Aided path Filippo Benedetti

Introduction:

The Aided path Filippo Benedetti is a pleasant path, in short stretches aided, which goes up the panoramic summit of Punta Almana near Lake Iseo, Brescia. The path does not present particular difficulties and covers an average height difference which can therefore be covered even in half a day.

Starting location:

The starting point of the itinerary is the locality Portole sopra Presso on the eastern shore of Lake Iseo, Brescia. From the road that runs along Lake Iseo on the eastern shore, exit at Presso and go up the narrow road that, between hairpin bends, will reach the Restaurant Portole. Nearby there is parking and from here the itinerary begins.

Directions for Google Maps available here.

Approach:

From the parking lot, continue along the small road that continues uphill towards the visible Punta Almana. The Benedetti Aided path runs both north-south and vice-versa. In the report we consider to follow it from the north (Forcella di Sale) to the south (Croce di Pezzolo). Faithfully follow the dirt road that goes uphill in a north-eastern direction until you reach Forcella di Sale (1h from the parking lot). This saddle is a crossroads of trails in the area. At this point we leave the dirt road and continue with good directions on path 3V / 314 for a few meters inside a wood until a new saddle. At this point we will turn to the right following the beginning of the actual Benedetti Aided path in Punta Almana (1h 15 'from the parking lot).

Via Ferrata:

The path starts with a track between the lawns in a sharp climb (white-blue signs). We continue by climbing some strenuous but not at all difficult meters towards a rocky saddle that we reach in a few minutes. This stretch takes us to the peak of Punta Cabrera. In this section pay attention to wet ground due to the presence of long grass. We soon reach the first aided stretch: an easy diagonal ledge that does not present any difficulty other than the grassy-earthy bottom that could be untrustworthy in the event of humidity. We continue going up an easy grassy gully in a southern direction until we reach Punta Cabrera. After a brief pause, continue for a short downhill section until you find a crossbar on more exposed ground where the cable gives us the right security to proceed. We continue now until we come to the third and perhaps most interesting stretch of the area. We go up a rocky gully where the expert hiker can easily climb these rocks and small jumps without using the rope. Once this couloir has been climbed, the equipment ends (30 'from the start - 1h 45' from the parking lot). We are now on the ridge and we see in front of us in the distance the cross of the summit of Punta Almana. We continue now on a fairly wide and never difficult path reaching the panoramic summit (30 'from the end of the equipment - 2h 15' total).

Descent:

From the summit we proceed in a southerly direction on the ridge path - quite broad and not difficult - downhill along the Dosso Pelato to the Croce di Pezzuolo. At this crossroads, we will keep the right downhill until we meet a dirt road. At this point the suggestion is to keep the left for a few minutes until you meet a saddle (pay attention) with a path that goes down to the right towards Locasso. We take it and we will meet another dirt road that will take us down to the restaurant (1h 15 'from the summit - 3h 45' total).

Notes:

The Benedetti Aided path in Punta Almana is a route that can be traveled in both directions. The north-south direction proposed in the report is simpler when facing uphill aided sections. If you want to follow the route in a south-north direction, you need to pay more attention to the stretch that from Punta Almana leads to the Forcella di Sale, presenting this stretch with several exposed and slightly slippery points beyond the aforementioned aided sections.

Opportunities:

The Benedetti Aided path is a pleasant trip, not a difficult one that climbs to a panoramic pulpit in the Brescia Prealps. It could easily be a circular route in one morning and after lunch proceed towards a via ferrata - perhaps with a short approach - among those that the Brescia Pre-Alps offer, for example the Via Ferrata Fregio and Ferrata delle Ginestre, the Via Ferrata Crench or the Aided path Sasse. If you stay in the area Brescia and if you have the time for longer and more complex itineraries, the choice is wide. In Zone Lake Iseo could be considered the Ferrata at the Corno del Bene, the Aided path Trentapassi or going up the valley the Ferrata at Pizzo Badile Camuno.