The Bedretto Valley just behind Airolo needs no introduction to the touring community. With excellent transport links, it offers a huge reservoir of touring options on both sides of the valley. And since south-facing snowstorms have been a reliable part of the winter weather repertoire, this valley is blessed with impressive amounts of snow every year. Of course, these two facts ensure that the Bedretto is very busy, but fortunately the crowds here also move along the red lines on the ski touring map. Once you leave them, it quickly becomes quiet and usually rather steep...
Tour description
All'Acqua, 1614 m, turns into a busy starting point for most tours in Bedretto on winter weekends. Even on weekdays, you are rarely the first to start here. At the beginning, the route to Alpe San Giacomo, 2254 m, is therefore usually already pre-tracked. Light larch forests lead over to the Sian Giacomo plateau, which is bordered to the south by the steep flank of the Pizzo San Giacomo, 2924 m, which is around 700 m high. At P. 2320 m just before the Passo Sian Giacomo, leave the ski route and keep left towards the outlet of the Canalone del Marchhorn marked on the 1:25'000 map. Instead of following this, you now aim for a pronounced, nameless couloir to the east of the Canalone del Marchhorn. At around 2540 m, this narrows noticeably. If snow and ability permit, you can still make a few hairpin bends. At around 2660 m at the latest, you have to switch to bootpack mode. Steep and often in deep snow, you scramble up the remaining 200 vertical meters to the flatter couloir exit. The view now opens up to the south, where the Ghiacciaio del Cavagnöö has carved out a shallow hollow. In a southerly direction and at a distance of approx. 500 m, you can now also see the less pronounced summit of the Marchhorn, 2962 m. A somewhat arduous traverse leads to P. 2881 m, from where you reach the ski depot on the border with Italy via a short steep slope. In easy climbing (I), somewhat exposed to the summit, which offers a fantastic panorama and tempts you to further couloir reveries in the surrounding area.
Descent
The first few meters of the descent are pleasantly steep. It is advantageous to take some speed with you for the short ascent. But you can never avoid a few meters of ski carrying. But then you reach the top of the gully and the efforts of the five-hour but extremely entertaining ascent finally pay off: The wind-exposed start is always likely to be a little rough, but you soon get to enjoy wind-protected powder in the canalone, which is on average 40° steep. Towards the lower end, it opens up into wide slopes. With guaranteed high stoke percentages, you'll be looking back at the lonely tracks in the San Giacomo plain at the latest. But it's not all evening yet! At the alpine huts of San Giacomo, turn left and follow the Ri di San Giacomo, which leads you into the wide slopes below the All'Uomo hill. Keeping more to the right, you now approach a sparse larch forest, which offers some top-class riding fun at the end.
Beware, there is a rocky ledge hidden in the forest, but it is visible on the map! The valley floor is reached too quickly and you can easily get back to the starting point. After a long day, it's best to enjoy a delicious cheese platter with local specialties at the Caseificio Airolo. Buon Appetito!
Information
Difficulty: ****
Special dangers: Steep, avalanche-prone north-facing slopes, possible cornices at the couloir entrance
Average/maximum gradient: 35°/45°
Exposure: NW-N
Altitude start and finish: 1614 m | 1614 m
Altitude metres uphill and downhill: 1400 m | 1400 m
Duration: 7-8 hours
Best time of year: January to April
