Secchia

The Secchia (Sècia; called by Pliny Gabellus) is an Italian river. One of the main right bank tributaries of the Po, it flows through the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy.

It is 172 km long, and has a drainage basin with a catchment area of 2292 km2, alternating between aridity in the dry summer months and higher flows during the wet spring and autumn periods. It originates at Alpe di Succiso at an elevation of 2017 m, close to the pass of Cerreto in the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines, then it heads north, touching on the territory of Frignano, passing into the territory of the commune of Pavullo nel Frignano and reaching the Po Valley close to Sassuolo (in the province of Modena). Here it touches on the city of Modena and, with its riverbank protected by embankments, runs into the Po just south of Mantua, close to the mouth of the Mincio.