Alpe Toso, from Rassa

Description

Leaving the car in the forecourt above the village (917m), continue along a dirt track at the service of the alpine herdsmen, taking the mule track at Alpe Crosetti alla Cottura (1055m): the path is marked [51]. In a few minutes, we reach Alpe Campello (1093m, 0h35'), from which, with an almost level path, we arrive at Alpe Sorba and the Prabella bridge (1180m, 0h50'). We ascend slightly past the Cascina Antaiù'a (1220m); a little further on we can still see an old lime kiln. After the kiln, the Sorba stream gives us a beautiful waterfall, the Gula Talheintha. The route then reaches the beautiful pastures of Alpe Dosso (1395m, 1h40'), then climbs slightly, crosses the Artorto stream, passes a beautiful spring and arrives at Alpe Massucco where, on the left, beyond the pastureland, a plaque commemorates the shooting of a partisan (1528m, 2h00'). Just beyond Alpe Mazzucco, on the upper right, as we ascend, we begin to see the white outcrops of the marble quarry. Peonies grow in this area, a few metres above the mule track. You have to look carefully to see them, and once you spot them you can climb carefully up the scree to admire them more easily. At this point, there are two possibilities: either retrace your steps, taking great care because the rocks in the scree slope are rather sharp and not very stable, and take the mule track again, which climbs with a few hairpin bends to Alpe Toso (1649m, 2h 40'), or continue up the scree slope until you cross the path that goes from Alpe Toso up to Alpe Artorto, and follow it downhill to Alpe Toso. If you have climbed a little too far up the stony path, captivated by the peonies, I recommend this solution, which is certainly safer. Be careful where you put your hands, caution in the mountains is a must!
From Alpe Toso you can continue on to the alps and Lake Lamaccia (1896m), about forty minutes away and in summer surrounded by eriophoras, and from the lake, a long traverse often overgrown with vegetation leads to the Colle della Ronda (2023m), which overlooks the Biellese valley of Monte Bo. The same valley is also reached by ascending directly from Alpe Toso in an hour or so to Bocchetta del Croso (1940 m), a pass that once connected Valsesia with the Biellese region, still travelled today by the votive procession that from Rassa reaches the Oropa sanctuary after many hours of walking. From Alpe Toso the route back to Rassa is the same as the outward journey, and takes about an hour and a quarter.

Recommended period: (peony flowering period June 10-20 depending on the weather of the year)