13 - Rivalonga

Val Ostera is a typical river-eroded valley traversed by the Rio Ostera. As you hike up the dirt road that runs alongside the stream, you’ll be able to admire the riparian vegetation that lines its banks. As you venture deeper into the valley, the humidity in the air and soil increases, creating ideal conditions for the European beech (Fagus sylvatica): in fact, you’ll find yourself immersed in a mixed forest of Norway spruce (Picea abies) and beech trees, with a few sycamore maples (Acer pseudoplatanus) where the forest thins out and more light penetrates, as well as a few hazel trees (Corylus avellana) at the forest’s edge, where the trail widens.

Leaving Trail No. 28—which climbs to Larieto—on your left, you’ll leave the dirt road behind to climb along a steep trail, which is slippery in some sections due to the Salon stream, leading you to the area known as “Ciavasadia,” where the narrow, steep valley widens, allowing for small clearings dotted with old barns. If you look closely, you’ll notice that the beech trees have given way to larch (Larix decidua): we are, in fact, above 1,400 meters in elevation, where the air is drier and there is more sunlight. You’ll then reach the Sant’Antonio Pass.