Chiaverano

Chiaverano, perched on the Serra dioritic hills, offers an exciting view of the Ivrea Morainic Amphitheatre, the largest in Europe, created by the retreat of the imposing Alpine glaciers, and the natural environment that surrounds it.

Chiaverano grew out of an ancient medieval village, traces of which can still be found in the ricetto and the remains of the castle. Along paths among the vineyards, woodland trails, paved mule tracks, and country lanes, walks wind through ever-changing scenery where the works of nature follow the works of man.

Evidence of the passage of glaciers can be seen in the 'mounded rocks', on which the engravings traced by the moraine can still be seen, and the enormous and solitary 'Roc' boulders, guardians of a past millions of years old. Witnesses to the work of man are the vines supported by slender monopoles the 'Culigne', the terraced vineyards resting on imposing dry-stone walls.

On a rocky spur, dominating the morainic amphitheatre, stands the ancient Romanesque church of S. Stefano, guardian of 11th-century frescoes and last survivor of the vanished village of Sessano. In the surrounding area, a botanical garden of medicinal and aromatic herbs and, in harmony with the evocative environment, hospitable picnic facilities have been created. As part of an agricultural redevelopment project, the Associazione del Rosmarino, set up a few years ago, has started a selected cultivation of this very tasty shrub which, thanks to the particular characteristics of exposure and soil, acquires a distinctive flavour and fragrance. The Association's showcase is the Bottega del Rosmarino.

Chiaverano is part of the International Network of "Cittaslow: le città del buon vivere" aimed at safeguarding the places of "good living" In the heart of the village, the Bottega del Frér (blacksmith's workshop), now a museum, is the only one remaining among the artisan workshops that animated the village's productive life in the last century. It is a museum of objects and tools of daily life and work. Strolling along the shores of Lake Sirio and through the woods of Lake Pistono, one encounters fragments of the Roman aqueduct of Ivrea, which, starting from the Moorish town of Bienca, a hamlet of Chiaverano, was built by exploiting the natural course of the land. It is the ideal environment for short holidays 'far from the usual, just a step away', different and relaxing, for relaxing walks, trekking, suggestive mountain bike excursions. But it is also the ideal environment for practising numerous sports, from canoeing on the lake to swimming and tennis.