Valle della Forcola

The Italian central alps on the border with Switzerland are surely gorgeous. In this part of Italy mountains are very high, shaped with rocky peaks and with fantastic landscapes. Val Chiavenna and Valtellina in Lombardia region are two important valleys located in the central alps. They start at northern point of Lago di Como. The first goes up straight towards Switzerland, the second one goes horizontally to the border from west to east.

Valle della Forcola is located in Val Chiavenna and it ends with Passo della Forcola (2227 meters) on the border with Switzerland. Valle della Forcola is a very steep and lonely valley. It is overhung by two high, severe and astonishing peaks, one named Pizzaccio (2589 meters) and the other named Pizzo della Forcola (2671 meters).

Along the path going up through the valley, Alpe Buglio (1544 meters) is present. It is a tiny hamlet used mainly by shepherds during summer, which go up on the highest meadows with their cow herd.

From this point on, the path in the forest has a reduced steep and Pizzaccio with Pizzo della Forcola start to show their beauty. At the end of the forest the path has two different direction: one towards Passo della Forcola (it seems very close but the time needed to get it is still long !) and the others towards Bivacco della Forcola (1838 meters). This bivouac is tiny but beautiful and it is located on a fantastic meadow overhung by Pizzo della Forcola  and also the landscape on Pizzaccio is really gorgeous.

Note that in the past these sites were frequented by smugglers which through Passo della Forcola, carried goods from Italy to Switzerland and vice versa. Because of this there are plenty of legends and stories about these people whom had a “particular” job !