Beech trees usually need altitude and cool weather in central Italy, so it is a surprise to find a beech forest at only about five hundred metres on Monte Raschio, a low volcanic hill near Oriolo Romano, north-west of Rome. The forest survives here thanks to a local microclimate, with humidity from Lake Bracciano and the volcanic soils, and it is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe, a site that spans many countries.
The area around Monte Raschio is the land of the Monti Sabatini, the volcanic hills surrounding Lake Bracciano, a large crater lake that supplies water to Rome. Oriolo Romano is a small town laid out in the sixteenth century by the Santacroce family, with a grand palace, the Palazzo Altieri, which contains a gallery of portraits of all the popes. Bracciano, on the lake, has a magnificent castle, the Castello Orsini-Odescalchi, one of the finest Renaissance castles in Italy.
The riding around Lake Bracciano is pleasant. The road around the lake is scenic, with views over the water and the hills, and the roads into the Monti Sabatini and towards Viterbo wind through woods and farmland. Traffic can be heavy on summer weekends, when Romans head to the lake, but weekdays are quieter. Further north, the Monti Cimini and Lake Vico offer more winding roads through beech and chestnut forests. Surfaces vary, and some minor roads are rough.
Oriolo Romano is a small town with basic services, and Manziana and Bracciano, nearby, have fuel, shops and restaurants. The lake is popular for swimming in summer, and motorboats are banned, so the water is clean and quiet. The local food includes lake fish, porchetta and the wines of the area. A walk in the beech forest on Monte Raschio, especially in autumn when the leaves turn gold, is a peaceful escape from the heat and noise, and it is remarkable to think that this forest has survived so close to Rome.