The Via del sale and the landscapes of the Alta Val d’Era

We have described only the points of interest located outside the town area.

The first part of the route coincides with the ancient “Via del sale” (“salt road”), which connected Volterra to Florence and the Siena area. 

The ring route starts and ends in the Volterra city centre and is designed to allow exploration of an authentic “open-air museum” and take you to a journey through time and intertwining cultures: Etruscan, Roman, Medieval, Renaissance, all part of the unique Volterra landscape.

Already in the Middle Ages, several “Salaiole” (salt roads) branched off from the “moje” (salt-water pools) in the Volterra area and headed towards the most important towns in the Tuscan hinterland: Gambassi, Castelfiorentino, San Gimignano and Colle Val D’Elsa, and then connected with the main routes of the time, including the Via Francigena, which directly linked Siena and Florence.

From there you can descend towards the Era valley along one of the ancient salt roads, also known as the Via Volterrana. Threading along this road the splendour of Volterra’s 3000 years of history will be immediately evident starting with the Roman amphitheatre (1st century AD), a sensational discovery in 2015, containing three tiers of seats and a structure measuring approximately 82 x 64 metres. After Porta Diana and the Etruscan hypogeum, you can follow the beautiful paved medieval road, embellished by the Fonte all’Agnello, down into the valley of the mills at Prato d’Era, cross the Era stream and reach Pian dei Gelsi.

A dirt road climbs up along the clay hills and offers breathtaking views towards the ridge of Monte Cornocchio (631 m), passing near the Riserva Naturale di Monte Nero, a nature and wildlife treasure trove with small waterfalls. Your journey will then touch the beautiful villas of Ulignamo and Scopicci; the cereal fields will the give way first to olive groves and then to woods of holm and turkey oak, leaving the unmistakable and austere profile of Volterra in the background.

From the S.P. del Cornocchio road, after about 3.5 km you will reach Pignano, formerly an ancient rural castle which then became first a villa and then a farm. After a few more kilometres engulfed in a landscape where nature and history blend admirably, you will reach Villa Palagione at the foot of the evocative and legendary Monte Voltraio and its castle.

The steep ascent to Volterra will not only allow you to be amazed by an agricultural landscape of unparalleled beauty, but also to read a different, more recent and dramatic history, that of the Volterra Psychiatric Hospital, one of the largest and most modern in Italy, closed in 1978.

Hiking difficulty scale

T - Tourist

Itineraries on small roads, mule tracks or easy paths, with clearly evident routes that do not pose uncertainties or problems of orientation. They generally take place below 2000 m and usually constitute access to mountain pastures or refuges. They require some knowledge of the mountain environment and physical preparation for walking.

E - Hiking

Routes that almost always turn on paths, or on traces of passage in various terrain (pastures, debris, stony ground), usually with signs. They require a certain sense of orientation, as well as a certain experience and knowledge of the mountainous territory, walking training, as well as appropriate footwear and equipment. Normally the difference in altitude is between 500 and 1000m.

EE - Expert hikers

Routes not always marked and which require a good ability to move on various mountain terrains. They can be paths or even faint traces that wind over rough or steep terrain, with steep and slippery slopes, scree and short snowfields that can be overcome without the use of climbing equipment. They need a good mountain experience, firm footing and good physical preparation. It is also necessary to have adequate equipment and equipment, as well as a good sense of direction. Normally the difference in height is greater than 1000m.

EEA - Expert hikers with mountaineering equipment

Routes that require the use of via ferrata equipment (lanyards, harness, heat sink, helmet, etc.). They can be equipped paths or real via ferratas. It is necessary to know how to use the technical equipment safely and have a certain habit of exposure and mountaineering terrain.

MTB difficulty scale

TC - Tourist

Route on dirt roads with a compact and smooth surface, suitable for vehicles.

BC - For cyclists with good technical skills

Route on very bumpy dirt roads or on mule tracks and paths with a rather bumpy but fairly smooth surface or compact but irregular, with some natural obstacles (eg rock steps or roots).

OC - For cyclists with excellent technical skills

As above but on very bumpy and / or very irregular paths, with significant presence of obstacles.

EC - Maximum level for the cycle excursionist

Path on very irregular paths, characterized by steps and obstacles in continuous succession, which require trial-type techniques.