Why this ride
From Sabbioneta it runs 282 km to Sabbioneta; allow about 5 h 03 of riding. It goes by way of Bassa collina reggiana, Gessi di Zola predosa and back through Bassa collina reggiana. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Sabbioneta and Gessi di Zola predosa
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 282 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 03
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Sabbioneta
Sabbioneta is a Renaissance experiment: a whole town built from scratch in the second half of the sixteenth century by Vespasiano Gonzaga, a soldier, scholar and minor prince of the great Mantuan family, who wanted a capital laid out according to the ideals of the age. He got it. Inside its star-shaped walls the streets run in a regular grid, and in a few hundred metres you pass a ducal palace, a long gallery built to show off his collection of ancient sculpture, a summer palace, and one of the earliest purpose-built theatres in Europe, the Teatro all'Antica, designed by Vincenzo Scamozzi. Sabbioneta and Mantua were listed together by UNESCO in 2008 as two contrasting visions of the Renaissance city.
Read the complete Sabbioneta write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sabbioneta is where the day begins. Next is Bassa collina reggiana.
2. Bassa collina reggiana
The low hills south of Reggio Emilia, where the Po plain starts to ripple up toward the Apennines, hide a strange geology: outcrops of gypsum, the glittering crystalline rock left behind when ancient seas evaporated millions of years ago. Water dissolves gypsum easily, and over time it has carved caves, sinkholes and blind valleys into these hills. The Bassa Collina Reggiana, the low Reggio hill country, is part of the UNESCO site Evaporitic Karst and Caves of Northern Apennines, listed in 2023, and around Borzano, Albinea and Vezzano sul Crostolo you can see the white and grey gypsum cliffs poking through the woods and vineyards.
Read the complete Bassa collina reggiana write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Bassa collina reggiana comes up about 59 km into the recorded legs. Next is Gessi di Zola predosa.
3. Gessi di Zola predosa
Southwest of Bologna, where the flat Po plain meets the first ripples of the Apennines, the hills around Zola Predosa hide a strange geology. These are gypsum hills, made of evaporite rock formed when an ancient sea dried out millions of years ago, leaving layers of shimmering selenite crystals. Water dissolves gypsum easily, and over time it has carved sinkholes, blind valleys and caves through the rock. In 2023, the Evaporitic Karst and Caves of the Northern Apennines were listed by UNESCO, and the Gessi Bolognesi around here are a key part of that story.
Read the complete Gessi di Zola predosa write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 140 km into the recorded legs you reach Gessi di Zola predosa. Next is back through Bassa collina reggiana.
4. back through Bassa collina reggiana
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Bassa collina reggiana write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Bassa collina reggiana, late in the day. Next is Sabbioneta.
5. Sabbioneta
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Sabbioneta write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Sabbioneta. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Sabbioneta to Bassa collina reggiana
Sabbioneta → Bassa collina reggiana is 59 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Bassa collina reggiana to Gessi di Zola predosa
Bassa collina reggiana → Gessi di Zola predosa is 81 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Gessi di Zola predosa to back through Bassa collina reggiana
Gessi di Zola predosa → back through Bassa collina reggiana is 84 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Bassa collina reggiana to Sabbioneta
back through Bassa collina reggiana → Sabbioneta is 59 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.