Trekking in the Apennines: the Grande Escursione Appenninica

Guidebook to the Grand Apennines Trek, or Grande Escursione Appenninica (GEA), a 400km trail through Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna and 2 national parks. Suitable for a range of walkers, the trail is best walked in spring through to autumn and takes 23 days to complete. It can be split into shorter sections or day walks if needed. The route is presented here in 23 stages ranging from 8 to 25km Mapping, profiles and detailed route descriptions for each stage Centres include Abetone, Arezzo, Bibbiena, Bologna, Parma, Pieve Pelago, Pistoia, Pontremoli, Porretta Terme, Prato, Reggio Emilia and Sansepolcro Highlights include the Casentino National Park and Franciscan sanctuaries, the WW2 Gothic line, open ridges on the northern stretch, alpine-style lakes in the Apennines National Park, Monte Prado, Tuscany's highest peak (2054m), magnificent beech woods and alpine flowers Handy route summary table, comprehensive planning information, plus Italian-English Glossary and advice on breaking the route down into smaller walks