After my disastrous first day of my trip to Italy, where I didn’t manage to do anything but deal with rental car companies and then a quick drive around Bergamo’s Venetian walls, my second day was a roaring success.
The destination for the day was Val di Mello, a gorgeous alpine valley known for its forests and crystal clear water surrounded by the beautiful alps. It was approximately a two hour drive from Bergamo to San Martino, the town outside Val di Mello. On the way, I saw that I was passing right near a lake called Lago di Olginate, so I decided to pop over for a quick stop to take in the scenery.
The drive up to San Martino was beautiful, with the peaks getting higher and higher as I approached. The drive included lot of really long tunnels and windy roads through forests. Eventually, about 2 kilometers before San Martino, give or take, there is a parking lot that is free, unlike all the parking lots in San Martino, which cost 1.5 Euros an hour and up to 10 Euros for the day. Your choice if you want to add that extra bit of walking to save 10 Euros on a day when you’re anyhow hiking, but I wanted to give the free option.
San Martino has a free bathroom and a big map showing the hiking trails leading from the parking lot. Val di Mello is only one of the many hikes you can get to from there.
From the parking lot in San Martino, it’s a 2 kilometer walk to the entrance of Val di Mello. Alternatively, you can drive into Val di Mello and park there for 12 euro per day. To do this, you need to purchase a vehicle entry ticket at the parking lot in San Martino. However, only a limited number of cars are allowed into the valley each day, so you may not be able to get a ticket.
Once you drive in, there is a very narrow road passing through the beautiful valley until you get to the parking lot. You can see snow covered alpine peaks even in October.
There’s a stream running through the valley with bridges across it.
The water is a crystal clear blue.
There are parts of the stream that widen to form beautiful pools…
One side of the stream has a path that is more well defined, paved with cobblestones in many parts…
one side of the stream has a few trees but more of a clearing, while the other side has a forest…
When I try to picture a soothing, relaxing scene in my head, it is a mountain stream surrounded by forests…
My trip to Val di Mello will be what I have in my head any time I need to picture a relaxing calming place, such as in therapy or meditation.
The sound of rushing water fills the air…
Periodically along the trail there are buildings. Some are restaurants, some lodgings, but most were empty when I was there at the end of October.
There are two clusters of homes there, little hamlets called Ca di Carna and Rasica, and many of the buildings there were built into boulders. There was a giant boulder attached to one of the houses that you could climb up and get a nice view of one of the hamlets.
After passing the second hamlet, the path on the left side of the stream starts going into the forest. It was starting to get later and so I decided to start heading back, but first crossed the stream to head back on the other side so as to not just retrace my steps.
This part of the stream was more wild, the path dirt and less clear.
Some parts were right along the stream and some parts were a little further.
There was a part where it cut across a field and I thought I lost the path, but I found it. There was a little part where I needed to cross a small brook on rocks, but it wasn’t a big deal, though my shoes got a drop wet because I’m a bit clumsy.
Eventually I found another bridge to cross, since I needed to head back to my car that was parked on the other side of the stream.
Finally, after a beautiful day, I got back to my car and it was time to go.
Unfortunately, as it was October, it got dark at around 5 pm, and everything to do in the area was outside, so there isn’t what to do at night. So I decided to just go to my apartment that I’d booked through Booking.com, cook supper, and prepare for the next day, which I’d be starting bright and early, to take advantage of the limited daylight.
All in all, a very beautiful day.
