GTL mountain biking | Variation 9A Serravalle Langhe - Cerretto Langhe

Leave Serravalle Langhe along the provincial road towards Bossolasco for about 100 metres. At the first crossroads, take the road to the left for the hamlet of Villa, following a secondary ridge on the Belbo Valley. You ignore some deviations to the right and first pass an agritourism company, then, in the Castellero area, the ancient church of San Michele Arcangelo, a small surviving jewel of the ancient settlement, with a beautiful 13th century Romanesque apse and a lively facade baroque, plastered, recently restored.

The road, very panoramic, descends slightly and reaches the sheds of a livestock farm: at the next bend, a few meters from the hamlet of Villa (which is worth a visit, as it is the first nucleus of the town), it turns right onto the wide gravel road that descends up to Cascina Castelvecchio. From the clearing in front of the courtyard, continue along the left edge, skirting a dry stone wall, for a few meters on level ground. You enter the woods, keeping close to the crest, and then descend with a moderate slope thanks to some hairpin bends; the only difficulty is represented by the loose stones and, in some places, by a sort of staircase created by the emergence of the stratigraphy of the ground.

Follow the most traveled track until you come across the abandoned fields surrounding Cascina Barilotto: from the houses the path continues to the left, flat for a long stretch, then descends steeply towards the Belbo valley floor. Once you reach the bed of the Rio Lavagello, cross it, with some caution, to go up the next plateau to the left until you take the path that goes up to the right.

The route climbs up to the ruins of the Lavagello houses, crosses them and continues among the pine trees on beautiful cobblestones. Soon you come across an easier dirt road and follow it to the right: the route continues halfway up the hill for a long flat stretch, in a still wild forest, suspended over the Belbo Valley.Having reached a crossroads, go up to the left for a few meters and, leaving the sunny side, you enter the north-facing forest, cooler and full of chestnut trees and beautiful beech trees.

A few tiring climbs allow you to gain altitude again and gain a modest saddle, from which you can see the houses of Cerretto Langhe, perched on the next ridge. You proceed on level ground and, after a slightly downhill section, you pass a very small stream. The road continues in a large semicircle and climbs up the opposite side of the hill: you finally reach Cerretto Langhe with a final stretch on a tiring ramp, emerging in the cozy Piazzetta Sottana.