Emerald Trail

Introduction

They are as green as the pastures, as the woods and as the emerald toads of the wetlands: this is the network of the Smeraldo trails that is being set up in Lombardy, Engadine and Upper Ticino, on the initiative of WWF Lombardo and Canton Ticino, as part of the cross-border projects financed by the Interreg programme, in favour of a new identity for a territory that is too often forgotten.

Description

The Smeraldo trails are intended to link together as many of the areas declared SCIs, sites of community interest, in the regions concerned as possible: not new routes, therefore, but paths along existing tracks to observe and enhance the environment in all its richness and variety. The one that touches the Parco delle Orobie Valtellinesi is certainly one of the most spectacular stretches, in particular the three stages that almost entirely cross the S.I.C. of the Bitto Valleys: a traverse that embraces the main mountain pastures of the Gerola and Albaredo Valleys, where the famous cheese is still produced today, following centuries-old traditions handed down from generation to generation, walking a good stretch of the Gran Via delle Orobie.(G.V.O) Our starting point is the Bar Bianco refuge, accessible by car along a stretch of unpaved road or by convenient path in about 30 minutes. From here we follow the Walter Corti ornithological path through a beautiful forest of fir and larch trees. After crossing a few streams, which can be a little difficult in the event of heavy rainfall, we soon come to Alpe Combanina, also called Alpe Ciof, or Giuf, on some maps, where we are surprised to meet a whole family from Traona, a village at the bottom of the Valtellina valley, with cows, turkeys and all sorts of animals, who produce and sell, either directly here or at the Gerola Alta sales point, some fantastic bitto cheese. Refreshed, we resume our up-and-down route. We abandon the ornithological path that returns to Bar Bianco after a loop that passes by Cima di Rosetta, which dominates the area with its 2150 metres, and take the marked G.V.O. route in a southerly direction: note on the pole in front of Alpe Combanina, the "grouse", symbol of the GVO, and the Emerald symbol. We turn our backs to admire the pyramidal mass of the Sasso Manduino before resuming our walk. After about a quarter of an hour, we find a diversion to the left, which we ignore because it would take us to some huts below, and we climb up to the Alpe Combana basin, which is occupied by a couple with goats. So as not to lose our track, as often happens in pastures it becomes less clear, we cross the meadow and climb up the opposite slope, just above the hut, where we again see the markers, a cairn, and the track itself. Now begins a more decisive uphill stretch, effort repaid by the Stavello alpine pasture, a group of huts where we find a fountain completely artfully restored, where we refresh ourselves and pause to admire the view of the Rhaetian Alps, in particular Mount Disgrazia and the Preda Rossa glacier. For those who are attracted by technically demanding variants, a path starts here that leads to the Stavello pass, from where you can descend into Valsassina, towards Premana, or walk along the ridge to the Deleguaccio lakes and reach Mount Legnone! More simply, our itinerary follows the markers, which are not very visible here, that descend slightly to the left until we enter the Pai valley with a beautiful route that is carved into the rock face in some places. At an unmarked crossroads, we ignore the track that goes straight in the direction of Alpe Svanollino and descend decisively to the left until we meet the stream. It is a stretch, this one, where the direction is obvious, but the track can sometimes be covered by dense vegetation, which grows abundantly thanks to the damp and cool weather. When we reach the bridge, we leave the downhill trail that would take us to Ravizze, at the bottom of the Val Gerola, and after crossing the stream, we quickly climb back up to the carriage road that descends to the left and leads us to the tarmac road to Laveggiolo. We continue on the dirt road, paying attention to a marker post that soon leads us onto a steeper path to the left, to avoid the long turn of the road. It is an uninteresting stretch, but one that will lead us to the splendid basin where the Trona Soliva hut stands, a wide valley where blissful cows graze, disturbed only by marmots and the majestic flight of the eagle, present here with a few pairs. You can also see several dams built over the years in the area, Lake Trona and Lake Pescegallo, which we will pass, and the dam of Lake Inferno, which we will not encounter. Ignoring the path that climbs from the Valle della Pietra below, we reach the Rifugio Trona Soliva on a level path, a theoretical support point for the emerald path but closed this summer for lack of managers! We are therefore forced to extend the stage to the Salmurano refuge. Hopefully it will be reopened in the future! From the Trona Soliva hut, don't be fooled by the various signs which, although they indicate the right direction, actually lengthen the route: you have to descend below the hut along an unmarked track that passes through some huts below and then points decisively towards the wall of the Trona Lake dam, where it is worth climbing to the edge to admire the spectacle of the sheet of water reflecting the surrounding mountains before continuing straight on under the northern slope of Pizzo Tronella. Along the way we come across several detours indicating Lake Zancone, which is not part of our route but a short diversions would certainly be repaid by the spectacle The route, now obvious, re-enters the forest making the mountains disappear from our eyes until we cross the diversions that descends towards Fenile, where we also begin to see the Cengalo area and the mountains around it; Shortly afterwards, there is a short downhill stretch to the left, where we ignore the "half-moon" sign on the right, and after a few hundred metres we find the fork for Pescegallo, while to the right the path begins to climb again, entering the beautiful valley surrounded by the Denti della Vecchia, an unexpectedly isolated and wild environment where some explanatory panels make us appreciate some of the area's landscapes, in particular ponds and wet meadows with eriophoras and peat bogs. Having passed the barrier near a spring with a last up and downhill stretch, we arrive at the avalanche barriers that announce the Pescegallo ski slope, where we find Sergio, the manager of the Salmurano refuge. Behind the hut we find the GVO signpost: now begins a second stretch, not particularly, along the avalanche barriers then along the dirt road that leads to Lake Pescegallo: the mirror of water is truly suggestive with its brilliant shades of blue, green and grey. The eye can begin to wander along the entire Alpine arc, finally arriving to see the unmistakable mass of Pizzo Badile. We continue towards the Forcellino for a fairly steep uphill stretch: here the landscape changes again, below us the Bomina valley opens up, offering the possibility of returning to the hamlet of Nasoncio or taking various alternative treks towards Dosso Cavallo, Bema and the Vesenda fir tree. Instead, we continue just below the ridge that divides the provinces of Sondrio and Bergamo until we reach Lake Verrobbio, a small pool of water subject to a rapid silting up phenomenon that lies below the pass of the same name, where we pause at the remains of the Cadorna Line, the defensive structure erected by the general of the same name during the First World War, which with tunnels, trenches, bunkers, forts and various artefacts warded off invasion from the north and still today constellates the Alpine arc from the Ossola to halfway across Valtellina. From here we can descend quickly, on the Bergamo side, to the San Marco refuge, the end of our second stage, assuming the first night at Trona Soliva, otherwise we can descend directly to Albaredo. From Ca' San Marco runs the famous via Priula, a historic link that crossed the Orobie from Val Brembana to Valtelllina avoiding the passage, and duty, to the State of Milan, still today a paved mule track to the San Marco Pass, ancestor of the only link between Valtellina and Bergamo, where we find a curious exhibition of rock engravings. We finally begin the final descent, which with a beautiful track almost always far from the noise of the road brings us close to the Orta huts, where we abandon the GVO, which would continue its eastward path in the direction of Tartano, and descend northwards to the Dosso Chierico, a spectacular pastureland balcony over the Albaredo valley. Turning right along the downhill carriage road, we soon reach Madonna delle Grazie and the road that descends from the pass, which we cross to continue descending towards Albaredo, the end of our Smeraldo trail. The hike is really worthwhile and is suitable for everyone, but it is necessary to check the opening of the Trona Soliva refuge in order to make the best arrangements.