In the land of Iron - Trekking excursion on the Island of Elba

Excursion from Rio nell'Elba to the Giove fortress

Elevation gain: 380 m;
Time to complete: 4 hours;
Difficulty: medium.

Start from Rio nell'Elba at 200 m, a characteristic mining village where you can visit the Civic Archaeological Museum of the Mining District. Exit the town through a castle gate heading towards Volterraio and follow an uphill dirt road until you reach the provincial road coming from Portoferraio, at Le Panche.

From here, you can decide to take a short detour to visit the Volterraio Castle, an intriguing unconquered fortress, or continue towards the summit of Monte Capannello (496 m), easily identifiable by a military antenna. From this point, up until the descent from Monte Strega (427 m), you’ll enjoy an extraordinary landscape. Walking along the ridge on easy trails, you can simultaneously admire both the southern and northern coasts of the island.

After descending from Monte Strega along a steep path, you’ll reach the provincial road, which you’ll follow for a few hundred meters until you intersect the dirt road leading to the Hermitage of St. Catherine, a small church now functioning as an international cultural center, where you can see rare ancient rose plants not found elsewhere.

Walking along the northern side of the hermitage, you’ll spot a barely visible path leading to old agricultural building ruins; from there, descend towards the provincial road. After crossing it, begin the ascent to the Fortress of Jupiter, a romantic ruin dating back to the mid-14th century.

Rio nell'Elba is about 4 kilometers away at this point, which can be covered by foot along the provincial road. Though it’s an asphalted road, it’s very lightly trafficked and features interesting geological formations along its edges.