A particularly interesting itinerary with naturalistic aspects along the Pesa in its most authentic part.

The route follows the road alongside the river, following it through groves and clearings until just beyond the old Petrazzo mill , now converted into a home.

The route starts at the beginning of the village of Sambuca where the one coming from San Casciano ends.

We follow the Cassia, passing on the pavement, and then the road for about 350 metres. We soon reach the bridge over the Pesa, cross it, and, still going up the river, head towards the centre of the village, passing along the green area on the left.

Reaching the centre of the village, we cross the distinctive old bridge. At the end, keeping to the right hand-side, is the footpath that runs along the Pesa for about 300 metres to the exit of the village where it joins the paved road along the Pesa “via Fratelli Rosselli”.

We follow the road for another hundred meters or so, along the gravel Abbot's Road. We find the chapel dedicated to Saint John Gualbert on the left. We follow the road for a long distance, passing the bar placed after the last house on the left.

The route is intuitive until the Rignana bridge, where we find a barrier. Pass it and turn right to cross the bridge and then turn left to follow the other bank of the Pesa.

We follow it again until we reach a point where the cart track veers to the right, but an obvious path to the left allows us to cut across the steep stretch.

After a short while, we find the cart track again, which descends to the riverbed where we can see the large flood control floodplain. We follow the track again, which cuts across the floodplain and continues along the Pesa, crossing a small stream.

We continue on to a typical cottage, the old Petrazzo mill. At the back you can still see the load tank that is no longer used and the water outlets for the millstones that no longer exist today. The route continues for a few hundred metres until just beyond Case Petrazzo where it ends.

The return is along the route taken on the outward journey. From the Petrazzo mill, you can alternatively climb the road for about 1 kilometer and 200 meters to reach the characteristic church of San Miniato a Sicelle on the road connecting San Donato in Poggio to Panzano in Chianti.

Points of interest

• Village of Sambuca
• Ancient Roman bridge
• Predazzo mill