An extraordinary view from the highest summit of the Uccellina mountains in the Maremma national park, looking out over to Argentario in the distance. First proposed in 1965 in part to protect the area from aggressive development proposals, and constituted officially in 1975, the park today covers 100sq km of coastal area, mountains, wetlands, forest, fields, and scrubland, all accessible by miles of guided trekking routes and bicycle paths.

The thick woods of the Uccellina is actually a single large holm oak forest, but the more humid valleys include ash, maple, acorn, and laurel trees surrounded by fragrant heather, juniper, and rosemary bushes. Careful environmental conservation has preserved the native populations of deer, boar, foxes, hedgehogs, wild cats, and recently, wolves, plus many types of birds including finches, robins, thrushes, nightingales, cuckoos, and blackbirds.