THE ROCCHE, A PRESENT OF THE GEOLOGIC EVOLUTION

The characterizing element of the Ecomuseum's landscape is represented by the cliffs (Rocche in Italian). A geologic erosion phenomenon that originates in the mists of times and today still continues to influence our lives.

About 250,000 years ago, the Tanaro river deviated its course due to the erosive phenomenon of another river. This event, called by the academics "capture of Tanaro river", caused a series of very strong upheavals in the flow valleys. The Roero rivers started to draw back towards the new Tanaro valley, thus incising with deep gorges and picturesque badlands the sandy soils of the Asti county.

The results of this millenary phenomenon is still visible today in the towns of the Rocche. In the sweet hills typical of the Roero we can witness deep open chasms that can reach altitude gaps of hundreds of meters.
The ecosystem of the Rocche is very delicate: different microclimates coexist in few hundred meters of altitude. The sandy walls of the Rocche, where we can easily find fossils of shells, fish and sea urchins, form pinnacles of fascinating shapes: majestic natural amphitheaters, where you can venture by following the Thematic paths of the Ecomuseum.