The day started with an early stroll around the empty streets of Siena followed by a leisurely breakfast.
Siena was gradually awakening with shops and bars opening to serve people on the way to work and to get ready for the stream of tourists.
The centre of Siena is almost completely pedestrianised - in any case the central streets are so narrow that only the smallest vehicles can get through. On entering the city centre cars are photographed and charged in the same way as in London.
The most expensive shops are found in Via Banchi di Sopra ... but it doesn't look as if Versace expects any visitors this early in the morning.
Siena is built on an incredibly hilly location and almost none of the central streets are straight ... you often find yourself going full circle and returning to the same spot. The slopes mean that as you walk around unexpected vistas are constantly opening up.
After loading up my bike I headed south to find the Corsano Road.
I imagined that with Siena on the top of a hill it would be all down-hill ... at least to begin with ... however just beyond the city limits I encountered a 15% up-hill stretch. This provided a good excuse to stop and look back over the city.
South of Siena the countryside opens up ... the road undulates gently and sweeps from side to side through classic Tuscan scenery.
There are a few small lakes and some of the hillsides are bare ... which is characteristic of the clay Crete soils.
After crossing the small Torrente Sorra at 200m altitude the road begins a gentle climb through the village of Corsano.
The route climbs past numerous vinyards and olive groves.
Ahead are views of the wooded slopes of Le Monache which rise to just over 500m.
After the climb the road begins to descend through woods ... twisting and turning.
Soon the ruins of Castello di Crevole are reached ... and after the previous climb this seemed to be a good place for a picnic stop. On a clear day the views stretch right back to Siena.
The route then continues to the town of Vescovado followed by a diversion to the village of Murlo.
Murlo is the oldest occupied settlement in the area ... having Etruscan roots ... but the nearby settlement at Poggio Civitate has been dated to 6th-7th century BC.
Scientists from Turin University noticed that some of the current inhabitants of Murlo bear a striking resemblance to faces captured in Etruscan art so they have been comparing DNA from the inhabitants with that from Etruscan skeletons ... to test the theory that current inhabitants retain some of the original Etruscan DNA.
I chose to have my lunch ... and siesta ... in Murlo to avoid the mid-day heat.
When the temperature had cooled a little I climbed back up to Vescovado and began the descent towards Lucignano in the Arbia valley.
After the day's climbing the route to Lucignano was mainly downhill.
The roads had all been good quality tarmac and relatively free of traffic ... which made for a relaxing day's cycling.
Kirby James
