Le Rosse-Forzèla de le Canevùze-Forzelón de le Mughe-Gena Bassa

ASCENT FROM LE ROSSE ALTE TO CASERA NUSIEDA ALTA AND TO THE FORZELA DE LE CANEVUZE OR FORCELLA DEL SASS DI PERALORA

Up to Casera Nusieda Alta, the path is always clear.

Shortly after the start, you pass the junction for the normal route to Piz de Vedana, and with a more than easy pace, in about half an hour you reach a junction between two variants that both lead to Casera Nusieda Alta.

At the junction, there should be two signs indicating “CASERA NUSIEDA NORMAL” and “CASERA NUSIEDA EQUIPPED” (I wrote should because I have noticed over time that these signs disappear and reappear).

Today I followed the normal variant (left direction ascent), but the equipped one is not much more: a couple of short cables on exposed passages and a ladder on a small rocky step.

At Casera Nusieda Alta you continue crossing the meadow towards the northeast on the right side of the casera (if you pass on the left towards northwest, you would go on the Cengia dei Contrabbandieri route).

Upon re-entering the woods, the ground track reappears, you go around a ridge and enter Val Nusieda.

Here the path remains clear up to a large old landslide that has erased a few dozen meters; now there is a faint trail (even more than one) that bypasses the landslide just above and returns to the original path.

Before the Forzèla de le Canevuze, the path imprint on the ground becomes (in a grassy area) little visible, but without major difficulties, you reach the photogenic side view of the famous tilted rock mushroom of Sass di Peralora: however, the photogenic time is early afternoon, and on this hike, you have to pass before.

From the casera to the pass, there are various very faded red marks (a couple also white-red in CAI style) without a regular frequency.

FROM THE FORZELA DE LE CANEVUZE OR FORCELLA DEL SASS DI PERALORA TO THE FORZELON DE LE MUGHE

The first meters from Sass di Peralora are on a wide ridge immediately with a good slope; then the ridge narrows and becomes a crest with some exposed steps on the left west side; you can make some detours on the crest ridge to find better panoramic photo points.

Within a few minutes, you reach under the south edge of Zimón de Peralòra (I use the toponymy of the guide mentioned among the recommended books, as the Tabacco map inverts the names of some peaks here).

At this point, you could say the “upper part” of the Alta Via dei Monti del Sole begins, and from this point, the official marking of red dots and white-blue bands starts, accompanying you to the pass that divides the west and north peaks of Piz de Mezodì and enters the final descent to the Cresta della Mussaia (and much more in between).

To follow the alta via and traverse towards Forzelón de le Mughe, you go around “el Zimón de Peralòra” towards the right east.

You descend about 3/4 meters into the woods with a couple of turns and continue for a nice stretch almost flat.

Here the guide writes “Be careful not to lose the path!” with an exclamation point.

The ground track is visible and there are various marks, but you must stay focused because you are on a wide ledge suspended very high: all relatively comfortable, but if you deviate from the optimal line, it is easy to end up in places hard to recover from.

After the first part in the woods, the trail leads over some scree and then among dwarf pine cuts up to a small descent step (maybe about three meters) of almost first grade.

After the jump, you reach a nice cirque to cross with a semicircle to bypass a rib: here there are some exposed steps not protected downhill by dwarf pines or other vegetation.

After bypassing the rib, a few more unprotected steps (but always on a decent base, never hanging) and you reach the challenging key section: a partly equipped and very varied gully – it should be about fifty or slightly more meters of elevation gain: indicative measure because the GPS struggles here.

The guide indicates alpine difficulties of grade II, and I try to describe it in “sections”:

1. Steep cut in dwarf pines but not too much until the first rocks with red marks
2. Initial rocks tending to grade I with a couple of single grade II steps to the right to enter a narrow and “twisted” notch
3. In the very wet notch, there is a helpful cable on the right which removes many problems considering the general slipperiness of the environment with some non-trivial small jumps; the cable ends on a small grassy ledge
4. From the ledge, you see above a chain on a steep (very steep) grassy slope, and in between, there are other rocks with some grade II steps, but unlike point 2, here the steps are consecutive, and it will probably be difficult to find perfectly dry holds
5. You reach the chain and hang on it up to the exit

From the head of the gully, in just a few meters you arrive under a rock band, cross right on dwarf pine cuts, and finally, still among the dwarf pine cuts, you climb with some turns to Forzelón de le Mughe.

DESCENT FROM FORZELON DE LE MUGHE TO GENA BASSA

The first part is the very wide head valley of Val del Forzelón; there is a twisted track marked (at varying “levels of fading”) that tends, even with turns in opposite directions, to move left because it is on the left that you need to exit the wide valley before the big impassable drop.

You walk partly on grass among sparse dwarf pines, partly on rocky strips, and if you follow the marks, there is a nearly wooded channel among the shrubs.

When ascending, it is always advisable to follow the marks; descending – knowing and keeping an eye on the exit point – a few detours on softer ground can be convenient: today’s GPS recording stays true to the marks in the upper part and then I followed the soft ground until the point where you have to move completely left to exit.

After exiting the upper valley, a long trail begins that traverses among dwarf pine cuts and various contortions: attention is needed to follow it, both not to lose it and not to slip or trip among holes, roots, and stones.

Among the many peculiarities:

• A rocky channel, embedded in the forest grass, about 20 meters elevation difference with a head where the path seems to continue; at the base, there are some closely spaced cairns indicating the exit; if you don’t notice the channel and continue straight, you can descend further ahead but less comfortably
• After the previous series of cairns, the path is lost in a wide semicircle to be made, which has logic but is not very visible on the ground
• After the semicircle, the path reappears and shortly leads to the most difficult passage just after crossing a channel: a very thin rock cornice under a drip line equipped with a cable, which remains quite difficult even with the cable; here we are just over 1,400 meters altitude and in mid-June I found the steep channel blocked by snow with a not easy crossing, and the rest of the route was free: be careful not to go too early in this spot
• Long stretch mostly clear with cairns guiding in a more confused wooded part, and you reach a large nearly vertical and always slippery slab but well equipped in via ferrata style: you can hold on well but it remains delicate
• Another continuation on varied ground leads to a gully of about 15 meters elevation difference and some possibly grade I steps
• From here you go up to the wooded saddle of Col dei Viègoi with attention to follow the track in a couple of short channels (going up is definitely easier)

From Col dei Viègoi, everything is easy up to Casera Piscalor (you can finally walk straight!) where there is a fountain I always appreciate very much.

From Casera Piscalor, you descend the large “grassy terrace” where it is built and head south to insert into the nice descent trail that returns to Gena Bassa.

Along the route, you pass a nice little bridge over the Val Soffia gorge and encounter a brightly colored Saint Anthony shrine.

Just before the end, you join the paved small road that connects Gena Bassa to Gena Alta.

At this point, you either get in the car or bike to return to the start at Le Rosse Alte.