The best running trails around Fivizzano

The Sentiero del Villaggio Cotto (often associated with the Monte Cunella route) is a picturesque circular itinerary located in Lunigiana, starting and ending in the town of Fivizzano. This route combines natural beauty with the discovery of ancient villages and historical testimonies of the area. Route characteristics The complete itinerary is quite demanding in terms of distance and requires a good level of preparation if tackled entirely on foot or running: Total distance: approximately 29.9 km Elevation gain: 1,110 meters both uphill and downhill Type: Circular route Surface: Alternates stretches of trail with mostly paved surfaces and local roads

Medici Fountain

In the center of the village, the Malaspina castle stands out in all its grandeur: towers of different sizes, shapes and heights joined to the central palace form a whole where the military function coexists with the residential one. Low houses outline a sort of wall on the perimeter of that “verrucula” (small wart) that rises between the Mommio stream and the Collegnago canal; a real dive into the Middle Ages. Verrucola was embellished by the sculptor and painter Pietro Cascella with some works, especially fountains, placed to decorate the town at the end of a skillful restoration.

Fivizzano, located at 326 meters above sea level. between the peaks of the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines and the Apuan Alps, it is one of the most interesting centers in Lunigiana. It has ancient origins although it acquired importance first with the Malaspina family in the Middle Ages and then with the Medici in the Renaissance, the latter defined it as the 'beautiful corner of Florence'. In 1848 it was also elevated to a Noble City by Grand Duke Leopold II of Tuscany. The historic centre, surrounded by walls, is dominated by Piazza Medicea with its imposing fountain. The square is overlooked by numerous historic buildings and the Provost Church of Saints Jacopo and Anthony, Marian sanctuary of the Madonna of Reggio, Blessed Virgin of Adoration, since 1946. Perhaps it might surprise some, but Fivizzano has played a far from marginal role in the national humanistic culture, in fact it was here that Jacopo da Fivizzano opened one of the first printing presses in all of Italy, in which the first typewriter ever built was designed and used. The Printing Museum was set up in his honor inside Palazzo Fantoni, an ancient stately building recovered by an illustrious doctor and writer from Fivizza, Loris Jacopo Bononi. An important role in the cultural history of the city was then played by the Accademia degli Imperfetti, an institution founded in 1500 which continued its activity with fervor until it made possible the construction of the Teatro degli Imperfetti - inaugurated in 1807 and equipped with as many as six hundred seats. Lovers of literature will not fail to visit the Augustinian complex and its library, equipped with a beautiful collection of works from the adjoining church; the hostel and, outside, the bronze monument which recalls the Fivizzano origins of Nicholas V, the Pope who designed the Vatican library. (Source: https://www.visittuscany.com/it/citta-e-borghi/fivizzano/)

At the top of the Reggio Emilia Apennines, Mount La Nuda is located at an altitude of 1,893 and has various namesakes in the Modena Apennines. From here, with clear skies, you can admire the Ligurian Sea, the Tuscan archipelago, Corsica and even a good part of the Alps. Chairlifts have been built under the summit to serve the Cerreto Laghi ski resort.

Framed by the Apuan peaks, the castle, which was also the residence of the Malaspina family, dominates the village.

The Verrucola fortress, whose first documented information dates back to the beginning of the 12th century, preserves all the elements of a medieval castrum with a true system of fortifications that responds to the military and legal organization of a feudal dominion. The castle walls include the courtyard, the chapel and several towers.

Monte La Nuda is one of the symbolic peaks of the Corno Alle Scale Park. We are in Emilia Romagna, in the province of Reggio Emilia and the Park is located on the border with Tuscany.