On the tracks of Sigeric

followed by pilgrims from all over Europe heading towards Rome, the papacy and the heart of Christianity: some 1,600km long, in the year 990, the Archbishop Sigeric covered this journey in 79 days, taking notes for providing a description, as he returned to Canterbury after the archiepiscopal investiture of the pallium by Pope John XV.
His diary therefore forms the most authentic description of this itinerary which, in 2004, was named by the European Council as belonging to the “Europe's Cultural Routes Programme” together with El Camino de Santiago de Compostela (Way of St. James) in Spain. The Via Francigena route was not purely for worship but also a way used by merchants, armies, people of politics and culture who created a route for exchange and communication that resulted in largely unifying the culture in Europe between the 10th and 13th centuries. The Morenico-Canavesana stretch of the Via Francigena, between the Valle d'Aosta and the Biella-Vercelli sections, amounts to 50km and crosses the territories of 10 Municipalities: it takes in a beautiful area of the Moraine Amphitheatre of Ivrea created by the retreat of the Balteo Glacier, one of the world's best conserved geological conformations of glacial origin, dotted by lakes and characterised by the long outline of the Serra, a moraine ridge of 25km.
There were many places for pilgrims to restore themselves physically and spiritually, and even now there are various Romanesque buildings bearing witness to the centuries. In this territory, which emerges in an unexpectedly dramatic fashion onto the plain after the more sheltered path through the Valle d'Aosta, the Via Francigena follows the same route as long stretches of the Strada Reale dei Vini Torinesi (Royal Route of Torino Wines): here is an opportunity, at wine cellars and shops, for sampling the famous DOC appellation wines Carema, Canavese, Erbaluce and Passito di Caluso.
And then there is the local cuisine, with its roots in tradition and seasons, offering tastings of soups and broths, delicious dishes based on mushrooms, chestnuts and onions, salami and cheeses typical to the area as well as a wide variety of sweet foods: a boost of energy along the way can also be found at the many shops signalled... goods that pilgrims will find a space for in their backpacks!

followed by pilgrims from all over Europe heading towards Rome, the papacy and the heart of Christianity: some 1,600km long, in the year 990, the Archbishop Sigeric covered this journey in 79 days, taking notes for providing a description, as he returned to Canterbury after the archiepiscopal investiture of the pallium by Pope John XV.
His diary therefore forms the most authentic description of this itinerary which, in 2004, was named by the European Council as belonging to the “Europe's Cultural Routes Programme” together with El Camino de Santiago de Compostela (Way of St. James) in Spain. The Via Francigena route was not purely for worship but also a way used by merchants, armies, people of politics and culture who created a route for exchange and communication that resulted in largely unifying the culture in Europe between the 10th and 13th centuries. The Morenico-Canavesana stretch of the Via Francigena, between the Valle d'Aosta and the Biella-Vercelli sections, amounts to 50km and crosses the territories of 10 Municipalities: it takes in a beautiful area of the Moraine Amphitheatre of Ivrea created by the retreat of the Balteo Glacier, one of the world's best conserved geological conformations of glacial origin, dotted by lakes and characterised by the long outline of the Serra, a moraine ridge of 25km.
There were many places for pilgrims to restore themselves physically and spiritually, and even now there are various Romanesque buildings bearing witness to the centuries. In this territory, which emerges in an unexpectedly dramatic fashion onto the plain after the more sheltered path through the Valle d'Aosta, the Via Francigena follows the same route as long stretches of the Strada Reale dei Vini Torinesi (Royal Route of Torino Wines): here is an opportunity, at wine cellars and shops, for sampling the famous DOC appellation wines Carema, Canavese, Erbaluce and Passito di Caluso.
And then there is the local cuisine, with its roots in tradition and seasons, offering tastings of soups and broths, delicious dishes based on mushrooms, chestnuts and onions, salami and cheeses typical to the area as well as a wide variety of sweet foods: a boost of energy along the way can also be found at the many shops signalled... goods that pilgrims will find a space for in their backpacks!