A beautiful itinerary and motorbike ride in Alta Val Tidone, on the border between Emilia and Lombardy, both on and off-road.
A maxi enduro like the Triumph Tiger 800 and the splendid all-rounder Ducati Scrambler Desert Next, are the bikes chosen for this beautiful ride in the Piacenza countryside, a few km from Bobbio and from Pass of the Penice.
Content index
- Itinerary
- The Pavese countryside
- The little Stelvio
- The Piacentine hills
- Val Chiarone
- Map and information
Our tour actually starts from Castel San Giovanni, where we meet up with Daniel Madrigali, of Blue Bike Camp, which will accompany us on the off-road routes for our test of the Ducati Scrambler Desert Next.
Itinerary
Our tour is actually the classic Sunday ride, among the curves, hills and flavors of the area. From this point of view, the roads between Pavia and Piacenza are a real pleasure, both for driving and for the palate. The only negative note is the asphalt on the Pavia side: you will notice that in the west it is often run down, while on the side of the province of Piacenza it is much better. Among other things, we often shot following the instinct, right where we saw the most fun curves and roads, so we rebuilt the route on asphalt based on the GPS track.
The Pavese countryside
Starting from Stradella, reachable from Milan in less than an hour, we took the narrow provincial roads in the direction Rovescala. The landscape is suggestive, the asphalt less so be careful, also because these are purely agricultural areas and it is easy to find work vehicles even on weekends.
From Rovescala we head towards Santa Maria della Versa e Volpara. Here the curves are very gentle and it is really nice to drive on the crests of these hills to admire the countryside below. After Volpara the curves begin to tighten and we have fun.
The little Stelvio
We arrive at Ca 'Vannone, on the border between the provinces. Here begins the descent towards Caminata where we find ourselves in front of a truly unique show. Many hairpin bends one above the other immersed in the countryside. A sort of rural alpine pass, called in fact Small Stelvio, fun and with an asphalt in excellent condition.
The Piacentine hills
Da Nibbiano we follow the torrent Tidone towards fishpond, where we take the splendid climb towards Salento and Rocca D'Olgisio, the oldest fortress in Piacentino. It was the cradle of two saints in the XNUMXth century, later a monastery, a noble residence, a refuge for partisans and now a national monument.
The Val Chiarone
You will find yourself immersed in the silence of nature surrounded by the beautiful surrounding valleys. The descent is prudent towards the Val Chiarone, where we will finally satisfy our appetite. We then stop at Case Gazzoli restaurant, by Katia, Simona and Rosella Zambianchi who prepare us a platter of local cold cuts and cheeses, hand-made first courses and amazing second courses, all at a very honest price, like their genuine zero km cuisine.
From here, happy and a little burdened, we leave for Piacenza and then return home along the last sweet curves of the Trebbia Valley.
Off-road routes
Unfortunately, we cannot document the off-road routes we took because some of these were private soils. In any case, you can always count on the maxi enduro school of Daniel Madrigali, Blue Bike Camp, to let you take you on these beautiful and easy trails, or venture out on your own (but be careful!).
