The Val Malenco High Route
In the province of Sondrio, Val Malenco offers the glaciers of the Bernina, green serpentine rock and historic huts along the Val Malenco High Route. A valley that has stayed off to the side compared to the Engadine and the Stelvio, where you can still walk in peace.
Foto: Mænsard Vokser (CC BY-SA 4.0) — Wikimedia Commons
Squeezed between the Swiss Engadine and the Stelvio Pass, Val Malenco lives on light reflected from its more famous neighbours. And yet this valley climbing from Sondrio toward the Bernina group is one of the great secrets of the Italian Alps: glaciers, lakes, historic huts and a colour of rock found nowhere else, the green of serpentine, the soapstone that has been worked here for centuries into pots and pans. To walk in the Malenco is to have the high mountains without the crush, because the flow of tourists drains away naturally toward better-known destinations.
The High Route
The common thread is the Val Malenco High Route: a long loop itinerary, divided into eight stages over about 110 kilometres, that circles the valley connecting its huts stage by stage. You do not need to walk the whole thing to grasp its soul; you can choose single segments, each with its own character. The slope facing the Bernina is the most spectacular: climbing toward the high huts such as the Marinelli Bombardieri, standing guard over the Scerscen and Bernina glaciers, you find yourself face to face with seracs and snowfields descending from the only four-thousand-metre peaks of the Rhaetian Alps.
The huts
The valley is dotted with historic and welcoming support points. The Bignami hut dominates the basin of Alpe Fellaria, near the artificial lake and the glacier of the same name; the Gerli-Porro and Longoni huts oversee the area of Chiareggio and Pizzo Disgrazia; the Cristina hut looks out over Alpe Prabello, at the foot of Pizzo Scalino, the valley's symbolic mountain with its pyramid shape. Between one hut and the next you cross saddles, still-living alpine pastures, small lakes and expanses of green rock: the Bocchetta delle Forbici is one of the key passes linking the different branches of the High Route.
How to get there
The official loop starts and returns at Torre di Santa Maria, but the valley is reached from Sondrio, climbing up to the villages of Lanzada and Chiareggio, from where the access points branch off. Some high starting points, such as Franscia or the alpine-pasture basins, shorten the elevation gains toward the huts. The High Route as a whole is a multi-day trek that requires good fitness, self-sufficiency and familiarity with the mountains: the daily elevation gains are significant and some stages cross high, stony passes. It is not a technical route in the mountaineering sense as long as you stay on the marked trails, but certain high traverses should be tackled in settled weather and with a sure step. The individual climbs to the huts, on the other hand, are one-day hikes suitable for those with fit legs.
When to go
The season is high summer, July and August, when the huts are open and the passes free of snow. Even in the busiest months Val Malenco stays surprisingly quiet: the proximity of more prestigious destinations means most visitors ignore it, leaving the trails to those who know how to seek them out. At the start and end of the season the residual snowfields can complicate the highest sections, so it is always worth checking conditions with the hut wardens before setting off. September, when the huts are still open but the pastures begin to yellow, is perhaps the most poetic time to visit the valley, with the low light igniting the green of the serpentine and the glaciers standing out sharply in the already autumnal air.
A practical tip: book the beds in the huts well in advance and call the wardens to ask about the state of the trails, because conditions at high altitude change from week to week. Bring warm and windproof layers even in August, because near the Bernina glaciers the air stays cold, and keep an eye on the sky in the afternoon. Finally, take the time to look at the stone: the green of the serpentine and the soapstone worked in the villages tell a story of the mountains and their crafts that makes the Malenco different from any other Alpine valley.
Practical guides for Udine
Practical info
When is the best time to visit The Val Malenco High Route?
The recommended time is April, May, June, September and October, when it is less crowded.
Where is The Val Malenco High Route?
The Val Malenco High Route is located in Val Malenco, Lombardy.
