Excursion to the Valle di Blenio and Biasca

Under the guidance of Alessandro Ratti, we began our day at the church of San Carlo in Negrentino, then visited the Casa Rotonda, home to the Roberto Donetta photographic collection, before moving down to the church of San Remigio in Corzoneso. After a lunch break at the Grotto Canvètt in Semione, we continued our excursion with a visit to the ruins of Serravalle Castle and the church of Santa Maria del Castello, before concluding with a visit to the church of Santi Pietro e Paolo in Biasca.

Church of San Carlo, Negrentino

The church of Negrentino is only a few minutes away from Leontica. It can be reached via a modern suspension bridge. Built in the 11th century, the building is located on the old path of the Nara Pass, which connects the Blenio Valley with the Leventina Valley. It was originally dedicated to Sant'Ambrogio and later to San Carlo. The interior of the church is frescoed and contains some of the oldest frescoes in Ticino.

Casa Rotonda, Roberto Donetta Collection, Casserio

A visit to the Casa Rotonda in Casserio allows us to get to know the life of Roberto Donetta (Biasca 1865 - Casserio 1932), who, after a life of poverty and solitude, emerged as one of the greatest photographers of his time in Ticino at the beginning of the 20th century. After his death, more than 5000 glass plates were found, showing photos of various events, weddings, baptisms and funerals. His great curiosity and passion for photography led him to conduct personal experiments, which can be admired and studied in the archive today.

Church of San Remigio, Corzoneso

The church of San Remigio is located on the old Roman road leading to the Lukmanier Pass. It was built in different eras. The main hall of the church dates back to the middle of the 11th century. The building was first mentioned in 1249. The building was extended in the 12th century.

Before continuing our hike, we enjoyed an excellent lunch at the Grotto Canvètt in Semione, where Alfreda and Fabio prepared the typical "Polenta e Brasato" for us.

Castello di Serravalle and Santa Maria del Castello

Serravalle is the third most important castle in the canton of Ticino, after the fortress of Bellinzona and the fortress of Locarno. The first archaeological discovery dates back to 1928-1930. In the years 2000-2002, new restoration and exploration work was carried out, which made it possible to reconstruct the history of the castle in greater detail. The first building probably dates back to the Carolingian period around 900 and was destroyed in 1182 when Blenio and Leventina united in an alliance with the Oath of Torre. A new castle was then built at the beginning of the 13th century, which was forcibly destroyed in 1402.

To the south of the castle ruins is the 14th century church of Santa Maria del Castello, which is decorated with frescoes by the painter Giovanni Battista Tarilli from 1587.

Church of Santi Pietro e Paolo, Biasca

The last stage of our excursion took us to visit the church of Santi Pietro e Paolo in Biasca. The three-nave church dates back to the 12th century and is one of the most important examples of Romanesque architecture in the canton of Ticino and in Switzerland. It is impressively situated on a hill that dominates the village. Inside, the inclination of the stone pavement and the fresco cycles are of great historical and artistic interest.

This one-day excursion allowed us to deepen our knowledge of the cultural and artistic heritage of the region by visiting places of particular historical interest.