Monti della Tolfa - hiking map and guide

You can't talk about a book without talking about the publisher behind it. If there is one goal Edizioni il Lupo fully achieve, it is the goal they set themselves of spreading the love of nature in general and of the Apennine mountains more specifically.

Monti della Tolfa, which reached its second edition in a short time, has been extensively revised. To be objective, the book certainly doesn't strike you with its cover design, which is decidedly unshowy. The hills of the Lazio pre-Apennines themselves, mostly rolling, certainly don't leave you stunned with jaw-dropping views. Yet as soon as you open the book you come into contact with a completely different reality. Luca Scarnati has done a work of curious exploration of the wilderness of a wide area of northern Lazio that easily draws in even the laziest and least seasoned tourists.

After a short introduction made up of historical, geographical, botanical and wildlife notes, the reader is taken by the hand to imagine the many hiking possibilities around Tolfa and the parks and reserves of Lazio.

The book offers 43 hiking routes that are easy to do, don't necessarily require too much physical effort and run on dirt tracks and comfortable paths.

Besides the hiking routes, Scarnati, with the advice of Giono Pelosio, also offers 6 mountain bike routes.

Inside we find, as often happens with Edizioni il Lupo publications, a wealth of photographs with astonishing framing that spur the reader to go looking for those very special places.

The book is small, an almost pocket-sized format; the choice of materials (flexible, tough paper) and the glossy, non-rigid cover make the whole book easy to consult.

The book comes with the map of the Tolfa area, showing the hiking and mountain bike routes.

Book and map can be bought in a handy little plastic pouch, so you can easily take them with you.

Undoubtedly a useful book; personally I find that the added value of these hiking suggestions lies in the fact that they also suit families with children very well, whereas mountain hiking would in any case always be more demanding.