Posto remoto e poco conosciuto, questa è l'Alpe Lendine, un alpeggio che è un vero presepio in scala reale. Ideale anche per ciaspolate, specialmente dopo un'abbondante nevicata.

Remote and little known, this is Alpe Lendine, an alpine pasture that looks like a life-size nativity scene. Also ideal for snowshoeing, especially after a heavy snowfall.

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Alpine pastures

11 hikes

Hikes to alpine pastures

A stroll among the most picturesque mountain villages and alpine pastures in the Alps, to discover alpine life as it once was.

The hikes in this section pass through one or more alpine pastures (alpeggi), small high-altitude villages in very close contact with nature and the surrounding mountains.

These summer settlements were originally high-mountain shelters for farmers and herders during the summer months, who then came back down to the valley in winter. They were therefore often extremely humble dwellings. So it is with a certain irony that today we see dozens and dozens of these alpeggi first abandoned, then restored and revived as small, remote boutique holiday homes.

Fortunately, in most cases, municipal regulations impose strict rules on how they can be restored (for example, on the materials used for walls and roofs, and on the size of windows and doors), so that these villages keep their original atmosphere.

Good to know about alpine pastures

The seasonal movement of herds from the valley floors to the summer pastures and back was inscribed by UNESCO in 2019 on its list of intangible cultural heritage, on a nomination by Italy, Austria and Greece, and in 2023 the listing was extended to other European countries. That cycle is still the reason why many mountain cheeses have a pasture version: in Valtellina Bitto DOP has a category reserved for the high pastures named in its rules, and in the Aosta Valley Fontina d'alpeggio has had its own designation since 2023. Buying cheese straight from the alp, when the dairy sells it, is the simplest way to support the people who keep these pastures open.

In summer the alpeggi are places of work, and a few rules help you pass through without causing trouble. With cows, walk by calmly at about twenty metres, never come between a mother and her calf and keep your dog on a lead, letting it go if the herd comes too close; with flocks guarded by livestock dogs, the CAI recommends a wide detour, staying calm, offering no food and getting off your bike. Electric fences are crossed at the gates provided, and gates are left as you found them.