p r e s e n t s
North West Tuscany for the Independent Tourist
IN PICTURES
Tour 17: Lunigiana Roadside Attractions
Driving an automobile ought to be fun, correct? But if we are all perfectly honest about it, how seldom does one feel real exhilaration behind the wheel of that costly automobile? I’m not talking about speed here, unless the term can be applied to the curve hugging, cruising momentum attained by a road engineered and built to facilitate the forward motion of the vehicle: Curves are ever-so-slightly banked. Vistas appear almost on cue. 
Bridges are constructed with a care and attention given to that of the finest, grandest civic buildings. Straightaways are just that, luxuriantly straight. Quaint little villages roll into view, each offering their own particular take on the exquisite local cuisine. Time and again we spy real modern day pilgrims slogging their bedraggled way, single file along the verge, and we fight the urge to pull over and offer them a lift, but as we inevitably discover upon meeting; pilgrims they are and pilgrims they will remain, wet through and sodden they may be I never met one who professed a will to ‘cheat’. 
Welcome to Lunigiana. Now that we have familiarized ourselves with the beautiful and impressive road system let me just add one quite startling detail; these amazing avenues are practically devoid of traffic, at least whilst I was there in May of 2014. Many was the time I drove ten, fifteen minutes and not a single vehicle did I encounter in either direction, and when I did it was invariably being driven by a local. Not many tour buses to be seen around these parts, not even the titanic marble trucks to be found further south, and for that we may thank the countless thousands of tidy hairpin bends. 
Don’t worry, once you have ‘second geared’ your way around a hundred or two of these steep, banked zippy little curves you too will be cornering like a Pro! Now, if all this isn’t enough let me assure you that these lovely, astonishingly empty roads roll effortlessly through some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen; tall, snow-peaked mountains; dense woodland; pristine farmland; and all in-between: Lunigiana has it all. 
Finally, what about those lovely towns and villages dotted along the way? As mentioned, such is the quite justified pride in their dominant place within local gastronomic folklore that it is merely assumed that the further you travel, in any direction, away from their own superior local cuisine, expectations must be duly lowered accordingly. However, in reality the food, everywhere, is superb √: the weather, fantastic √: the scenery, pure joy √: the wine, well, what do you think ? I myself thought it all so simply “♥” 
I could go on, and on, and on and on and on about all the subjects I have touched upon, and go on I do in the series of real time dispatches grouped under my Rogue Carver on the Loose tab located at the top of the page. And so, enjoy the road, enjoy the attractions, and enjoy the fact that, unless you should choose to take a hike – in which case ←PLEASE BE BLOODY CAREFUL←…. that’s all I’ll say. Enjoy also the fact that at long, long last you are actually behind the wheel and having the time of your life, at very the same time. I hope you enjoy this the 17th tour of my North West Tuscan Way. Please scroll safely and enjoy the tour. Oh and buckle up !
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Rogue Carver on the Loose in Italy: Lunigiana Roadside Attractions, Part 1: I love to drive roads devoid of traffic, and during the week I spent exploring Lunigiana, Tuscany’s most northerly I covered many miles of these beautiful byways. Here are a selection of the photos I took along the way. Quite why the roads are so empty is a matter of speculation, but two factors undoubtedly played their part: firstly, the autostrade so completely and effectively zooms all through traffic along the valley that little or none of it seem to feel the need to exit. Secondly, Italian drivers are so intent on speeding from A to B that they just don’t seem interested in nice leisurely country drives. Thus the wonderful mountain roads remain blissfully empty of traffic… and a pure joy for ambling drivers such as me to enjoy quite undisturbed by throngs of would be racing drivers…..more.
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and now
the slideshow
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thanks for visiting martincooney.com
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next
The North West Tuscan Way: In Pictures
Tour 18: Lunigiana Towns and Villages Along The Way
coming soon
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Μ∇ℜτ!Ν
‘ ·∫ ~ “
√