Trekking all´Isola d´Elba
To go trekking on Elba means to go through the thousand-year-old history of its inhabitants, from the prehistoric grottos to the ancient, high stone villages; to re-discover Etruscan forts and furnaces; and to visit the ancient granite caves from which the Romans carved out the columns for their monuments. It means to enter into the heart of the earth-- into the now dis-used iron mines, discovering the places where iron was extracted for thousands of years-- and to immerse yourself in the surreal colours of the land and the minerals. You can re-live the age of the Saracen scourge and visit their battle fields, defensive forts, and places destroyed and never-more rebuilt.

But the thing that makes trekking on Elba even more fascinating is the enormous variety of scents and vivid scenes, from the geological formations that in a few kilometers can hold more than 150 geological species of the 200 known (some of which were discovered for the first time right on Elba) which make the environment extremely varied and colourful, to the beaches below, always present in the panoramas seen from the splendid high vistas. Not to mention the variety of plants that a few hours' walk allows the trekker to admire: coastal vegetation, rocky or sandy beaches, passing flowers and the scents of rosemary, lavander, and other species of the native scrub; which also allows room for broom, the strawberry tree, juniper, myrtle, and other types of Mediterranean macchia--up to the forests of oak, and climbing again towards the chestnut woods and conifers of the massive peaks of Mount Capanne. But beyond the huge variety of flora (there are more than 40 species of orchids alone, some of which are native), in every trekking itinerary we will be immersed in the sounds of the birdlife: from that of the sea to that of the mountains. In the massifs of Mount Capanne we will also meet the mouflons, the undisputed stately masters of the heights.

Walking on Elba will allow you to discover and get to know these and other things, thanks to the enormous concentration of interesting things that this small large island offers, ideal for an active holiday dedicated to trekking excursions in the Tuscan Archipelago National Park.

i For guided trekking excursions we advise the excursion centre Il Viottolo which has a lot of experience and enthusiasm and will know which is the most suitable excursion to recommend for every requirement.