Hillside above Bellinzona with views of the Three Fortresses

Wednesday December 18, 2024 -- That one nice day in the north yesterday was the only nice weather for a while now, so it's back to the Ticino again. 

We decided on a mountain hike again, as another hike along the river would have been too boring. We started with a bus ride into the Valle Morobbia above the town of Giubiasco, getting out in the village of Paudo before the bus continues toward the back of the valley. From there we walked via the "Ghost Village" of Prada back down to Giubiasco. (Back in March of 2021 we started another hike in Paudo, but kept higher up via Monti di Ravecchia before descending to Bellinzona--those photos are HERE. We had more sunshine on that day!)

The trail was cleaner than we'd expected, so a good descent on a path we had only "partly" walked before, but we knew we were taking a risk on this one as it was definitely on the shadowy side of the mountain. By the time we got to where we should have had sun, the sky became overcast. In total, it was quite a short walk, just over two hours (with the last 20 minutes through the city), and we ended up rushing to catch the train, as usual. 

In retrospect, we probably should have done another riverside walk, as there were plenty of other places with much more sunshine. Because we were walking on the eastern side of the valley, we started as late as possible, leaving Giubiasco at 11:50 (with a 7-minute delay) so that we could start our hike at about 12:15, as the sun was so very low behind the mountains. But here's a reminder to myself: Do not ride public buses at around noon on Wednesdays on a school day, as Wednesdays are only half-days and all the noisy kids ride home at that time!

Waiting for the bus in Giubiasco Piazza at about noon (it takes less than two hours to get here, but we came earlier and had a coffee in Bellinzona, hoping for more sunshine than in the North).  The starting point of our hike in Paudo is at the arrow on the right, just above the shadow line (more sun by the time we got there). We descended via the arrow on the left. The church is called "Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta", which we viewed inside on our March 2021 hike from Paudo to Monti di Ravecchia

A look across the Magadino Plain over the city of Giubiasco, in the direction of Locarno to the west, as we head up the mountain into the Morobbia Valley. The shadows are still long and dark on this side of the valley, at past noon.  

The peak across the valley is called Gaggio, and the deep ravine (Valle di Sementina) is spanned by the famous Carasc Tibetan bridge. We have been on that hillside numerous times, and for this sunny day, we might have been smarter to stay in the flat valley or on the west side!

In the far distance are the mountains at the border of Italy.

We got to Paudo at about 12:20, and were happy about the sunshine!

First thing we did was find a place to have our picnic lunch. This was a kind of outdoor church, with a view, and a place to sit. 

After eating our sandwiches, we started on our hike, heading up higher first, where there was more sunshine. (Original plan was to walk downhill in the Morobbia Valley on the left, but that was really in the shadow....). 

We started on our hike in Paudo at 12:40, and walked northwards, then down the mountain back to the train station in Giubiasco, which we reached in time for the 15:39 train for the 90-minute trip home. This was a short hike for us, but at least we didn't have to travel long. 

A view from Paudo down to the Ticino River in the Magadino Plain. You can even see Lago Maggiore from here. (The city of Locarno is at the north of that lake). 

As it turns out, we were in shadow for most of our walk in the end anyway. Here we are heading north along the mountainside. But it is a beautiful view into the Riviera Valley to the north, toward Biasca. At the far back, the Blenio Valley branches to the right. 

Heading down the road now toward the forest trail. 

In March of 2021 we also passed this site on our way from Paudo to Monti di Ravecchia, higher up on the mountainside. We tried to take the same photo as last time! (HERE, it was much colder at that time!)

On our last hike past here, we were also impressed at the size of that chestnut tree. 

On our last hike past this house, we headed up to Monti di Ravecchia, and from there further to the north, before descending to Bellinzona. This time we are heading straight down to Prada, and via Scarpapè to Giubiasco. 

At least the forest trail was cleaned of leaves which made walking comfortable, even though we weren't in the sunshine. And it wasn't cold. 

At this point, one can head uphill to Monti di Ravecchia (which is what we did in March 2021), but this time we are headed down the mountain to the left. Exactly here is the shadow/sunshine border!

Heading down the mountain. Until the junction to Monti di Ravecchia, the trail was cleaned. But here the forest was left to its own, mostly. 

Even with the trail covered with leaves, it wasn't difficult to walk, and we rather enjoyed it. 

Finally, some sunshine!

The beech forest looks really pretty here!

Once in a while we pass an abandoned stone building in the forest. 

A long stretch before reaching the "ghost village" of Prada, the trail was paved with stones and stone steps. 

First glimpse of the little church (San Girolamo) in Prada. 

The little church here, documented since the Middle Ages, has already been renovated (1981?) but unfortunately not open to have a look inside. 

The information panel at the site explains that this mountain settlement of Prada was probably already populated in the 13th Century, but has been abandoned since the 17th Century, for reasons unknown.  

In April of 2019 we did a loop hike to this "Ghost Village" (starting at the Castello di Sasso Corbaro just above Bellinzona), and at that time we approached the settlement from the north side. It looked much better without all the construction equipment. But apparently renovation work has been going on since 2021 to prevent further deterioration of this historical site. 

A walk around the little church, before a coffee break at one of the picnic tables 

At 2:15 p.m. we started on the final part of our descent to the train station in Giubiasco, still another 90 minutes from here. We really wanted to catch the 15:39 train, so this would involve some very quick walking!

We didn't need to cross the bridge, as the water level in the stream was low enough to jump over!

The chain handhold wasn't really necessary, but the trail is interesting. 

More HUGE chestnut trees!

Between the bare branches we could see the first of the three Bellinzona castles. This one is called "Castello di Sasso Corbaro", which is where we started our hike in April 2019 when we hiked up to Prada the first time.

By the time we got here to Scarpapè we should have been able to enjoy sunshine, but by now the sky had become overcast!

What a cozy-looking place!

Here is another old stone church in the forest. It is called "Madonna degli Angeli", and of course it was locked. We followed a really cool "unofficial" path directly down to valley bottom from here. (The alternative was to continue along the paved road, which also would have taken longer). 

These free-roaming goats are always fun to cross paths with. 

From here we are descending directly to the outskirts of Giubiasco below, via some cliffs called "Sasso Grande" (= Large Rock)

In a bend in our trail down to Giubiasco was this great look-out point where we could see across the entire city of Bellinzona to the other two castles, and up the Riviera Valley. The peak at the back is called "Pizzo di Claro".  (= Claro's Peak)

A closer look at the other two of Bellinzona's three castles: "Castel Grande" on the left, and "Castello di Montebello on the right". The three castles are part of one of Switzerland's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The fortresses guarded this valley between Italy and the North since the 4th Century. 

A close-up view of Castello di Montebello...

.... and a close-up view of Castel Grande

We were loving this "unofficial" trail down to the valley bottom!

Finally down at valley bottom. We had to pass through the outskirts of Giubiasco, which was mainly a residential area. It was 3:15 p.m. when we got here, with another 25 minutes to walk to the train station, and the train was leaving at 15:39! As usual, we made it to the station with just a couple of minutes to spare (and the train was running late anyway). 

Passing the church of "Santa Maria Assunta" at the main piazza in Giubiasco. Had we had more time (we didn't want to skip the 15:39 train as the sun was just setting and I didn't want to wait around), we would have gone inside again. Here is a link to a collage of the indoor photos from my March 2021 album --> PHOTO HERE. 

Here are all the hikes we have now done on the mountainside above Bellizona and along the entrance of Valle Morobbia. The hike we did this day is the light pink line, from Paudo to Giubiasco via Prada. The first time we visited all three castles was in 2013 (the magenta line, no blog album yet). 

Location of Bellinzona within Switzerland