From the former state road 583 in Torno, take the steep Via Tridi up to the stairway Via per Piazzaga, indicated by signposts.

A long mule track, lined with terraces and small houses, affords views of Lake Como. Along the way one crosses the “Travaina gate”, a stone arch, traces of the ancient medieval walls of Torno probably dating back to Roman times. Legend has it that a toll was paid by placing a stone in the holes in the side pillars.

Entering a small valley lush with vegetation, one crosses a stone bridge over a torrential cavity. Near the small chapel, turning left, it is possible to extend the excursion by about 20′, to discover the uniqueness of the “avelli masses”, pools dug out of erratic boulders interpreted by scholars as tombs dating back to the 5th-6th centuries AD, intended for noble figures of the Longobard populations.

The “squares” chapel is the most spectacular and imposing, built on top of a large erratic boulder with a wooden staircase. Its special feature is the presence of a “stone cushion”.

Continuing through the dense forest, you rejoin the mule track to Piazzaga. The climb challenges the less well-trained, but in less than half an hour you will be greeted by this pretty hamlet of well renovated houses. The carriageable mule track leads level to M.P., frequented in the summer by holidaymakers and in the winter by just three families. The church of S. Elisabetta, an old nunnery, dominates the summit of the mountain with a breathtaking view of the lake and the surrounding mountains.

A signpost leads to the foot of the “Pietra Pendula”, an erratic boulder of ghiandone with the characteristic shape of a mushroom that arrived here about 50-60,000 years ago thanks to imposing glacial movements from Val Masino. From M.P. The signs lead towards Torno along the scenic mule track.