GTL | Tappa 4 - Prunetto - Gottasecca

The starting point is the village of Prunetto, whose castle rises overhanging the hill below, spared by an earthquake that engulfed half the village, saving the castle and leaving it right on the edge of the abyss. The most pious will see in this action the hand of God who will have wanted to save the adjoining Sanctuary of the Madonna del Carmine, extraordinary architecture of the century. XII, enlarged several times over the centuries, which alone deserves the trip up here. Inside, remarkable 15th-century frescoes by Segurano Cigna di Mondovì, as well as interesting remains of previous paintings, among the oldest in the whole valley. The lawn of the sanctuary is the perfect backdrop for the castle, a surly medieval fortress from the 1200s that has lost nothing of its original appearance except for the moats: the spectacular round corner tower, the entrance from the drawbridge, the Palacium, connected with patrol steps and machicolations at the entrance to the keep, the internal courtyard, the mullioned windows with pointed arches from the late fifteenth century refine the southern and western facades. From the medieval village, take the road that goes up to the crossroads in front of the church and, following the signs for Pian Rocchetto, Bosco, Piani, then turn left at the first crossroads, immediately after the parking lot of a restaurant. You climb gently between the farmhouses to bend to the left with a wide arc and, after crossing some stretches of wood, you reach the crossroads of the Piani hamlet. Go up to the right and you will soon reach the last farm. Enter the courtyard, turn right and climb towards the crest of the hill, where a solitary ciabot stands, in a position that allows you to admire both the castle of Prunetto and the Uzzone Valley. The itinerary plunges into the Bosco dei Faggi , near a small rest area: here a short detour is absolutely recommended, at the first crossroads on the left, to admire a large group of large beech trees that create a particularly suggestive environment. This is perhaps the last locality in the Alta Langa where these splendid trees can be admired: once much more common, today they are relegated, in a few isolated specimens, to the more humid valleys. Back on the flat dirt road, continue towards left, taking the crest up to the crossroads on the Bricco della Colma. Turn left, on asphalt, descending quickly until you pass a votive pillar and an isolated farmhouse. A last flat stretch allows you to reach an obvious crossroads: you have to leave the asphalt to take a small path that goes up to the left in the wood, first in a sparse pine forest, then in a cooler chestnut grove. In this stretch it is possible to admire a luxuriant flora, a paradise for lovers of the genre. It is no coincidence that the underlying Uzzone Valley is very green and full of uncontaminated woods, an ideal place for mushroom hunters and hikers. When you reach a more evident dirt road, proceed to the left until you reach a crossroads, characterized by an aqueduct deposit. Descend to the right for a few meters and turn left onto the flat dirt road. Taking the branch to the left, you can reach the summit above the village of Gottasecca, where the ruins of the ancient castle stand, today reduced to a severed tower a few meters away and a piece of the scarp perimeter of the enclosure. Descend into the characteristic village, without forgetting to take a look at the beautiful bust of the poet and Risorgimento patriot Ravina, born here two centuries ago, and at the main road which descends narrowly from the parish church among the waving houses up to the provincial road.