Why this ride
183 km from Fognano to Fognano, about 3 h 37 of riding. It goes by way of Gessi Bolognesi, Gessi di Zola predosa and back through Gessi Bolognesi.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro and Gessi di Zola predosa
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 183 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 37
- 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. Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro
Driving through the hills of Romagna, south of Faenza, you notice a long, pale ridge cutting across the valleys like a wall. This is the Vena del Gesso Romagnola, a band of gypsum rock about twenty-five kilometres long, and Monte Mauro is its highest point, rising above the villages of Riolo Terme, Brisighella and Fognano. The ridge is now a regional park and part of the UNESCO site for the evaporitic karst of the northern Apennines.
Read the complete Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro is where the day begins. Next is Gessi Bolognesi.
2. Gessi Bolognesi
Ride south out of Bologna and within ten minutes the city's suburbs give way to something surprising: a range of low hills made of gypsum, a soft, crystalline rock that dissolves in water and forms caves, sinkholes and strange, shiny outcrops. These are the Gessi Bolognesi, a protected regional park between the Savena and Idice valleys, and in 2023 they became part of the UNESCO site for the evaporitic karst and caves of the northern Apennines.
Read the complete Gessi Bolognesi write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Gessi Bolognesi comes up about 63 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 94 km into the recorded legs you reach Gessi di Zola predosa. Next is back through Gessi Bolognesi.
4. back through Gessi Bolognesi
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Gessi Bolognesi write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Gessi Bolognesi, late in the day. Next is Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro, 32 km on.
5. Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro to Gessi Bolognesi
Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro → Gessi Bolognesi is 63 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Gessi Bolognesi to Gessi di Zola predosa
Gessi Bolognesi → Gessi di Zola predosa is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Gessi di Zola predosa to back through Gessi Bolognesi
Gessi di Zola predosa → back through Gessi Bolognesi is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Gessi Bolognesi to Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro
back through Gessi Bolognesi → Vena del Gesso Romagnola - M.te Mauro is 58 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
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