Lake Bilancino is an artificial pool. In summertime many people living in this area gather around it: in fact, here it is possible to swim and practise some sports, such as sail, canoe and windsurf.
Lake Bilancino is a tourist area located just a few minutes from the town of Barberino di Mugello, offering several outdoor activities and, in addition, during summertime, the lakeside is suitable for swimming and there are bathing establishments with beach umbrellas, sunbeds and refreshment bars.
Thanks to its very clean water, this lake is a perfect habitat for a rich number of different fishes, especially carps, crucian carps, chubs, black basses, eels and European perches.
In order to allow fishes to repopulate, fishing is not allowed in the lake, but there are some places where you can do it. As a matter of fact, fishing is practised by many people and, furthermore, the lake offers the chance to do many other sports that are not very common in the Mugello area and Tuscany, such as canoeing, sailing and windsurfing.
By the lakeside, you can walk, bike along a tourist path, go trekking and hike, visiting the blooming flora and fauna of the lake area.
Thanks to the presence of a flourishing nature, also a protected area has been created in the North-East lakeside. The nature reserve, called “Oasi del Gabbianello”, is a stopover point for animals in migration towards the Tyrrhenian Sea.
Today, the Oasi del Gabbianello is the only nature reserve of the area and has a big value in terms of biodiversity preservation, in fact, the lake area is attended by several birds, like white storks, cranes, greylag gooses, nightingales and falcons.
In addition, the Oasi offers families and children the opportunity to discover and enjoy nature treasures of this area through guided tours and recreational activities.
The dam, holding 69 million cubic meters of water and 31 meters deep in its deepest point, was officially inaugurated and open to the public in 1999, but its project started after Florence flood in 1966. During those years, the plan for a dam on the river Sieve in the area of Bilancino was created. The project's aim was to prevent and minimize flooding risks in the Plain of Arno River and resolve the problem of water supply in Florence area.