Monte Piglione Campo all'Orzo e sentiero dell'Indiano

Challenging ride to get to one of the peaks of the southern Apuan Alps.

We start from Piegaio immediately uphill on asphalt toward Pescaglia. We then continue to the Sella pass. From here we detour to Groppa. From this small group of shepherds' houses begins a path that we have to leave after a few hundred meters for a not very evident deviation to the left. Here begins the most challenging part of the tour.

In fact, we will have to do about 40 minutes of backpacking biking (240 m of elevation gain and about 2 km of distance). A few short sections can be done by bike. Arriving, however, at the south summit, the view of Mount Prana over the sea and the Panie chain repays the effort. From this summit you descend to the central focetta along the beautiful ridge. If you want (as we did) you can get to the North summit (leaving your bikes since it is hardly cyclable). It is about 600 m long, but the view is even more beautiful than from the South summit.

We then descend on a counter slope trail with a few sections that require us to get off the bike. We then climb another col before taking the path that leads us to the

old abandoned little church of Campo all'Orzo. The trail alongside the church descends to the often-open Baita Verde. From here a mule track descends to Ritrogoli.

About 3 km of asphalt now await us until we reach the mouth of the Indian Trail. The trail has some challenging sections (at least for me) and goes all the way to the village of Convalle and then to the end of the tour