Itinerary 1 - Hermitages, Fortresses and Castels

This itinerary covers the North-Western part of Sabina until the border with Umbria.
It is an ideal itinerary, with hermitages, fortified villages, castles and abbeys, for those who love medieval atmospheres. The hills around the solitary streets are beautiful and very picturesque and the sights that will accompany you until you reach Fianello, in proximity of the border with Umbria, are most definitively worth the trip.

The itinerary may be done in both directions, we have decided arbitrarily to start in Roccantica after an excursion to the hermitage of San Leonardo.

Roccantica Roccantica is a village with medieval origins. Here we have decided to focus on the opportunities offered to us by the surrounding nature: beautiful walks, climbs in a cliff where one seldomly meets anyone, and discovering canyoning in an extremely calm place with dry canyons.

Exiting Rocca Antica one follows the carriage road for approximately two kilometers of curves and reaches the first crossing where one turns right in the direction of Casperia, Montasola, Cottanello. After approximately another three kilometers one turns left towards Casperia, where after another kilometer one reaches the town.

Casperia The town still preserves the medieval atmosphere given by the narrow sloped streets and by the well preserved late medieval. Walking along the streets of Casperia is extremely pleasant due to the beautiful views and to the excellently preserved ancient buildings which give the town in a whole a particularly harmonic environment.

One exits Casperia in the direction opposite to the one from which one entered and one continues for 5.5 kilometers. Before reaching Cantalupo in Sabina one will see an imposing ecclesiastic compex in ruins.
The town is 303 m. above sea level, with a large pedestrian central square recently restored with a beautiful paving done with local stones. Just above this square there is a second one towered by the imposing Palazzo Camuccini Cesi of the Renaissance.
After leaving the town, after a few hundred meters one must turn left at a T crossing and continue for 9.5 kilometers until the church of San Michele which one finds on the left. One then follows the direction of Selci.
Selci is 204 m. above sea level, and like most of the towns in Sabina, has a well kept town center that one will certainly enjoy visiting even though it does not present particularly significant monuments. In the outskirts there are numerous small rural churches.
Continuing after Selci for another 2 kilometers, after passing (but not taking) the crossroad for Torri in Sabina, there is, on the right, a small diramification that brings to the Santuario di Santa Maria in Vescovìo.

Santa Maria in Vescovìo Beautiful Sanctuary (completely frescoed medieval church), small excavation in which one may admire remains of the ancient roman city of Forum Novum and the ruins of a convent situated on the summit of a hill: beautiful place for a stop with its grassland and trees.

From Santa Maria in Vescovìo one goes back to the crossroad for Torri in Sabina and this time takes it.

Torri in Sabina, 275 m. above sea level, dists 8.5 kilometers. The town centre is along hill ridge with its main road central in the crest. All the houses have external stairs and it offers different panoramic views.
Leaving Torri in Sabina, in the direction opposite to the one from which one entered one continues for 4.3 kilometers and reaches Rocchette and Rocchettine. Along the way one may admire the transformation of the environment as becomes it gradually more and more rugged.

Rocchette and Rocchettine The medieval town and the ruins of the fortress are one in front of the other on the summits of two neighboring hills separated by a narrow valley with many trees. It is an extremely suggestive place!

Those who love medieval atmospheres or those who love well kept solitary streets with many curves should continue their trip and reach Fianello. After Rocchette one continues for approximately 7 kilometers and enters Umbria reaching S. Maria Maddalena and then one goes left towards Fianello. Fianello is 5 kilometers further down, once again in Latium. One should stop just before entering the town for inside parking is extremely difficult and so is making a U-turn to exit.

Fianello Fianello is a small medieval town on the summit of a hill, near the border with Umbria. The town has maintained the aspect and atmosphere of ancient times and offers beautiful views on the surrounding hills.