Stormy Adventure in May in Tuscany

Contrary to popular belief, it is not actually always sunny in Tuscany.  In the springtime, the weather is extremely fickle, changing from summer to winter in one afternoon.  Today, a sunny morning turned to a stormy afternoon, but us riders made an adventure out of it nonetheless.  Planning on a Tuscany horseback ride to Travale, a nearby village, four of us set out in the morning with sun on our shoulders.  After crossing over the mountain ridge and descending into the valley, the skies began to darken and clouds appeared behind the peaks.  

Immediately following an exhilarating gallop, a clap of thunder startled us into the realization that a thunderstorm was upon us.  Choosing to ignore it for the moment, we continued on.  Donning long rain jackets just in time, the drops came splashing down and the clouds rumbled.  We felt like pioneers, explorers caught in a storm.  The landscape changed from bright and sparkling to deep and ominous, but it was still beautiful: a deep mountainous purple beauty.  As we retraced the trail back to the stables, it began to lighten, and even stopped and let a bit of sun back through as we unsaddled the horses.  Moments after returning to our agriturismo in Tuscany, Rifugio Prategiano for lunch, however, another storm came through.  This time we were happy to be watching it from the other side of a glass window with a hot cappuccino.  Watching the weather come through the mountains from this altitude - with the trees blowing and the mist catching on the mountains - can turn even a stormy day around our hotel in Maremma into a romantic Tuscan painting.