The Catenaia Alps are the mountain range that divides the Casentino from the Valtiberina; Monte Castello is its highest peak. The defining feature of these mountains is an abundance of water, which nourishes a rich and varied flora, dominated by oak, beechwood and chestnut woods. From up high you can see the picturesque hilltown of Subbiano and the surrounding hamlets in the valley. The area lends itself to experienced hikers as well as to anyone who simply wants to enjoy nature without tiring themselves out; from 1100 metres upwards, you find paths suited to different levels of stamina. By following the Way of St Francis, moreover, you can start in the Catenaia Alps and finish in the La Verna Sanctuary.
Do not miss the Prati della Regina, a vast meadow surrounded by beech trees, which grow on Monte Castello up to 1414 metres above sea level. This is the perfect place for a sun-kissed picnic; and in quieter moments you can listen to the music of the wind as it rustles the branches of the trees.
A particularly striking vantage point can be found on Monte Altuccia (1407 metres high), from where, on the clearest days, you can see as far as the Adriatic and make out the Cesenatico skyscraper. The view will leave you speechless, stretching as it does from the towns of the Valtiberina to the upper Arno valley and the Aretine plains.
Meeting animals is par for the course for anyone walking the Catenaia Alps: wild boar, horses and sheep, to say nothing of eagles, falcons and migratory birds. Coming down from the ridge, you will also come across a small lake between the fields and the Casetta del Vaccaio: once a shelter for the local cowherds and now home to rings and drinking troughs for the cattle, the latter's ancient charm is undiminished. The casetta (literally, small house) was also used for centuries as a stop for pilgrims, and is so used even today.
There is more to the Catenaia Alps than a collection of idyllic spectacles. In the past, and especially during the Second World War, they saw the loss of countless lives. The mountains were part of the defensive Lidia Line, which was created in order to allow the fortifications along the Gothic Line, further north in the upper Casentino, to be completed. With the Gothic Line, the Nazi forces hoped to stall the Allied advance up northern Italy.
The Battle for the Catenaia Alps raged between 2 and 10 August 1944, claiming many lives. Walking through the area even today, you can find the trenches dug by both German and American forces, and even mines that they laid, still unexploded.
