GTA Variant of mid Valle Po: Stage 51C Ostana, fraz. Villa - Rifugio Quintino Sella | Lake Maggiore, Lake Orta, Lake Mergozzo and Ossola Valleys

Highlights and tour details

From the town hall of Oncino you go back along the last part of the previous stage going down to the valley floor, crossing the river and going up the opposite side along the Cumbal Brusà until coming across the old mule track that connects Crissolo and Ostana. You follow it by turning left and continue along the hillside passing through the hamlets of San Giacomo, Saret and finally reaching the centre of Oncino (1230 m). Continue on the road out of the village and after about 2 km on the right there is the branch that climbs up the slope (directions for Rifugio Alpetto). The asphalt road climbs with 12 hairpin bends and comes out in the upper Lenta valley and, after another 500 metres on a gravel track, reaches the Meire Dacant car park in view of the Rocche Bianche. Take the pastoral road (closed by a chain), which goes slightly uphill crossing wide and gentle slopes with pastures and scrubs of green alders. The road soon ends and the path continues to cross the Rio dell'Alpetto on a wooden footbridge, moving to the hydrographic left of the valley. The track (now trail sign V6 of the path that goes up from Paschiè) is lost among the pastures, but is found again going uphill, just above a small waterfall that the Rio dell'Alpetto forms in a bottleneck of the valley, on the slope that leads to another wide pasture basin. You continue along the hillside on a flat path almost to the base of a rocky part. You begin to climb in hairpin bends along the meadowy ridge to the orographic left of the stream. You follow a long uphill traverse and then another series of hairpin bends in a small gorge between overhanging rocks. At the end of the hard climb, you come to a small grassland plateau. You cross it, make one last short climb ignoring a track on the right, cross a stream and reach the new Rifugio Alpetto. You then continue along the ridge above Lago dell’Alpetto and follow the V24 path. Leave the junction to the right for the V07 path towards Passo Gallarino and continue climbing until you come across the V30 path which also heads left towards Passo Gallarino. You turn right and soon reach Lago Grande and Rifugio Sella.