Itinerary 6: Grezzana, Cerro, San Mauro di Saline

The town of Grezzana (10865 inhabitants) is located about 7 km north of Verona. It is one of the main piedmont centres of the Valpantena, which also includes the villages of Poiano, Quinto and Marzana.
The territory of Grezzana, like the entire Lessin area, has been frequented by man since the Lower Palaeolithic (at least 200,000 years ago).
In the hamlet of Stallavena, at the foot of a small rocky wall of white limestone is the so-called Riparo Tagliente, an archaeological site discovered in 1958 by Francesco Tagliente, which preserves evidence of anthropic frequentation from the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic (60,000-10,000 years ago).

Not far away, on the opposite side of the valley, is the so-called Torre di Falasco, a probably medieval structure to which a legend of brigands, kidnappings and abuse is linked. The heart of the town of Grezzana is the ancient Pieve di Santa Maria ed Elisabetta, documented from 1145, which houses works by masters ranging from the 17th to the 18th century such as Felice Brusasorzi, Sante Creara, Prospero Schiavi and Michelangelo Spada. Next to the church is the bell tower (1213), which still retains its original Romanesque appearance.

Moving up the valley, we find another ecclesiastical jewel: San Micheletto in Tavigliana, which stands in the foothills, at the point where the valley (Valpantena) narrows. San Micheletto was a meeting place for shepherds during the transhumance period, before they went up the mountain and on their return. In 1630, during the terrible plague, it was used as a lazaret to house those affected by the disease.

Another stop, a must for art lovers, is Villa Allegri Arvedi, located on the slope of a hill. Built from the 13th century onwards, the villa was defined in its current form around the mid-17th century by the Veronese architect Giovanni Battista Bianchi (1631-1687), commissioned by the Allegri family, who in 1824 sold the property to the Arvedi family. The frescoes inside the villa, the work of the famous French painter Louis Dorigny, Paolo Farinati and Sante Prunati, are remarkable. The villa is privately owned and used as a historical setting for special events.

Grezzana is part of the Lessinia Mountain Community and the Lessinia Regional Nature Park area. Approximately 7 km from Grezzana is the Parco Faunistico Didattico al Bosco, where a natural mountain habitat has been recreated that is home to hundreds of animals in the wild, accustomed to contact with humans.
Not far away is the Mulino dei Bellori, a traditional 16th-century water mill. Having fallen into disuse, it was restored thanks to the intervention of the Grezzana Municipality in 1981 and brought back into operation for educational and museum purposes.
Follow the road to Cerro Veronese (2504 inhabitants), 17 km from Verona. The current name (Cerro) is linked to the majestic cork oak, a centuries-old plant that stands next to the parish church. Near the village you can visit: the octagonal Cappella del Redentore (Chapel of the Redeemer) on Monte Croce and admire a spectacular panoramic view of the Lessini mountains; the Giasà ra (a local term for an ice store for preserving foodstuffs) of the Carcereri with the Museo Ergologico (Ergological Museum), established in 1990, which preserves illustrations and descriptions of the now abandoned activity of ice production and sale.
This is the only example in the province of a deep cave with a tourist route.

Leaving Cerro behind, we continue in the direction of Bosco Chiesanuova, almost immediately leaving the provincial road to take the direction of Roverè, following the signs for the Grotta di Roverè Mille or Grotta di Monte Capriolo. The Cave is also called Còale del Mondo (from the name of the owner Edmondo) and is located in the vajo della Carcareta, so called due to the presence of an ancient kiln that had the purpose of creating lime. The Cave, which is of great geological importance, is an ancient karstic conduit in the Rosso ammonitico levels and offers a surprising spectacle with its wealth of stalactites and stalagmites, sails and other fantastic shapes originating over the millennia from the deposition of limestone and minerals.

The last stop along the route is San Mauro di Saline (560 inhabitants). It owes the first part of its appellation to the twenty-eighth bishop of Verona, elected in 612, who seems to have retired to a hermit's life in this area; the second part of the place name derives from the Assaline dialect term used for the flintlocks of old rifles, made from the flint stones (flint) that were widespread in the area. A little way from the village is the Church of San Mauro or San Moro, actually dedicated to St Leonard of Limoges. It stands in a privileged panoramic position and is surrounded by a lush pine forest.