Val di Mello: discover this beautiful alpine jewel with a loop trail

Clear waters, impressive granite walls, high peaks standing against the horizon. They call it “the Italian Yosemite”, but it’s simply the Val di Mello: an authentic alpine jewel in the heart of Valtellina. This place is so special that it became a nature reserve in 2009. In this article I’ll describe to you an easy loop trail which will take you on the discovery of this beautiful valley.

General Information

It’s quite an easy hike, suitable for most people. For this reason, during the summer weekends Val di Mello is very crowded. So, my suggestion is to go there during the weekdays, if possible. The start of the hike is in San Martino, a village in the municipality of Val Masino, in a lateral valley of Valtellina.

• Start and finish: San Martino di Val Masino
• Loop length: 10 km
• Total elevation gain: 350 meters
• Duration: about 3 hours
• Difficulty: Easy/Medium

Excursion carried out on May 27, 2025.

Approach

You can park your car in a parking lot at the entrance to the village. There are some free spaces, otherwise parking is subject to a fee.

From San Martino to Val di Mello

Starting from the car park, we walk towards the center of the village, where we find lots of bars and hotels. Right in front of you, you’ll find a narrow street, which is called Via Ca’ de l’Or. Now take this road. After a few minutes, you’ll reach a church. Then, beyond it, a stoney trail starts. Follow the directions for “Ingresso Riserva”. The path is quite easy and it’s impossible to lose. Keep the main trail and ignore any deviations, until you reach a paved road where cars pass. Turn right and continue walking. After 30 minutes from the start, you’ll arrive in an open space where the paved road ends.

Now the road becomes a dirt road, quite large and comfortable. In a few minutes you’ll reach a camp site (Ground Jack) and then a restaurant (Trattoria del Gatto Rosso). The road ends here and now another stoney path begins. The route is mainly flat. In short, you’ll arrive at Laghetto del Qualido: a spectacular green and very clear lake reflecting the surrounding rocky walls. This is the most photographed spot of the valley!  

The valley floor of the Val di Mello

After you have admired the beautiful landscape, you can continue your hiking. For this part, the trail is also flat. In a few minutes, you pass a restaurant and then you’ll reach another lake, smaller than the previous one, which is called Burgund Lake – but mostly known as “Bidet della Contessa”. Another wonderful spot for photos!

Now continue walking on the stoney trail until you reach some houses in a place called Cascina Piana. Here you can find two refuges: Rifugio Mello and Rifugio Luna Nascente. At this point it’s about 1 hour and 20 minutes from the start.

A lot of people end the hike here, having lunch in one of these refuges. However, I suggest you continue walking. In about 20 minutes you’ll reach another refuge, called Rifugio Rasega, in a place called Alpe Rasiga (about 1 hour and 45 minutes from the beginning). Now the stoney trail ends. If you want to, you can walk for about another 20 minutes and enter a beautiful fir forest, where you can just relax listening to the impetuous sound of the river.

Closing the Val di Mello loop

Once you come back to Rifugio Rasega, you can move to the other side of the valley by closing a loop. You can cross the river with a wooden bridge, then you’ll find a trail which runs in the woods. Follow this path. In about 20 minutes you’ll reach a bridge: by crossing it, you’ll come back on the previous track. 

I suggest not taking the bridge and staying on this side of the valley. In doing so, you’ll reach the two lakes from before, but see them from the other side. After about 1 hour from Rifugio Rasega you’ll come to a second bridge. Now cross it and come back on the paved road already seen before. Now the descent starts. You can stay on the road and reach San Martino in about 20/30 minutes. The whole loop takes about 3 hours walking.

Foto and text by Michele Castelnovo
Reproduction reserved – Trekking Lecco

Did you find this description helpful?
Trekking Lecco is your guide for hiking in the Lecco area. Here you will find dozens of detailed itineraries, like the one you just read.
Free of charge, always.

If this guide was useful to you, helped you prepare, or simply made you want to go, you can support me with a small donation.

It is a way to say “thank you” to me and help me to keep walking, writing and sharing my passion with all hikers ☺️