Hikers' paradise
SOFT (Florence Springs Trekking) is a well marked network of hiking paths joining the Mugello mountains with the hills of the Sieve valley in one main ring and twenty-two smaller rings suitable for day-long treks. The route is well equipped with hostels and stop-over facilities, and in section between the Futa pass and Mount Falterona it overlaps the GEA (Great Apennine Excursion) path. Mugello also offers easier walking itineraries suitable for everyone, including a number of pleasant leisure walks in the Gabbianello Natural Oasis and in the magnificent park of Villa Demidoff at Pratolino (Vaglia). The Mugello Tourist Office has also published a charming free booklet about the walking itineraries described by the local poet Dino Campana in his writings.

Not just on foot
Walking and trekking are certainly not the only excursion opportunities in the Mugello countryside: horse riding, cycling and mountain biking, quad cross-country drives as well as gliding, tourist and sport flying can all be enjoyed thanks to the many clubs and businesses which in most cases also offer private tuition.

Bilancino highland beaches
The Bilancino lake is a 5 square km artificial basin created to reduce water supply shortages and flood risk in Florence and surroundings. Bilancino is in the vicinity of Barberino di Mugello and it boasts top bathing facilities that an increasing number of enthusiasts prefer to seaside beaches for the fresher climate.

The lake is suitable for swimming, canoeing, sailing and windsurfing, and it hosts both Italian and international competitive events.

In the summer months, public bathing and swimming is also possible in the municipal pools of Borgo San Lorenzo, Vicchio, Marradi and Palazzuolo sul Senio.

Fishing and angling
Constantly clean waters due to the fresh input of the Sieve river and many smaller streams, the Bilancino lake is surprisingly teeming with carps, crucian carps, chubs, black bass and pikes barbells, trouts, minnows, eels, tenches and catfish to name but a few varieties. Fishing and angling in the lake is allowed with several techniques, provided the necessary licence is obtained together with a copy of the fishing rules and regulations. Also elsewhere in Mugello can be found several fishing lakes, especially for trout and carp fishing.

Golf
The Poggio dei Medici Golf and Country Club, near Scarperia, is an 18 hole par 73 green, with a Championship course of 6.452 metres which hosted the Ladies' Italian Open from 1999 to 2003. Launched in 1992 in compliance with USGA (United States Golf Association) standards, it is regarded as one of the finest in Italy with 5 different starting tees providing a fascinating golfing experience in beautiful settings for players at all levels of expertise. The Golf Club is open all year and offers extensive practice facilities, with a Driving Range complete with shaded driving bays and separate Putting and Pitching Greens. A PGA Academy Professional is available for private lessons, and golf carts and clubs are available for hire.

Mugello International Racecourse
The Mugello International Racing Circuit at Scarperia hosts over the first weekend in June the most important motorcycle racing event in Italy: the Italian Grand Prix class 125cc, 250cc, MotoGP (competing respectively on 20, 21 and 23 laps). But the racetrack, owned by Ferrari, hosts from late March to early October several other motorcycling and car racing events, as well as F1 tests of the Ferrari and other racing teams, which may occasionally be open to spectators.

Sports events
The first major event of the Mugello sports season is the 'Mille Miglia' vintage car race in mid-May, when vintage racing cars dart through the Mugello valley on their way back from Rome to Brescia: after leaving Florence in the early afternoon, the crews climb the Bolognese state road to the Futa and Raticola mountain passes.

Just as legendary is the exhausting '100 km del Passatore' foot race, held overnight in the last weekend of May. Runners set off from Piazza della Signoria in Florence and run through Fiesole, Borgo San Lorenzo, Marradi, the Colla pass and Brisighella before they reach Piazza del Popolo in Faenza 100 km later. Long-distance running enthusiast may also want to enter the Mugello marathon, the longest established international marathon in Italy, held in the third week of September on the customary distance of 42,195 km around Borgo San Lorenzo.

In late may, the municipality of Borgo San Lorenzo organizes a sports fair called 'Vivi lo Sport' in the Foro Boario leasure area. Locals and visitors are welcome to try their hand at several sports or join tournaments and shows of sports as diverse as archery, five-a-side football, judo, skating, athletics, kick-boxing, skateboarding and paragliding. Younger children can play in a safe area with enflatable playing facilities, while young adults and adults can enjoy live music performances, disco and ballroom dancing, eating and drinking stalls managed by the local sports clubs.