If you love being in unspoiled nature, less than an hour from Bergamo awaits a pleasant walk through the meadows and groves of the Taleggio Valley.
Nestled among the slopes of the Orobian Pre-Alps, at an altitude of 1,000 meters, this area is a corner of paradise dotted with villages nestled in the quiet, among gentle slopes and trails of low to medium difficulty.
It offers you not only unique places to explore-huts, mountain pastures, rocky ravines and foaming streams wrapped in an atmosphere of yesteryear-but also millennia-old traditions to discover.
Along with the major Bergamo valleys, it is in fact the cradle of the ancient local dairy tradition. Its culinary richness will accompany your every step!
The agro-sylvo-pastoral trail of the itinerary is located between Sottochiesa and Pizzino/Cà Corviglio (hamlets of Taleggio), and is also designed for those with disabilities and special needs.
Its solid concrete track will lead you safely from the village to an ancient Marian shrine, allowing you to experience the full charm of the Orobic mountains.
The course is variable, mostly on a moderate incline, with some flat sections.
The itinerary was made possible by the S.T.A.I. Project – Services for Accessible and Inclusive Tourism (2023), funded by the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and the Lombardy Region, with the aim of proposing a model of inclusive tourism to be developed in the lake and mountain territories of Bergamo and Brescia.
At Pizzino there are two accessible apartments available for people with frailty, managed by ANMIC (Assoc. Naz. Mutilati Invalidi Civili), the perfect base for getting to know the valley.
In the nearby village of Taleggio you can visit the Ecomuseum of the same name, whose multi-sensory interactive activities will reveal local history and culture, particularly the subject of cheese production, processing and aging.
The easiest way to reach Sottochiesa is to take the SS470 state road from Bergamo to Val Brembana.
At San Giovanni Bianco, take provincial road SP25 and after about 10 km you will have arrived.
On Rognoni Street, at the height of
No. 120, you have a free parking lot located 3 minutes from the beginning of the track.
Once you leave your car, turn your back on the intersection of Via Rognoni and Via Luchino and go straight for about 200
m.
Cross the road and reach the entrance of the route, located on the left next to a stone building; you will find both CAI signs and an explanatory panel about the accessible route to indicate it.
From here the paved, gently sloping trail begins.
Following it you will skirt meadows and groves, encountering typical houses and enjoying the good mountain air.
After about 450 m, at the first fork, continue straight ahead.
Go straight at the second one as well, keeping the church on your right, until the meandering path leads you to the intersection with Via al Santuario.
Turn right here and, after about 200 m, you will have reached the small, beautiful Sanctuary of the Madonna di Salzana.
A second sign will tell you the history of this little church, built in the 15th century on the ruins of the hamlet of Salzana, which was destroyed by no less than two landslides within a century of each other (1359-1466).
The building preserves the 14th-century statue of the Madonna and Child, the only artifact to have survived the devastation, as well as theAssumption of Mary, painted in 1534 by Francesco Bonetti and Lucano da Imola, pupils of Lorenzo Lotto.
The altar decorated by this altarpiece is a fine example in inlaid black marble.
Consecrated in 1548, the shrine was an important center for Lenten celebrations between 1652 and the 1660s.
You are therefore in a place rich in history, surrounded by the verdant nature of the Taleggio Valley.
You can enjoy a peaceful morning or afternoon among some of the most beautiful slopes of the Orobie, returning to the valley whenever you like.
If you take the route in the opposite direction, leave the entrance to the Sanctuary behind you, turn right and descend via the Sanctuary for about 250 m.
Once you reach the fork, turn left to take the paved path and follow it, keeping right at each subsequent fork.
After about 900 m into the green valley, you will reach the road and find yourself on Via Rognoni, from which you can reach the center of Taleggio if you wish.
