Portoferraio and Enfola – MTB on Elba Island

This 23-kilometre circular itinerary will let you explore the hills in front of Portoferraio before taking you to the top of Enfola, a small mountainous promontory connected to the rest of the Island of Elba by a strip of land just 70 meters wide. The route develops entirely on paved or dirt roads with a compact surface and does not present particular difficulties. However, it requires a minimum trained leg to tackle the climb that leads to Serrone delle Cime, where most of the difference in height is concentrated.

Portoferraio is the most populous city as well as the main port of the Island of Elba and is located in a central position on the north coast of the island. Start your tour in San Giovanni, a small hamlet south of Portoferraio, and after a couple of kilometers take the Provincial Road 24 towards Procchio, paying attention to the cars. As you move away from the city, the houses on the sides of the road become more and more sparse, replaced by cultivated fields and spontaneous vegetation. At Campitelle, the provincial road becomes steeper and passes through a few groups of houses before arriving in the locality of Ceppete.

At kilometer six, an arrow points the way to Scaglieri and the Gulf of Biodola. Instead, take the dirt road behind you which climbs almost to the point of Serrone delle Cime. This 258-metre-high hill is located in one of the main prehistoric archaeological sites on the Island of Elba, where 28 stone tools dating back to the Paleolithic have been found. After having crossed the hill, a steep descent cuts through the Mediterranean maquis and takes you to Acquaviva. Here, turn left in the direction of the Enfola promontory.

Enfola is a promontory connected to the rest of the Island of Elba by a thin tongue of land on whose sides are the two sides of the Enfola beach. Before reaching the isthmus, Punta di Sansone overlooks the north side. The water is crystal clear, but the beach is not very welcoming and not particularly suggestive. In fact, unlike the southern beach which is usually teeming with bathers, the northern beach is mainly used by residents to beach their boats.

A curvy dirt road takes you up to the Enfola bunkers, built in the period between the two World Wars to protect the Piombino canal from possible enemy invasions. After visiting the bunkers, go back along the road to Acquaviva and keep to the coastal Via Ponte del Brogi Enfola Viticcio, which with its splendid views over the north coast of the Island of Elba takes you back to Portoferraio and San Joseph.