Autumn in the Pre-Alps
Autumn, season of decadent colors and chestnuts: and where to go if not above Miane for a varied and medium-duty trip? You can leave your car at the sanctuary of the Madonna del Carmine (476). It is preferable at the beginning, to gradually warm up the muscles of the legs, to take the cart track for ‘Posa granda’ and follow it exactly for one kilometer (some short stretches are asphalted), until you see, on the right of a slope in slightly evident concrete path that goes down slightly into the woods (arrow with 989). We skirt the small valley of the Carmine, encased, and then go up it with comfortable hairpin bends, meeting several interesting stone buildings, so that in about 20 minutes we arrive at the old Casera Pradie, surrounded by greenery, immediately after which there is an artifact for the collection of water . Going up the wood on the side of Mount Corno we turn left at an obvious crossroads – do not go down – and continue straight on towards the NNE, with a tiring continuous ramp of 200 meters in altitude, towards the ridge, refusing tempting deviations downhill to the left towards the valley. At a certain point, towards a thousand meters, the path becomes less tiring and more interesting: we cross a ‘door’ between two rocks, and a site with characteristic boulders with extravagant shapes, which give us a feeling of immobility and mystery, and then with comfortable zigzag we alternate forest and meadow (in spring daffodils). Be careful not to deviate towards the Val d’Agre at the relative signal. Finally we are on the ridge that connects Mount Corno to Mount Prenduol, and here we peek at the views towards the plain while the pine forest thickens to the detriment of the broad-leaved trees. When we arrive at the last climb in the woods, turning right, we must be careful to follow the white-red sign, and there are several possible paths: either the one that has a flat stretch on the coast before the last climb, or a detour to the upwards that takes us directly to the goal. However, it is important to go up north.
Suddenly the ‘dark forest’ ends and another world unfolds, that of green pastures high on the long ridge that divides the provinces of Treviso and Belluno. It is a usually quiet and restful environment, magnificent with the sun, which makes us feel a sense of continuity over time, because even today on the Forcella della Fede pastoral activity is in force in the summer, with grazing animals, the inevitable big ‘blade’, the frequency of more or less marked paths and forest roads.
Here, in a privileged position, is the Casera De Mont, or Malga Mont. In a few minutes we can climb Mount Crep, recognizable by the large cross, and from its top (1349 meters) we have a boundless view at three hundred and sixty degrees: beyond the Val Belluna we see the Vette Feltrine, the Pizzocco, the Pelf with the Schiara , Mount Serva, Col Nudo, Monti dell’Alpago and some Dolomite peaks… On the other side, to the south, the expanse of the hills and the Treviso plain appears; in short, we are on a very special point.
The saddle (1260 m) can also be reached from the roads coming from Posa Puner or Praderadego-Col Varnada, but in this excursion we preferred to reach it only on foot, ‘by fair means’, to paraphrase Mummery, because we wanted to walk as much as possible in the peace and silence of absolute solitude. This does not mean that the other itineraries are unpleasant. Indeed, alternative routes can be studied: rings, short or long walks, and even those who do not know the places well will be able to prepare, with a card at 25000, a ‘personalized’ and creative trip, according to the philosophy that has always characterized the series’ itineraries’ of MarcaAperta.
For the climb you need to calculate two or two and a half hours. Better to have solid footwear. The descent can be done on the way up, or with the path 988 (Col d’Agre-Pian-Val d’Agre and connection with 989). A tip: organize yourself to have a lot of time available on the meadows above to rest, have a picnic, wander around, stay long, because it would be a shame to have to leave such a paradise immediately, without having enjoyed it as it deserves!
Cesare Biadene’s itinerary for www.MarcaAperta.it