Bergamo to Canto Alto – A Sunday Hike

Overview ~ Notes ~ Flora ~ More Photos

Overview

Length: 22 km (13.7 miles)
Duration: 7.6 hours (including lunch stop)
Elevation: gain 1075 m (3,527 ft), max elevation at Canto Alto 1,146 m (3,760 ft)
Location: Italy, Lombardy, Bergamo, Parco dei Colli di Bergamo

Notes

When friends proposed a hike to Canto Alto, initially we weren't that enthused. We've been there three times, and while the views are beautiful up there it isn't our favorite hike. But, we slapped ourselves and said get with it! You are in Italy and Italian friends asked you to go on a hike. Snap to it! That did the trick to change our attitude as well as reservations at Trattoria del Moro for lunch. Why walk if there isn't some food reward at the end?

A hike to Canto Alto is a rite of passage for anyone living in the area. For visitors with a penchant for long walk/hikes, Canto Alto is reachable from Bergamo (city) but coming in at around 20 km, roundtrip. You could park in Monterosso neighborhood or take a bus there to eliminate a few kilometers of city-walking part. You could even drive up to – gulp – La Maresana, park, and start the hike there.

The trails of interest are Sentiero 507 and Sentiero 533. After Maresana, the trails are fairly well-marked and well-traveled by hikers and bikers for a part. We went to Canto Alto and then Canto Basso, which is one of our favorite spots. If you don't want to do the "scramble" up to Canto Alto, just go to Canto Basso and enjoy a picnic and the views there. Canto Basso is an open grassy ridge, running easy-west. In some ways, it's just as scenic as Canto Alto, less crowded, and easier to reach.

For lunch, we decided on Trattoria del Moro, just a stone's throw off the trail to Canto Alto in Ponteranica. La Maresana is also a good choice for lunch.

Flora

[Family] Scientific name - Common name English (Common name Italian)

[Adoxaceae] Viburnum lantana - Wayfaring Tree (Viburno lantana)

[Asteraceae] Centaurea nigrescens – Tyrol knapwee, Tyrol Thistle (Fiordaliso nerasto)

[Asteraceae] Cichorium inthybus – Chicory (Cicoria selvatica)

[Asteraceae] Eupatorium cannabinum – Holy Rope, Hemp-Agrimony (Canapa aquatica)

[Caryophyllaceae] Dianthus superbus – Fringed Pink (Garafano superbo)

[Lamiaceae] Salvia glutinosa - Sticky Sage (Salvia vischiosa)

[Liliaceae] Allium carinatum - Keeled Garlic (Aglio carenato)

[Primulaceae] Cyclamen purpurascens – Cyclamen (Ciclamino delle Alpi)

[Scrophulariaceae] Verbascum sp. – Mullein (Verbasco)

More Photos

Rained Out Monte Filaressa and Corna Bianca Hike

Overview | Notes | Flora | Trail Photos

Top left: A View of Canto Basso after the rain.
Top right: Annotated hike tracks from Bergamo to Monte di Nese.
Bottom left: Trail 533B with Anemone nemorosa.
Bottom right: Christmas rose with drops of water.

Overview

Length: 26 km (16.1 mi)
Duration: 8.5 hours (lots of stops)
Elevation: (1347 m) 4418 ft
Location: Italy, Lombardy, Parco dei Colli, Alzano Lombardo

Notes

We tried to reach Monte Filaressa from Bergamo today and just shy of 20 minutes from the summit, a storm rolled in and we ran for the cover. It's not the destination but the journey, right? We'll be back!

We've passed by or through Monte di Nese many times, including on these hikes:

• Hike from Beramo to Le Buche di Nese
• Roundtrip Bergamo to Selvino on Foot, Cable Car, Bus, and Tram
• A Short Hike from Maresana to Monte di Nese
• Nembro to Bergamo Hike (via Parco dei Colli di Bergamo)
• A Hike from Maresana to Selvino

Yet, in all these times, we passed under Monte Filaressa (1134 m), which sits just northeast of Monte di Nese. Today was to be our day to pass up over Monte Filaressa and continue on to Corna Bianca (1228 m) – not that we are peak baggers or anything, but we were just looking for something different. However, today wasn't going to be the day to do that.

In an exposed saddle, just below Monte Filaressa, and on the border between Valle Brembana and Valle Seriana, a storm blew in quickly. Feeling vulnerable to hail, rain, wind and lightening, we beat a path to a lower location to wait out the storm under the eaves of a stone structure. (A structure without ample eaves is like an ill-fitting hat.)

We wait for about ½ hour and then decided to head home instead of continuing on. As we approached the trails around Canto Basso the white bark of birch, carpets of anemone laden with dewdrops, and the sounds of far-off thunder created an magical atmosphere that was worth getting completely soaked over. And, on the way back to Bergamo, we discovered some new trails around Ca' Matta near Maresana. So on the whole, not a bad day.

Flora

Many of the resources we use for plant indentification are listed in our post Resources for Identifying Plants around Bergamo. We especially rely on the Checklist flora (for the Lombardy region) to see if the altitude we spotted the plant and the season of bloom are correct. Then, we double check in the half dozen guide books we have. In particular, the Gruppo Flora Alpina Bergamasca have a series of really useful books.

We give identifications in this form:

[Family] Genus species – Common name in English {Common name in Italian}

We are adamant about being familiar with families of plants as a base. Once you can start telling families by sight, then identification gets much easier. We were inspired back in 2012 by the book Botany in a Day: The Patterns Method of Plant Identification (1996) by Thomas J Elpel. In this book, Elpel teaches you how to use the patterns method of plant identification to identify families of plants.

For families, we estimate that we are > 99% accurate with identification. For genera and species, 95% and 90%, respectively.


[Adoxaceae] Viburnum lantana – Wayfaring tree {Viburno lantana}
[Boraginaceae] Pulmonaria australis - Lungwort {Polmonaria sudalpina}
[Lamiaceae] Clinopodium sp. likely C. methifolium – Wood calamint {Mentuccia maggiore}
[Lamiaceae] Melittis melissophyllum – Bastard balm {Erba limona}
[Lauraceae] Lauris nobilis – Sweet Bay {Alloro}
[Liliaceae] Erythroninum dens-canis – Dog's-tooth-violet or Dogtooth violet {Dente di cane}
[Plantaginaceae] Globularlia nudicaulis – Leafless stemmed Globularia {Vedovelle alpine}
[Primulaceae] Primula veris – Cowslip primrose {Primula odorosa}
[Primulaceae] Primula vulgaris – Primrose {Primula comune}
[Ranunculaceae] Anemonoides nemorosa – Wood anemone {Anemone dei boschi}
[Ranunculaceae] Helleborus niger – Christmas rose {Rosa di Natale}
[Ranunculaceae] Anenome hepatica – Liverwort {Epatica erba trinità}
[Rosaceae] Crataegus monogyna - Whitethorn {Biancospino comune}
[Thymelaeaceae] Daphne cneorum – Garland flower {Dafne odorosa}

[Adoxaceae] Viburnum lantana – Wayfaring tree


[Boraginaceae] Pulmonaria australis - Lungwort


[Lamiaceae] Melittis melissophyllum – Bastard balm

[Lamiaceae] Melittis melissophyllum – Bastard balm


[Primulaceae] Primula veris – Cowslip primrose

[Thymelaeaceae] Daphne cneorum – Garland flower



Left: [Primulaceae] Primula vulgaris – Primrose
Right: [Ranunculaceae] Anenome hepatica – Liverwort

[Liliaceae] Erythroninum dens-canis – Dog's-tooth-violet or Dogtooth violet

Left: [Ranunculaceae] Anemonoides nemorosa – Wood anemone
Center: [Plantaginaceae] Globularlia nudicaulis – Leafless stemmed Globularia
Left: [Lamiaceae] Clinopodium sp. likely C. methifolium – Wood calamint

Trail Photos

Left: Hike tracks from Bergamo to Monte di Nese.
Right: Above Ca' Matta - Maresana.

Left: Canto Basso with Canto Alto in the distance.
Center: Canto Basso on trail 533 heading to Monte di Nese.
Right: Above Monte di Nese.

Left: Croce dei morti, Maresana.
Center: The trail above Via alla Zarda.
Right: The trail leading to Via Col di Lana.


Left: A view of Olera.
Center: The flanks of Monte Filaressa with white birch.
Right: Our shelter during the storm, the eaves that is. Thank you for the ample overhang!