Portoferraio and the white coasts
From the heart of Portoferraio's historic center, we set off through the Porta a Mare at the Medici fortification of Cosmopoli, a jewel of military architecture built in 1548 by the Grand Duke of Tuscany Cosimo I de Medici to defend the dock.
Following the Calata Mazzini, we leave behind the city walls dominated by the imposing "Fronte d'Attacco” (Attack Front), heading towards the "Spiaggia delle Ghiaie", a beach with distinctive white pebbles smoothed by the sea, which brings to mind the legendary stopover of the Argonauts.
Padulella, Capo Bianco and Sottobomba are the white beaches that run alongside our route, especially worth seeing on days when the sirocco wind is blowing, allowing you to enjoy Caribbean colors of the sea.
Following Viale Einaudi, we move alongside Monte Albero, on top of which you can still see the ruins of the 19th-century fortification of Montebello.
Following the signs for Enfola, you will come across the descents to the sea, leading to the beaches of Seccione, Acquaviva, Sorgente and Sansone, famous for their picture-postcard views.
Once past the Viticcio - Enfola traffic circle, the view opens up to the northwestern slope, Mount Capanne, the Corsican mountains on the horizon and the isthmus connecting Capo d'Enfola to the rest of the island. Tuna fishing took place here until the late 1950s, as is shown by the tuna fishery buildings, which have now become the headquarters of the Tuscan Archipelago National Park Authority.
Leaving the asphalt in favor of the dirt road (trail sign 208), we begin the steady uphill climb around hairpin bends, to enter into what was one of the most important defensive posts in the territory of Elba during the war: the "De Filippi" coastal battery. The power station and sailors' quarters can still be seen along the route.
Several panoramic viewpoints allow you to enjoy a landscape that changes at every turn, until you reach the well-equipped stopping place near a tunnel bunker, which is the end point of this itinerary.