Technical Sheet
Start and arrival: Città di Castello
Distance: 32,2 km
Height difference: 730 metres
Difficulty: medium
Surface: 55% dirt, 45% sealed
What to see: Città di Castello, Bocca Serriola, San Giustino, Terme di Fontecchio, Santuario di Belvedere
This route starts at the cycling track at Città di Castello, not far from the historical centre, and after passing through Terme di Fontecchio, it climbs through woods and peaceful, pretty scenery to Bocca Serriola, Monte Fumo and the Appennines bordering with the Marches.
The trail is basically in two parts, mostly uphill in the first part, the rest all downhill. The real climb begins after the Terme di Fontecchio spa and continues for more than 10km, but apart from a short stretch of about 300m (km 12,7, after the village of Fraccano), it is not particularly steep.
After leaving the cycling track, the trail goes past a series of roundabouts towards Fano. At km 1,8 it turns right towards the centre of Città di Castello, then it turns left at the cemetery towards the Terme di Fontecchio (km 5,2), where the dirt road starts (those who prefer not to bike too much on sealed roads and want to shorten the trail can start here).
The uphill section begins just after the Fontecchio spa, reaching Mt. Penna (800m a.s.l.) along evenly sloped terrain. It is a regular climb with very few technical stretches, suitable even for less fit bikers if it is negotiated at the right speed, making it possibile to gain height without any particular physical effort.
Mt. Penna is reached at km 15,5, where the trail runs left into a spectacular ride up and down over the mountain top with wonderful views of the Marches and Umbria (photo on left).
At km 17,4, after a rather steep, short climb, the trail turns left , then right downhill to the valley. The descent is fast but not difficult, but less experienced bikers must be careful.
After a small ford, at km 21,6, the descent becomes more gentle as the valley opens out and the road runs through unspoilt countryside. At km 24, the trail returns to the sealed road, still out of the traffic, and continues its slow descent along the valley amongst fields planted with sunflowers and wheat.
At km 28,5, it turns right, then left after 500m, through the roundabouts followed at the start of the trail. From here it is only a short distance to the starting point, but bikers must be careful of the heavier traffic.
Things not to miss
The centre of Città di Castello, one of the most important towns of Umbria and a landmark for the Upper Tiber Valley. It has an interesting atmosphere created by elegant renaissance buildings, courts and balconies and aristocratic Palaces. The monumental Cattedrale from the XI century, le churches of Santa Maria Maggiore, Santa Maria delle Grazie, San Francesco and San Domenico are also worth a visit.
The Pinacoteca Comunale hosting masterpieces by Raphael, Luca Signorelli, Ghirlandaio, Raffaellino del Colle and Pomarancio.
In the outskirts, it is worth seeing the oratorio di San Crescentino at Morra, which has some beautiful frescoes by Luca Signorelli (the Flagellation and the Crucifiction), the Pieve di Canoscio, the Belvedere Sanctuary (which is along the trail), the abbey of Badia Petroia, and the villa della Montesca, which has a centuries-old park with some very rare botanical species.
