The barrier-free walk from the Colle di Zambla to the Conca dell'Alben

You park at the Colle di Zambla near the Centro Sportivo Valle restaurant. At the end of a short climb you turn left, cross the playground square and pass the barrier closing the road towards the Conca dell'Alben. On the left you leave the temporary barrier that protects the cross-country track; at its end there are the CAI signposts, and from there the surface is fairly fine cobbles all the way.

After a short climb the road continues through the woods: on the right you meet a small rest area with benches and tables, at the fork you keep right on the main branch, you walk past stone retaining walls and pass a small house and then a large, well-kept one. You thus reach the Conca dell'Alben; carrying on, in ten minutes you arrive at Pian della Palla, where the CAI GPS track ends, about 2.8 kilometres from the start.

The data come from CAI Bergamo's barrier-free route sheets, which publish measurements and level of accessibility for each itinerary. Route 104 is graded AT, accessible to tourists: maximum longitudinal gradient 10 per cent, average width 3 metres and minimum 2, no steps, hairpins or exposed points, signage present, water along the route, refreshment points and an accessible toilet. The sheet counts no equipped rest areas, but its description mentions the small area with benches and tables along the road.

The printable sheet for the same route gives slightly different figures: 1 hour 30 there and back, 50 metres of ascent, water only at the start and a recommended period from April to October, while the web page says all year. As contacts it gives the Centro Sportivo Valle restaurant (035 708988) for refreshments and the municipality of Oneta (035 707117) for information. For anyone planning an outing with a wheelchair user, the important thing is the Joëlette: for motor disabilities the sheet indicates the route only with that aid, not for independent wheelchair use.

For stops there are three options: the small area with benches and tables along the road, the barbecue areas with grills and small tables at Pian della Palla and in the Conca dell'Alben reported by the B&B Sotto l'Alben, and at the Colle di Zambla the area the municipality calls Parco del Colle, where in 2023 it had a stone fountain and barbecue built. Drinking water can also be found at the Crocetta spring, on the stretch between the pass and Pian della Palla.

The accessible toilet is at the Colle di Zambla, opposite the Al Trapper bar-restaurant according to the CAI, and the Centro Sportivo Valle restaurant serves as the refreshment point. With small children the right goal is the Conca dell'Alben or Pian della Palla, about 2.8 kilometres away: the return is along the same road and you can turn back at any point. The B&B Sotto l'Alben notes that the route suits families with small children provided they have an all-terrain pushchair.

From Pian della Palla the Pro Loco of Serina publishes the H21 loop on the cross-country track: 5.6 kilometres between 1,263 and 1,386 metres, with about 236 metres of total ascent. As far as the clearing of Pian della Mussa it stays almost flat and, according to the B&B Sotto l'Alben, suitable for all-terrain pushchairs; the upper part towards the Conca is more demanding. With the way there and back from the Colle the full circuit comes to about 11 kilometres.

From the same car park starts a second CAI route, number 105, towards the Baita Grem, the Alpe Grem hut run by the Camos ski-mountaineering group of Gorno: 8.6 kilometres there and back, 1 hour 20 each way, 137 metres of ascent, maximum gradient 15 per cent, minimum width one metre and some points with a risk of falling. The CAI grades it AE, accessible to hikers, recommended in summer, suitable for people with non-motor disabilities with some difficulty and for blind people with a companion: it is not a route for wheelchairs or pushchairs.

Since 20 November 2025, with an ordinance valid until revoked, the mayor has closed to traffic the stretch of dirt road between the Colle di Zambla and Pian della Palla to establish the Nordic ski track there, entrusted to the Sci Club Valserina, which places the barriers marking the route. The agreement between the municipalities and the ski club also provides for closing the road to cars at the Crocetta from the beginning of December. The reopening comes in spring with another ordinance: in 2025 it was signed on 17 April.

With snow the route is no longer accessible to wheelchairs and pushchairs, and walkers must stay beside the groomed cross-country tracks. For winter outings, the page on snowshoe walks at the Colle di Zambla explains how to move on the track without damaging it.