After losing weeks to a Zona Rosso lockdown, and now confined only to Lombardia, the hunt for quality ice has been a struggle. Covid restrictions have put the world-class ice of Aosta Valley and Trentino frustratingly outside our grasp. Extending all the way to Bormio, Piz Bernina, and the Gran Zebru, alpine objectives and ice climbing exist within our province, but are hard find and harder to time without proper beta. 

Grignetta

The Grignetta group stands proud above the town of Lecco and Lake Como. It’s been a training ground for some of Italy’s best alpinists, from Cassin, and Gogna, to modern climbers like the Ragni di Lecco’s Matteo Della Bordella. In the right conditions, illusive, ephemeral floes of alpine ice can form in it’s steep runnels and gullies. 

Sid and I set out for the Canale della Bastionata (280m, III, WI 3 (75 degrees), M, V+ rock) on the Grigna Meridionale in late December. However, December 2020 was one of the strongest snowfall winters in the past 20 years. Even low elevation slopes like Piani d’Erna on the Resegone held fresh, deep snow for the first time in years. We’d gone to the Resegone, a peak only a few kilometers south, to attempt Canale Cermenati (400m, II, snow/ice 75 degrees, M4, or A0) a week earlier, only to get thwarted by snow. A snowboarded asked us what we were doing with ropes, and told us this was the most snow he’d seen here in his entire life.

We never made it to the Canale della Bastionata. We broke trail through thigh-deep snow for an hour from the hut, only covering one third of the approach. A combo of avy danger, and not wanting to break trail for the next few hours, we cut our losses and started climbing the Canale Pagani (350m, II, 50 degrees snow, 60 degrees ice, or II+ on rock). Typically, I’m not too psyched on snow climbs unless skiing is involved. But, the climb was engaging, the snow was good enough so that we didn’t have to posthole and fight our way up the couloir, and the sections of rock (no ice had formed) were fun to scrape up with our spikes and ice tools. We summited a few hours later, took some photos and walked down 

The Beta: 

Ice on these peaks is rare. The guidebook describes it as ‘ephemeral’. Compared to the Orobie Alps and Swiss Alps further north, the Prealpi Lombarde are lower and warmer. Plus, with a warming climate, these routes may be becoming rarer and rarer. Still, ice can form if the conditions are right. To make things more complicated, most of the routes involve couloir systems and snow climbing, so avalanche hazard must be considered. 

- Canale Pagani: https://www.gulliver.it/itinerari/grigna-meridionale-o-grignetta-canale-pagani/ and Ghiaccio Delle Orobie

- Canale Della Bastionata: I couldn’t find good beta online, but Versante Sud guidebook Ghiaccio Delle Orobie by Valentino Cividini and Marco Romelli has beta for winter climbs in the Prealpi Lombarde, including Resegone and Grigne. 

Val Masino

In early January, Sid and I wandered into the Bagni di Masino area of Val Masino in search of one of the Cascata dell’Oro climbs. We found neither, but tried to climb a low-angle ice scramble we saw on the approach. We scrapped our frontpoints and blunted our tools playing around on 2 pitches of thin, rotten ice before bailing. Apparently, we walked right by the classic Punizioni Divine route, only 5-10 minutes from the parking lot. I didn’t see any ice in the area on the approach, and when I returned a month later, water was running down the face. 

When we were there in mid January, we could see the route ‘Boiling Ice’ was in. Some climbs on the northern aspect of the valley were also in. In January, I didn’t see Punizioni Divine, though I might not have known where to look. By February, it was a waterfall. The climb is on the southern aspect of the valley, so I suspect it has a short season. 

The Beta: 

- https://www.gulliver.it/itinerari/ghiaccio-bollente-cascata-2/

- https://www.gulliver.it/itinerari/oro-cascata-dell-seconda-cascata/

- https://www.gulliver.it/itinerari/oro-cascata-dell-prima-cascata/

- http://www.caisem.org/relazioni/cascate/cascate-in-val-masino.pdf

- The Versante Sud guidebook Specchi di Ghiaccio by Andrea Gaddi has the most extensive beta for the climbs (70+ routes!) in the Val Masino, however, it is in Italian, was published 20 years ago, is in black and white, and is hard to find

- The Versante Sud guidebook Alpine Ice 2 by Mario Sertori is a newer book, in English, but only has beta for a dozen lines in the Val Masino area. 

Val Paghera

After finals in January, I took some time off, and rented a place in Tirano for a week to ski and hunt ice. I drove up and down Valtellina, from Chiarrego, to Franscia to the edge of Lombardia at Passo del Tonale looking for reliable ice. Valtellina had a huge snowfall event early in the season, but then had been hammered by the sun for the past few weeks. The conditions were perfect for skiing actually, with each high pressure day push the snowpack towards stability, but abysmal for ice. Low-elevation icefalls were melting rapidly, while alpine ice routes were blanketed in snow, guarded by closed roads, long approaches, and lingering windslabs up high. 

Eventually, I found ice in Val Paghera. Tucked away beneath the shadow of Adamello, Val Paghera hold some of the most accessible and reliable ice in all of Lombardia. The valley is protected by steep walls, and runs north-south. This protects the half-dozen waterfalls that dot the valley, keeping them cool and shaded. Sid came up, and we warmed up on Scudo (90m, WI 2/3), refreshing ice skills like placing screws and building abalakovs. The next day we tackled Lo Scivolo (160m, WI 3+). We’d hoped to hop on the classic Terrordactyl (150m, WI 4), but between an ice climbing course, and a Soccorso Alpino training, about 15 people were at the base of the climb. The next weekend, we went back and climbed Albero Di Natale parte Destra (115m, WI 4).  

I loved everything about Val Paghera. The approaches are mild. The ice is fantastic. The routes are varied, from WI 2 to WI 5. Most are commiting enough to be engaging, but only two to three pitches. This means you can stop for a cappuccino at the hut on the way in, and grab a beer and panino on the way out. Also, the rifugio, Rifugio Della Cascata, is wonderful. They severe fantastic pulled pork sandwiches, bruschetta with honey and lardo, and big 66mL beers. They had just gotten a puppy, Blu, while we were there.

However, the problem with Val Paghera are the crowds. Given the ease of access and quality of ice, it’s understandable. It’s got great two to five pitch routes for weekend warriors, it’s got places to top rope, it has mellow ice to learn how to lead, it’s has ice for Soccorso Alpino to run rescue drills, etc. It’s the perfect for beginners, courses, and weekend warriors alike, so expect it to be crowded. It was packed when we were there; we had to compete for space on Lo Scudo, and were followed by 3 parties on Albero di Natale. Also, the skiing in Val Paghera is fantastic as well, with everything from low angle north facing trees, to steep committing alpine lines

The Beta: 

I’m not sure when it forms, but the ice was still very high quality in mid to late February, despite the high snowfall and high temperatures this season. The ice in this area seems to fare better than Valtellina in the event of high temperatures. The steepness of the walls and aspect key the ice protected for a long time. That said, however, the ice does get hooked out due to all the traffic it sees. We explored Val Narcanello a bit on our way out, but found the ice to be covered in snow. Beta for the climbs in this area can be found here:

- https://www.gulliver.it/itinerari/sentiero-cascata-del-o-scudo/

- https://www.sassbaloss.com/pagine/uscite/valpaghera/valpaghera.htm

- https://www.sassbaloss.com/pagine/uscite/valpaghera1/valpaghera1.htm

- The Idea Montagna guidebook Ghiaccio Verticale Volume 1  by Francesco Cappellari has beta for all the climbs in Val Paghera and the neighboring valleys, in Italian. It’s the go-to book for ice in the Orobia Alps. 

Campo Moro / Val Malenco

Our hail-mary attempt at finding ice. I’d scouted for ice up to Franscia two weeks earlier, and found evidence of good ice. However, when I returned at the last weekend on February/first weekend of March, all the ice around Franscia was gone. We’d booked a few nights at the Rifugio Campo Moro, one of the bougie-ier hut in the Alps. The plan was to climb ice if we found it, but otherwise just relax and enjoy the amenities. Over dinner, a guida alpina recommended we search for ice at the Cascata Cinese (35m, WI 3/3+). 

The cascata was in and held decent ice. Though it was a warm day, the waterfall was north facing a protected. We lapped it a couple times, and played around on the steep, thin curtain section at the base. A pair of climbers shared the falls with us, and they told us to check out the Cascata Castello (100m, WI 3 to 5). We saunaed that night at the hut, and went to Il Castello the next day. It was warm, and Il Castello showed signs of melting. Debris littered the ground around the cascata. A truck-sized block was slowly detaching from the sun-exposed top section. We climbed one of the only safe lines, avoiding streaks of thin grey ice and the detaching blocks. Sid punched through to rushing water on his lead, and I felt a refrigerator-sized chunk of ice dislodge on mine. 

The beta: 

On the last weekend of February, we likely got the last ascend of the season of Il Castello. I definitely would not feel safe climbing it again. Cascata Cinese probably has a few more weeks left in it, but at only 35m, it’s not really worth the 3 hour drive from Milan. The Campo Moro Rifugio is beautiful, but its expensive. Earlier in the season, ice can be found lower nearby Franscia, and even lower in Val Malenco like by Tornadri. However, when I drove through Val Malenco looking for ice in early-mid February, I found nothing but snow and waterfalls until I reached Franscia at about 1500-1600 meters, and then really only on north aspects. Val Malenco is supposed to hold a huge number of ice routes. Maybe it’s been a shit year for ice, maybe I missed the season, or maybe the lower routes in Val Malenco rarely form, but I didn’t see that much viable ice. It sucks reading about ice climbs and then finding that don’t seem to exist anymore. Beta for climbs in Val Malenco can be found here:

- https://www.gulliver.it/itinerari/castello-cascata/

- https://www.gulliver.it/itinerari/cinese-cascata/

- http://caprealpine.it/?page_id=537

- Versante Sud guidebook Specchi di Ghiaccio by Andrea Gaddi has the most extensive collection of routes (40-50 routes) in the Val Malenco area. However, it is twenty years old at this point, in Italian, and not super detailed.