Val Trebbia by motorcycle, from Voghera to Piacenza, by way of Bobbio, Chiavari and Val d’Aveto. 322 km of bends, green and a touch of sea salt.
I set off early, with the sun still low and shy. I was alone, and that changed everything: no one to wait for, no one to chase. Just my own pace. Not necessarily slow, but smooth, flowing, linked. One bend leading into the next without a jolt.
Val Trebbia is an incredible place to ride. There are few straights, and the landscape never gives you a dull moment. And in April the green seems to burst: every meadow, every wood, every riverbank looks like it’s pushing out more colour than it can hold.
This is the ride I did on 26 April. I’ll take you through it section by section, with the track to download at the end.
Val Trebbia by motorcycle: the route at a glance
- Start: Voghera
- Finish: Piacenza
- Distance: about 322 km (my full loop from home, near Varese, was 577 km)
- Passes: Penice, Scoffera, Forcella, Tomarlo
- Highest point: over 1,400 metres, between Tomarlo and Zovallo
- Best time: spring, when the Apennines are at their greenest
- Road type: fully paved, almost nothing but bends
From Voghera to the Penice: the hills rise
You leave Voghera, and within a few kilometres the plain gives way to the hills of the Oltrepò: Salice Terme, Godiasco, Varzi. Then the road starts climbing in earnest towards the Passo del Penice. It’s the first real breath of mountain air of the day, and it comes early, while the air is still cool.
Bobbio and the Val Trebbia
From the Penice you drop down to Bobbio. The village, with its Ponte Gobbo, is worth a stop: I didn’t make one that day, but I recommend it. This is where the part that gives the ride its name begins. The road follows the Trebbia south, through Marsaglia, Ottone, Gorreto, Rovegno and Montebruno.
The river keeps you company from below, the valley narrows and widens, and the bends follow one another with a natural, almost musical rhythm. This is where I understood why so many riders consider this one of the most beautiful valleys in Italy.
Towards the sea: Torriglia, Scoffera, Rapallo
At Torriglia you leave the valley and cross the Scoffera. Then you ride down the Val Fontanabuona, and one last climb brings you to Rapallo. The sea appears all at once. From Rapallo to Chiavari the coast unfolds past Zoagli and its views: the Apennines behind you, the Ligurian Sea ahead, within a few kilometres.
Chiavari: a sandwich on the seafront
In Chiavari I stopped on the seafront. I had a sandwich brought from home and no wish to sit down in a restaurant. I was on my own, and that was just fine. The sea breeze felt like a caress after hours in the mountains. Then a coffee, and back on the road.
It’s one of the things slow travel has taught me: you don’t always need a special place to stop. Sometimes the right place is enough.
The way back: Val d’Aveto and Val Nure
From Chiavari you head back inland: Carasco, Borzonasca and then the Passo della Forcella. I stopped there for a while. No lunch: just a moment to rest, take in the view and look at my bike standing at the side of the road.
Then Val d’Aveto, with Rezzoaglio and Santo Stefano d’Aveto. Here the bends multiply. In April the tarmac had just been relaid, perfect: an endless toboggan run of curves. You climb up to the Passo del Tomarlo, the highest point of the ride.
From there you descend the whole of Val Nure: Ferriere, Farini, Bettola, Ponte dell’Olio. More kilometres of bends, slowly unwinding into the Piacenza hills and Grazzano Visconti, before you reach Piacenza.
Usually the way home goes by faster: you’re heading back and the novelty wears off. Not this time. I felt a steady, attentive enthusiasm, right up to the last bend.
An honest note on the distance
I rode Val Trebbia by motorcycle in a single day, leaving home at dawn and getting back in the evening. But I’m a very experienced rider, and this is not a distance for everyone. Over 300 km of Apennine roads, almost all of them bends, will tire even seasoned riders.
If you want to enjoy it at an unhurried pace, split it over two days. A night in Chiavari gives you the sea in the evening. A night in Santo Stefano d’Aveto gives you the mountains in the morning. Either way, the ride changes nature: from a challenge, it becomes a journey.
Download the GPX track
Track recorded on 26 April 2026. It is indicative only: road conditions change, and responsibility always lies with the rider. Always check that the route is passable before you set off.
If you like rides where you’re never quite sure where you’ll end up, read The Luck of Getting Lost too.