THE PATH OF FRANCESCO

DESCRIPTION OF THE ITINERARY WITH TRAVEL TIMES

From Porta S. Giacomo on the north-east side of Assisi walk down towards the stream Tescio. After a few minutes at the end of the way down there is on the left the Church of S. Croce and the Galli bridge. Immediately take the asphalted street on the left beside the stream and continue to the statue of S. Pio (h 0:20), then turn right and up on a street.
From the hill you can get a view of Assisi, the Rocca and the Basilica (h 0:35).
At a junction continue right and you reach a crossroads (h 0:50).
Go on right across a stream on a bridge and then immediately there are benches for a rest. The road now goes up to the left gradually moving away from the stream. After a turning on the right you leave the main road to descend again towards the stream (h 1:20), coming to a little wood full of ponds, cross it. Now the road rises quite steeply on a bare rocky slope until you reach the ridge of the hill and the asphalted street from Assisi to Pieve San Nicolò called the franciscan way (h 1:40).
Still continue climbing on the right until you reach the cemetery of Pieve San Nicolò where you can find tables and benches (h 2:00).
Take the way to the left on a gravel road, and you can reach the Church of Pieve San Nicolò by the asphalted road (500 m.), pass on the right the cemetery and a stone house, descend through a pass where there is a view point on the right to the north: Valfabbrica, in the background Monte Catria and Monte Cucco, on the left there is the last view of Assisi. After about 100 m., at the end of the descent, veer right on a little road, passing the house, veer again right through a little wood and the road brings you to a field.
On the upper part of the field begin the descent that continues into the wood, until you reach Capannaccio stream, known as the stream of female wolves. At the end of the descent, walking between the stream and a fence, you arrive at a cart road that crosses the stream to get to the asphalted road from Valfabbrica to Pieve San Nicolò (h 3:00).
Veer to the left towards Valfabbrica and you will soon arrive at the small village of Pioppo, cross a bridge and continueon the road which will lead to Valfabbrica, to the main square (Piazza Mazzini) with a round fountain and an old battlemented tower (h 3:25).
Continuing in the same direction towards the football ground, cross the bridge on river Chiascio, going to the right hand side of the river. Continue straight ahead and after about a 200 m. veer to the right rising the river bank. After a bend take a gravel road on the right, cross a little ditch and continue up the valley on the right bank of the river. Almost at the end of the gravel road there is the Church of San Benedetto and Beato Paolino from Coccorano in the area of Barcaccia (h 4:05 hours).
When the gravel road ends, go up on the left on the new "franciscan way" towards the dam. Before getting to the dam turn left on an old road that goes up through awood and after through a few trees. Climbing the slope you can see the dam on the river Chiascio and in front of you the old tower of Coccoranaccio. Continue to climb and you will come to a well kept cart road (h 4:45).
Turn right and climb on, until you arrive at the top of the hill where you can enjoy the views on the left towards Valfabbrica, on the right towards Chiascio valley with the castle of Coccoranaccio and in the background the Castle of Biscina, in the distance the Appenines: Monte Catria, Monte Acuto. You arrive at the little Church of Coccorano from where you can see, towards the north-east, the Castle of Giomici (h 5:00).
Now the road descends passing several junctions every 100 m.. At the first junction continue straight ahead, at the second bear left climbing up on the main road, then at the next, bear right on the asphalted road. After 200 m., at the house fence, turn right on the gravel road that goes uphill and you can see the cemetery and the Church of Coccorano and a farm holiday hotel with a lake. After a bend on the right pass a ruined house, about 200 m. ahead veer to the left on a path that brings you into a wood and descend gently (h 5:20).
Cross a little stream and go on the other side up to the left to get out of the wood descending on the road to the Chapel of Sambuco (h 5:40).
Continue down hill along the asphalted road going round the Chapel until you get to the new “franciscan way” and turn left at the big bridge. Cross another bridge and continue for about 700 m., and take the asphalted road on the left. Passing a ruined house, follow a path to the right that brings on into a wood (h 6:30). After crossing two streams into the wood, the path rises quite steeply until you get to a cart road (h 7:00).
Continue straight ahead on the road, pass a big ruined house (Misciavola house) ignoring the road on the left and detours, this road takes you to the Castle of Biscina (h 8:00).
Proceedon the road among trees, pass a farm holiday hotel until you rejoin again the “franciscan way”, follow it for some hundred mts, turn right at the first houses descending to a farm. Continuing the descentgo through an olive-grove to get into a wood and cross a stream, climb on the right into a wood to arrive at the church of Caprignone (h 8:50).
Take a gravel road towards the north and after 10 min. take a path to the right descending to the edge of the field.The path turns to the left along a fence to the edge of a wood and brings you down to a stream under an aqueduct. Once crossing the stream continue to the right until you reach a gravel road that goes up to the left to the hermitage of San Pietro in Vigneto (h 10:00).
At this point the way goes along the gravel road and at a pass there is the little Chapel of Madonna of Ripe (h 10:30).
The road now leads uphill passing by the turning for the Church of Val di Chiascio (h 11:15).
Continue on a sloping plateau until you get to the top of the hill where you can enjoy the view of the Appennine chain, you can see to the left on the other side the castle of Vallingengo and above the Abbey.
Continue straight ahead ignoring a farm holiday hotel until you arrive at an asphalted road (h 12:00). Bear left to get to a junction, before meeting the state highway, the path goes right and brings you in sight of Gubbio, descending towards the valley of Gubbio (h 12:10).
At the end of the slope the path rises on the left towards the state highway (h 13:15).
You go through the bridge of the new road for about a hundred met rest hen follow, immediately after, the opposite sideto resume the old road to Gubbio. Continue through a farm and reach again the state highway. You arrive in Ponte D'Assi, cross a stream on the bridge, and immediately afterwards continue straight through the highway and, along a small ditch that passes between some houses, you arrive after about 5 km on the outskirts of Gubbio. Continue on the gravel road until you reach the ex Church of San Lazzaro Hospital, then at a cross-road walk through a park and you will arrive at the Church of Vittorina (where San Francisco met the wolf) (h 15:00).

Alternative way - Vallingegno

Our Club has identified a new path after San Pietro in Vigneto reaches Vallingegno and then resume the original path. To those who wish to travel we give detailed information on request.