Val Daone is the name of a wide valley stretching southward from the
Adamello massif and its still majestic glaciers.
The
river Chiese has its spring at the top of the valley and runs through another valley of the same name,
Valle del Chiese, where its otherwise flowing course is disrupted by two large artificial basins.
Local bikers may know this area thanks to the famous cycle path named
Heckmair Route, which starts at
Passo di Campo and, after an arduous plod and up to four hours pushing your bike, leads into
Val Daone.
TRACK DESCRIPTION
The
Val Daone Tour may share the passage through this particular valley with the Heckmair Route, but not its advanced level of difficulty: the trail here follows a gentle track route through the woods flowing down smoothly to the final slope.
The trailhead is located in the town of
Bersone, where a narrow paved road climbs uphill to the main urban centre of the valley, the town of
Daone. Continuing on paved surfaces, the bike track leads gently upwards, surrounded by a breath-taking landscape. After crossing
Ponte (bridge) Manonchin, a fork in the road gives access to a long gravel track climbing all the way to
Malga Lavanech.
The track so far is smooth and easy, but if you are riding an eMTB make sure that you bring along a spare battery to cover safely this
1,500-metre ascent.
From
Malga Lavanech the itinerary follows a smooth track leading into the wood and onto regular terrain with just a few bumpy stretches.
Average biking skills are sufficient to ride through this path without dismounting. It is only after a brief slope descending into a lateral valley that the track starts climbing quite steeply, thus requiring greater effort. A three-kilometre uphill ride will take you to
Malga Cleaba, where the track connects to the gravel road to
Malga Clef, which connects you to the itineraries of the
Giro dell’Orizzonte.
Following the gravel road to
Malga Table you will reach the paved road leading to
Boniprati (Good Meadows) plateau and its two mountain huts, or rifugi: rifugio
“Boniprati” and rifugio
“Lupi di Toscana”. Here you can catch your breath and recover your strength before shooting down the narrow, little-travelled paved road leading to the trailhead in
Bersone.
Author: Uli Stanciu