Protected Area at the Montepulciano Lake

On the way to find a place were to sit in the sun and have my daily salad for lunch I found the Protected Area of the Montepulciano Lake.

The small Montepulciano Lake is a lake basin in the Val di Chiana not far away from Siena. Flat land and loads of green meadows with spring flowers and singing birds everywhere. Nearby there is also the even smaller Chiusi Lake and the real big Trasimeno Lake in Umbria.

The area is under protection since 1996 and occupies a surface of 470 hectares.

Arriving there is a big parking place and with a 5 minutes walk there is also a small visitor center and a restaurant. It was open that day and families going there. A sunny Sunday – everyone going out to eat in Italy.

I started to walk a small way which has some wooden bridges over the lake canals. Very ‘wild’ and really let all to nature. So many sounds around me and so much tranquility the same. I hear the water bubbling all the time. If I remember well the water is coming from the ground as well and that”s why the water seem to ‘boil’.

The way ended somehow and there was a huge iron tower. Later I read that this one could be climbed in summer to watch the wild life in the lake basin. Now it was closed of course 🙁

Going back the same way I took another route, more open and with the promise I could walk kilometers and kilometers. I didn’t but had my two and a half hour walk as well. 

The area is used by many birds for overwintering and bees are coming even from Africa for the summertime. That is an interesting fact I didn’t know. So the lake area is one of the most important natural areas in Italy.

I loved to walk there. It’s also ideal for cycling as I saw some cyclists taking the long way.

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Montepulciano Lake, Tuscany/Italy:

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