Corzano Hill

Corzano Hill (678 mt above sea level), easily distinguished by the spurs of the Apennine surrounding it, is a unique sign of the landscape of the upper Valley of Savio and a place where nature, history and religiosity harmonize: there are in fact the ruins of a castle and a sanctuary immersed in a blooming forest.
The medieval castle lost its importance during the Florentine conquest (XV sec.) and it was gradually abandoned. Nowadays we can still see impressive parts of the curtain, the ruin of the donjon, the cistern and the foundations of the fortress.
On the hill a little church has been preserved which was attended by local people out of devotion to “the Madonna with Child and Saint Caterina d’Alessandria”. Due to the transformations of the nineteenth century it has become a mountain sanctuary, original in its conformation.
This oasis of green and silence, destination of pilgrimages and walks, can be reached from S. Piero in Bagno either through an asphalt road or a mule track.
During this season the winding paved mule track is particularly remarkable, full of blackberries and flowers.

In S. Piero in Bagno you reach the beautiful parish church dominating the public gardens and take the road which on the right starts going up and a little farther goes into the mule track. Immediately you will meet the stations of a Via Crucis which will scan your walk to the top (1 km): these are big bronze plates engraved by Carmelo Puzzolo.
You will walk through a cultivated land, as cultivated and populated as the small valley visibile on the right, enriched with farms, banks and paths: then, past the forest there is the ridge which widens in a semicircle to move to Mount Castelluccio on the left, from which another ridge starts reaching Corzano.
After the asphalt road, the land becomes marled and the fields end in a fir-wood. The last part is steep and wonderful: the smell of resin mixes with that of the under bush. But we are already in front of the Church of the Sanctuary of Corzano. The small portico invites you to rest. This place is striking, serene, full of shadows.