Robilante between Sound, Forest and Mountain Culture

Robilante between Sound, Forest and Mountain Culture

Robilante brings together sound history, forested paths, mountain landscapes and religious heritage in a compact area. Just a few steps from the centre, at Via Umberto I No. 33, lies the Museo del Suono e della Comunicazione. Original gramophones and design radios offer an insight into the history of sound and technology. The museum also includes an immersive reconstruction of a typical 1940s classroom.

Hiking Trails with Different Foci

The approximately 44-km-long Anello di Valle circular route is also known as the Anello del Vermenagna and connects Roccavione, Robilante, Vernante and Limone Piemonte. The section within the municipality of Robilante is shown on the municipality’s tourist hiking map. A separate starting point is the Museo della Fisarmonica at Via Ghiglione 7: this is where the Anello delle Mulere begins.

The Anello delle Mulere runs through the forests between Robilante and Roccavione and passes through a beech forest to the area of the Rocche Mulere. The Sentiero dell'Acqua Corrente follows the water: it accompanies the Vermenagna mountain stream and ends near the bridge of the Cuneo–Nice railway line in the Vallone di Vermanera. Nine information panels there cover the local wildlife, chestnut cultivation, the valley’s geology, the hydroelectric power station, fish and the local fish fauna, the basins of the former S.I.R.O., the Cuneo–Limone–Ventimiglia railway and the Vallone di Vermanera.

The Sentiero Jors de Snive is dedicated to Giorgio Bertaina, a local farmer-artist who expressed Robilante’s characteristics through woodwork. The trail leads to the hamlet of Tetto Rescasso. A building there bears a fresco depicting a crucifixion attributed to Jors Boneto. In the wider region, the Anello del Vermenagna connects the lower valley with the cross-border Alpine ridge; the entire circular route can be explored by mountain bike and, in winter, on snowshoes.

Elevation and Views

The Piagge plateau lies at an elevation of 1,300 m. To the north, the view opens onto the Cuneo plain; Borgo San Dalmazzo and Roccavione lie below. The highland landscape therefore complements the wooded sections around Robilante with a much broader perspective. If you choose a hotel in Robilante for your stay, you can weigh up cultural destinations in the town, forest paths and excursions to higher elevations.

Chapels, Churches and Local Memory

Several chapels form part of the local architectural and commemorative heritage. The Cappella del SS.mo Nome di Maria in the Malandrè district was built in 1787. In front of it stands a memorial plaque for the massacre carried out on 28 June 1944. The Cappella di S. Giacomo in the Agnelli district is believed to date from the late 17th or early 18th century. Its old-pink-painted façade bears a 1936 fresco depicting the Madonna and Saints James and Donatus.

The Cappella S. Giuseppe in the Montasso district is the smallest and newest chapel in the municipality; it was built entirely of stone in 1998. The Chiesa Parrocchiale di S. Donato was rebuilt on the site of an older parish church. The cultural diversity is complemented by the Piccolo Museo del Treno, which is currently being established as a museum project and is dedicated to the railway line’s technical heritage of Cuneo–Ventimiglia–Nice.

Festivals Throughout the Year

A festival takes place every year on the second Sunday in September at the Cappella del SS.mo Nome di Maria in Malandrè. On the following Monday morning, the traditional “Incanto” is held. The religious celebrations at the Cappella di S. Giacomo are part of the annual festival in honour of Saint James, held on the last Sunday in July. On the Piagge, a festival takes place every year on the first Sunday in August at the Cappella Madonna del Laghetto; on the first Sunday in December, a pilgrimage leads to the “Madonnina”. Every year on the first Sunday in July, a festival with religious celebrations and various traditional events is held at the Cappella S. Giuseppe.

Historical Traces in the Landscape

A votive pillar on a ridge between Boves, Roccavione and Robilante commemorates the historical battle referred to as the second Battle of Roccavione. Together with the chapels, railway references and paths through the Vermenagna Valley, Robilante emerges as a place where encounters with nature and regional history stand closely side by side.

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