New mixed climb on Monte Vigna Vaga, Bergamo Alps, Italy

For the people of Lizzola and the valley, Vigna Vaga means a shady peak, while Vigna Soliva means a sunny peak. The north face of Vigna Vaga has always attracted my attention, so much so that on 16 December 2017, with Gianbattista Cattaneo and Pietro Pellegrini, after a sudden rise in temperatures, rain at altitude followed by rapid cold snap, I finally managed to climb the central gully. This ascends a series of vertical steps which were all completely iced over. I dedicated this line, in spectacular conditions, to my wife, who is from Lizzola and, above all, the mother of our two children, but also to all the mothers of the world who's work is of immeasurable value.

On 12 February 2020 I returned with Luca Gargantini, and we climbed the logical route Banana Vaga, named after its curved line. It’s the most repeated route on this peak, also because it tackles the line of of least resistance on gentle angled slopes. That doesn’t make it any less beautiful though, especially when conditions are good.

On 2 March 2025 Paolo Zenoni and I skinned up the slopes of Lizzola in the dark. Once at the top, we descended down into Val Sedornia. We intercepted the trail leading to the lake Spigorel, then began a long series of zig-zags typical of ski mountaineering until we reached the base of the ramp that characterizes this face.

I'd dreamt of climbing this magical line for a long time, and in truth, this was the line I wanted to climb even before "Una via per la mamma" (A Route for Mom). Finally, the perfect day had arrived!

At the base, we weren’t sure whether to carry our skis on our backs, but then I told Paolo that, in my opinion, the route would be so beautiful that the line of ice would guide us all the way upwards on this magnificent climb. So, after preparing the gear — ice axes and crampons — we strapped the skis to our rucksacks and began the ascent.

We climbed the first 300 meters, almost entirely on ice and hard snow, using ice screws for pro and placing rock pegs or cams at the belays. On the upper section, we sank knee-deep into the snow, but the exit onto the summit made up for all the effort!

After a short rest on the summit, we skied down to the Fontanamora pass and then into Val Conchetta. Once in the small valley, we skinned up again and climbed to the summit of Pizzo di Petto. We began to feel the fatigue because our rucksacks were laden with the gear we'd used for the climb. After descending into the valley below the summit, we reached the Val Sedornia slope again, where, after another skin-up, we climbed Cima di Sponda Vaga, completing a total elevation gain of 2000 meters.

The route is called La Rampa Vaga, and it's dedicated to the ice climber from Bergamo Emilio Tiraboschi. Both Paolo and started mountaineering thanks to him, and we'd shared some beautiful climbs. We bid him farewell with this magical line on his home mountains