Casale Monferrato→Sezzadio

Description of the route

The first day of the Strade di Aleramo leaves Casale Monferrato from the Castello dei Paleologi and immediately connects the history of the city with the open landscape of the Lower Monferrato. It is the start of the three-stage version, the one designed for those who want to cross the entire corridor in a sporty way that leads from the Piedmont hills to the Ligurian sea. The 71.6 kilometers require continuity, but the difference in altitude of 546 meters is distributed in a legible alternation of undulations, descents and smoother sections.

Leaving Casale, the route enters the agricultural plot of the hills and reaches Grazzano Badoglio, a central place in the Aleramic story. Here the memory of the Marquis Aleramo, traditionally linked to his tomb in the church of Santi Vittore e Corona, gives the journey a dimension that goes beyond performance: you cycle inside a foundation legend, among lands that for centuries have built the identity of Monferrato. The road continues towards Fubine, with wide views of vineyards, fields and villages gathered on the hills.

The second part of the stage progressively changes pace. After the central hills you come across more extended routes, useful for recovering a regular ride before the transition from Oviglio. The inhabited centers become natural points for a stop, to replenish water and to observe how the Monferrato landscape transforms as it approaches the Alessandria plain. Despite being classified as easy from a technical point of view, the route remains a long day: it is best not to expend too much energy in the first half and to keep a margin for the last kilometres.

The arrival at Sezzadio is marked by the abbey of Santa Giustina, one of the strongest monumental references of the itinerary. The complex ideally concludes the first stage and introduces the territory in which legend places the origins of Aleramo. Casale, Grazzano, Fubine, Oviglio and Sezzadio are therefore not simple intermediate points, but successive chapters of a journey that combines heritage, rural landscape and geographical continuity. The track is linear: it is important to plan your overnight stay or transfer from the arrival in advance and keep the GPX available throughout the day.