The best traffic-free bike rides around Calice Al Cornoviglio

The name Calice al Cornoviglio combines two distinctive elements of the village: "Calice," of uncertain origin but perhaps derived from the Latin calix (cup), referring to the site's concave shape, and "Cornoviglio," the mountain (561 m) that overlooks the village and lends its name to the entire ridge. This toponym appears in medieval documents and recalls the village's ancient connection with the surrounding Apennine territory. Calice was long ruled by the Malaspina dello Spino Secco family, who built a strategic castle there, documented since the 11th century and modified several times over the centuries. Today, the fortress houses the Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art and the Chestnut Documentation Center, two testimonies to the profound intertwining of history, spirituality, and the territory's resources. A short distance away is the parish church of Santa Maria Lauretana, an elegant 18th-century Baroque building with exquisite decorations and a polychrome marble high altar. The village comes alive throughout the year with traditional events such as the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto (September), the Chestnut Festival (October) and various summer festivals, which highlight the historical and cultural roots of the place.

Passo Alpicella is located at 710m above sea level and is part of the 42nd stage of the Alta Via dei Monti Liguri. It is located on the watershed ridge between Val di Vara and Valle del Magra, offering open views that on clear days reach the Apuan Alps and the Gulf of Poets.

The dirt road that connects the Alpicella Pass to the Valico dei Solini follows the ridge that separates the Val di Vara from the Valle del Magra, offering truly suggestive views on both sides. The surface is mostly hard and compact, and does not present any particular cycling problems. Only in some short sections do you encounter loose sections, with stones that are also quite large, but still easily surmountable without significant technical difficulties. The difference in height is limited, which makes this route pleasant and rideable in both directions.

The dirt road that connects the hamlet of Bagatello to Valico dei Solini follows the route of the 43rd stage of the Alta Via dei Monti Liguri (Ceparana–Valico dei Solini) and also partly coincides with a segment of the Lunigiana Gravel. The route is easy to ride: the surface is largely compact and stable, ideal for gravel and MTB. Some short sections have a slightly more unstable surface, with loose gravel or uneven terrain, but overall the ride is smooth and pleasant, even uphill. The natural setting is very suggestive, with wooded sections and open views towards the Val di Vara.

Nestled on a hilltop overlooking the lower Val di Magra, Bolano is a small village in the province of La Spezia, on the border between Liguria and Tuscany. Its medieval origins can still be felt as you stroll through the stone alleys and the houses in a compact sequence, with panoramic views that range to the mouth of the Magra and, on clear days, to the Apuan Alps. The historic center, kept intact in its medieval urban layout, has a slightly triangular shape and opened at the vertices with three defensive gates: Porta Castello, Porta Stazon and Porta Chilosi (ancient Porta Fontana), which tell the story of the fortified past of the village. Among the main monuments, the following stand out: - Piazza Castello, the civic heart of the town and home to the town hall: a small square, framed by historic buildings, from which the narrow streets branch off towards the Church and the gates. - The parish church of Santa Maria Assunta, the ancient Romanesque parish church enlarged in Baroque style in the 18th century, with frescoes, Serassi organ and Romanesque-Gothic bell tower. - The Oratory of Saints Antonio and Rocco, a 16th-century convent complex with a valuable 18th-century Ligurian organ and paintings by Simone Barabino and Stefano Lemmi. - The remains of the ancient medieval castle (of the Malaspina) in the “Poggio”, between walls and towers visible close to the narrow streets. I stopped in Bolano almost by chance, during my bike ride, and the discovery of Piazza Castello, so intimate and symbolic of the village, immediately struck me. Crossing the ancient medieval gates, and walking “behind the walls”, added a feeling of traveling through time.

During the Second World War, the Pra Bon area, located in the mountainous territory of the Municipality of Zeri (Massa-Carrara), played a strategic role in the supply network organized by the Allies for the partisan formations active in the Ligurian-Tuscan-Emilian Apennines. The location, a high grassy expanse located near the Foce di Prabono, was used as a launch field for materials intended for the liberation struggle. Due to its isolated position, difficult to access by land but visible from the sky and large enough to receive airdrops, Pra Bon was ideal for this purpose. Allied aircraft — generally taking off from southern Italy or from bases in Corsica — carried out night airdrops of weapons, ammunition, food, medicines and radio equipment intended for the partisan detachments operating in the area. The materials were parachuted and collected on site by the partisan brigades, who then took care of their distribution and protection. The operations were not without risks. The area was subject to continuous roundups by Nazi-Fascist forces, aware of the logistical importance of those places. In particular, on August 3, 1944, near the nearby Monte Picchiara, a violent clash took place between partisan forces and German troops during one of these roundups. The toponym "Pra Bon" or "Pra Bono", which means "good meadow" in the local dialect, still evokes the memory of that period: from a place of transhumance and summer pasture, it was transformed for a few crucial months into a clandestine hub of the Resistance, a meeting point between the mountains of Lunigiana and the liberated skies.

Here the dirt road runs along the ridge of the mountains between the Vara Valley and the Magra Valley

The Alta Via dei Monti Liguri unites in a single long trekking itinerary the paths of the peaks of the Apennines from Val di Vara to Val Nervia, connecting the existing regional parks from Ceparana to Ventimiglia. The stretch we walked starts near the medieval village of Bolano and first climbs to the Solini pass and then reaches the Apicella pass and from there goes back up to the Casoni pass. Continuing on the ridge it touches the slopes of Mount Cornovigilio and the Rastrello and Calzavitello passes.