At 1460 m elevation, Monte Penice is one of the
highest mountains of the northern Apennines; it towers over
the Trebbia River and marks the boundary between Lombardy (to
the west) and Emilia-Romagna.
More interesting for the walker, however, is nearby Monte
Calenzone (1150 m) and Monte d'Alpe (1253 m).
Approached from the north, the hills near these mountains are
among the first to rise from the great Po River plain.
There is a lot to explore here, as roads often dead-end at classic,
picturesque villages. The walking, mountain and road biking
in the region is quite good, with itineraries connecting villages,
meadows and forest. If coming from Milan, it is easier to reach
this area via Voghera and Varzi in Lombardy, rather than driving
all the way to Piacenza and up the Trebbia River. There is very
little in the way of public transportation in the region, neither
from Varzi nor the Trebbia River.
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Before beginning the excursion, drive up the dead-end road
to Casa Fiori ("House of Flowers"), a jumble of old houses
in a beautiful pastoral setting. The trail begins not far from
here in Santa Cristina, another interesting village. The
red-and-white marked trail climbs easily through (poppy-filled)
meadows and forest. After an hour and a half of walking / 40 minutes
of mountain biking the summit ridge of Monte Calenzone / Monte
d'Alpe is attained. On Monte d'Alpe the forest is young, having
been replanted recently after a devastating forest fire. A natural
park protects the mountain, which is a favorite place for locals
out for a stroll or a bike ride.
Both hiking and mountain biking are a pleasure here on the soft
earthy trails.
After another hour of descent on foot (20 minutes on bike),
a main road is reached at Casa Matti. Those on foot would
be recommended to turn right (west) and downhill away from the
Passo Penice signs. After a sharp, curving descent, where it is
possible to cut straight down a few fields to avoid the road,
take a right on a non-trafficked back road toward Santa Cristina.
This road branches off the busier road just before the latter's
intersection with another main road, Route 462. The back road
to Santa Cristina is a beautiful finish to the walk, past farms
and meadows that could easily be pictured under the dictionary
definition of "bucolic".
It is an hour and a half return from Casa Matti; overall hiking
time for the trip is 4 hours for the average fit walker.
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Those on mountain bike may continue their adventure on road
after Monte d'Alpe, ascending to the left (east) from Casa Matti
uphill to Passo Penice and then finally to Monte Penice,
from where there are spectacular views to the Trebbia River below
and of the surrounding countryside. From here one could descend
to the south on trail, eventually reaching the road at Passo
Scaparina. From here turn north, climbing slightly along the
road to the intersection with Route 461 - continue straight across
the main road, and soon after reach the back road to Santa Cristina
on your left (4 hours from start to finish). Or, instead of going
up to Passo Penice, one could continue straight for Vaccarezza,
on the other side of Monte Penice in Emilia-Romagna. Continue
to Santa Maria and then on dirt roads (avoiding the road
to Bobbio) through several clusters of houses to the village
of Ceci and Passo Scarapina, from where one can head back
to Santa Cristina.
For road bikers, the best plan would be to skip the climb
of Monte Calenzone / Monte d'Alpe (which is on trail), and head
to Casa Matti via the main road and then up the switch-backed
climb to Route 461. From here continue on 461 straight ahead (to
the east) rather to the right toward Passo Penice and descend
into Emilia-Romagna. At Vaccarezza, head north, passing
Cadelmonte; after 5 more kilometers turn left, climbing
back into Lombardy at Romagnese. Follow a lovely country road
on the backside of Monte Calenzone to Zafattarello, turning
left and south toward the starting point of Santa Cristina.
Note that this route is a full day excursion, requiring at least
5 hours.
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Of course, expert riders (both road and mountain) have many
possible routes to choose from - at Santa Maria, one could descend
to Bobbio, only 5 km away, then make a big loop of Monte Penice
via the Trebbia River, Marsaglia and Brallo di Pregola. But note
that this itinerary is for experienced riders only, with over
70-80 not-so-flat kilometers covered during the trip.
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