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Nature and the Routes of Aulla, Tuscany

As well as the classic itineraries along the bottom of the valley following the via Francigena, Aulla is also interesting for the “mountain route” for Bibola -Sarzana.
Pilgrims came to Aulla through the Lagastrello (or Linari) and Ospedalaccio passes, or from the Fivizzano area or the right bank of the Magra.

Today, if you want a taste of what it must have been like for the pilgrims in the eleventh century, you can travel the very same roads, immersed in the woods to reach Sarzana in a just little over five hours.

Taking the high path of the via Sarzanese, you come to the ruins of Burcione, a villane which was mysteriously destroyed in the Middle Ages, once a rich and powerful settlement.
After Burcione you come to Bibola, high on the hill, in a key position to control roads which follow the river Magra towards Fivizzano and the Garfagnana area.

On the road to Caprigliola holm-oaks and chestnut trees cast their shadow over the path, wild rosemery and ferns flank the path and you can catch a glimpse of the impressive panorama offered by the Apuan and Apennine mountains, a synthesis of the Lunigiana landscape, deeply marked by the hand of man over the centuries.

Above, where the four roads meet, you can get an idea of the thrill the pilgrims must have felt in medieval times, after months of trekking through the mountains or woods and the Po valley. Here, after a long walk, you are suddenly greeted by the spectacular scenery of the Ligurian-Tuscan coast: the long “crescent moon” of the beaches of the Apuan and Versilia area, the estuary of the River Magra, the ligurian cliffs and Palmaria Island. Below, the vast plains of Luni and Sarzana, rich with artistic treasures, can be reached on foot after a walk of roughly six hours.

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