Bivacco Gastaldi (2625m), trail 3
from Ondre Eselbode to Bivacco Gastaldi
(Continuation to Spillmansberg)
Trail 3 starts from the hamlet of Ondre Eselbode (1635m) in Gressoney La-Trinité and arrives at Bivacco Gastaldi (2625m). It is 3598m long and the total positive elevation gain is 1000m.
The approximate time for the climb is 2h59. The trail is rated EE difficulty.
The Bivacco Gastaldi is a picturesque red-and-white bivouac, built in 1949 on the edge of the stony basin that is home to the 3 Nétschò ponds and a few sparse snowfields, at the base of the severe wall of Punta Ciampono.
It is dedicated to the memory of Colonel Carlo Gastaldi, about whom the only information found online is on page 10 of the January 2017 Aosta Valley CAI newsletter: “A gallant officer of the 4th Alpine Regiment Ivrea Battalion, decorated with three silver medals for military valor already in the 1915/18 war. He then participated in World War II and was deported to Germany during the war of liberation, dying in a Nazi camp without a trace of himself, despite meticulous searches by family members (in 1950 he was declared presumed dead)“.
The bivouac is the base for several mountaineering routes(Punta dell’uomo storto, 3014m; Punta di Nétschò, 3280m; Punta di Ciampono, 3233m; Corno Bianco, 3220m).
In the bivouac (4 beds) you can stay overnight, provided you find a place (impossible to reserve): the cost is 3€which can be paid afterwards by bank transfer, for more information contact the Gressoney CAI (+39 331 7893125, caigressoney@gmail.com).
From the bivouac we connect to the Alta Via Tullio Vidoni, a loop trail around Corno Bianco, designed by the CAI of Varallo. Following along the red and white bolts a section of this route, one can quite easily reach a small saddle in the ridge to the right that allows one to reach the nearby Rissuolo Pass, or to reach the summit of the Spilmannsberg, 2791m, last knoll at the end of the west ridge descending from Ciampono Point. Rather unfamiliar peak, but an exceptional balcony over the 4000-meter peaks of Rosa and the peaks on the opposite side of the Lys Valley.