Cima del Monte - Buca del Bandito

Buca del Bandito Trail (Elba)

In the Alps, a 500-metre-high summit will probably only elicit a tired smile from bikers, but on Elba, the Cima del Monte, as the highest point of the northern ridge, offers a 360-degree panorama over almost the entire island, panoramic summit trails, challenging passages in the bandit hole up to difficulty level S3 and the final detour over an old artellerie.

Description

From the fishing village of Magazzini, a paved mountain road winds its way under the ruins of the old defensive fortress of Castello Volterraio up to the crest of the hill. At the Le Panche pass, turn onto the marked GTE and soon push your bike along the wide but steep gravel path to the first antenna crest. The bare mountain ridge already offers a clear view here and then forces you out of the saddle again on the last scree-strewn ramp. Finally, you reach the summit of the Cima del Monte (515 meters above sea level) - the guardian of the northern ridge. Here you have a wonderful view in all directions.

The panoramic descent starts on a flat grassy ridge with an easy roll-in, before steep slate slabs and loose scree are used up. Before the next dip, you leave the GTE onto a shady shepherd's path with fun berms on forest soil with good grip. From the next crossroads, the Bandit Trail shows its teeth: the earthy path has already suffered somewhat and the bikers trick their way downhill through slippery crossings and washed-out gullies. In the following stream bed, the toughest passages are mitigated with wooden footbridges and the trail ends more easily again in Valle Mulini. On not too steep gravel paths, the route climbs again to Colle alla Anime, an old artillery position from the Second World War with the best view over the wide Gulf of Portoferraio, where the last winding trail runs through the forest down to Magazzini. You can end the trail tour right by the marina at the excellent Mare restaurant, for example.

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