Hike in Val Masino - Valle di Predarossa, Rifugio Cesare Ponti

Overview ~ Flora ~ Photos

Left: The two flat plains of the Valle di Preda Rossa, a lateral valley of Val Masino, Italy.

Right: The trail climbing to Rifugio Cesare Ponti.

Overview

Duration: 7 hours (roundtrip, a long lunch and several hands of the card game Machiavelli)
Elevation: 629 m (about 2060 ft)
Length: 9.9 km
Location: Val Masino, Sondrio, Italy

A friend asked us to come on a hike in Val di Mello and he said: it will be flat and easy. Well, it was none of these things. The hike was in the adjacent valley, Valle di Predarossa, and the hike was anything but flat with a 629 m (2060 ft) gain. Aside from the surprises, the hike was very fun, with spectacular scenery and a nice lunch at Rifugio Cesare Ponti at 2,559 m (8,400 ft). What’s not to like about that?

The Val Masino area is in the province of Sondrio, in the Lombardy region. Sondrio is the region north of the Bergamo region. Val Masino is a north-south running valley north of Ardenno (just east of Morbegno). Driving north in Val Masino, you reach Cataeggio and then go east. You’ll need a tourist pass (12 euro/vehicle) to drive all the way to the final parking lot called Parcheggio Preda Rossa. The parking lot is at 1955 m. For more information on the pass, see the Val Masino site.

On your way up, you come across two flat, plains. The stream Torrente Duino with its blue glacier water zigzags through the plains. After the second plain (Piano Superiore di Preda Rossa), we followed a path on our left to immediately start climbing to reach Rifugio Cesare Ponti. On our way back we walked the crest of the glacier’s moraine to come back a different way.

The Predarossa glacier is on the south side of Monte Disgrazia and has an area of 110 ha. (data from 1990). Compare that to the recent visit to Presena Glacier with its current 25 ha. We didn’t get close the glacier this time around and we aren’t sure how close you can or should get.

Walking east toward Rifugio Ponti with Monte Disgrazia ahead, you'll notice on your right, reddish mountains and on your left, grayish mountains. The reddish mountains ("pietra rossa" hence "preda rossa") are serpentine and the gray mountains granite.

Flora

Plants and fungi observed:

[Family]Genus species

[Betulaceae] Alnus alnobetula


[Caryophyllaceae] Cerastium alpinum


[Caryophyllacease] Silene acaulis


[Crassulaceae] Sempervivum


[Gentianaceae] Gentianella


[Juncaceae] Juncus


[Melanthiaceae] Veratrum album


[Onagraceae] Epilobium dodonaei


[Orchidaceae] Dactylorhiza maculata


[Plumbaginaceae] Armeria alpina


[Rhizocarpaceae] Rhizocarpon geographicum


[Saxifragaceae] Saxifraga aizoides

Photos

Left: Boardwalks over marshy area

Center: Looking down on Piano Superiore of Preda Rossa

Right: The river winds through the Preda Rossa valley


Left: Rifugio Cesare Ponti - Lentil and chickpea soup
Center: Rifugio Cesare Ponti - pizzoccheri, a dish typical of the Val Valtellina 

Right: Rifugio Cesare Ponti - A cheese plate, with bread and honey



Left: Rifugio Cesare Ponti - lunch menu
Center: Rifugio Cesare Ponti - la bisciola - panettone valtellinese

Right: Playing the card game Machiavelli - waiting for bad weather to pass

Left: Rifugio Cesare Ponti - before lunch and sunny
Center: Rifugio Cesare Ponti - after lunch and a change of weather

Right: Map of Val Masino - Valle di Predarossa

Walking down the moraine formed by the Glacier Predarossa.