On Sunday the local raft groups raced each other from Chifenti, where the Lima River meets the Serchio River, to the gorgeous Ponte della Maddelena.
I missed the race, but Montefegatesi photographer David Bonaventura was on hand to get get some great photos.
It looked like a fun day despite the less than perfect weather. I think the boys in the white raft won.
There can never be too many photos of the magnificent Ponte della Maddalena. Sometimes you can be very lucky and find the river below as smooth as glass, offering gorgeous reflections.
Walk to the top for beautiful views of the valley.
I love this bridge…when I see it I know I am not far from Bagni di Lucca.
We have had some very wild weather in Bagni di Lucca and the mountains around us. On Sunday night there was an enormous storm which dumped heavy rain on the area. Roads have been closed, and some are still closed. There has been damage to property and some villages remain cut off from main roads.
There was another smaller storm last night, but I haven’t heard of any further damage. The sun has appeared today. With a bit of luck it will stick around for a while.
Here are a few pictures of the muddy river in Ponte a Serraglio.
The river looked a bit more calm today. It is still high, but it is not rushing past so quickly.
The road to Lucca is cut past Borgo a Mozzano. Until yesterday it was cut from Chifenti as water had flooded the road to Ponte a Maddalena. It was open today so I went to the bridge to take a look at the river from there.
You can see how high the river is in the following photo. It is right at the top of the weir.
I walked to the top of the bridge. Two days ago there was a metre of water covering the road below and in the shops and houses beside the road.
If you go to YouTube and look for Serchio in Piena there are several videos of the damaging floods.
I hope the people who have suffered damage get back to normal soon.
Bella Bagni di Lucca 