeological Mine Park of San Silvestro

Trekking in Tuscany among mines, archaeology and nature

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