Sentieri degli Spalloni Season Launch — "Beyond All Limits: The Call of Freedom"

The event that opens the Spalloni season

The Sentieri degli Spalloni season launch is the moment when the Sentieri degli Spalloni APS ETS Association unveils its annual program of hikes, cultural events, and educational activities to the public. It is more than just a press conference: it is a true celebration for the Ossola community, where historical memory, art, and mountain traditions converge. The season-opening edition is held in Masera, a small town at the gateway to the valleys in the Verbano-Cusio-Ossola province, in the heart of the Alpine Piedmont region.

Frontier memory and Alpine culture

The central theme is the history of the "spalloni"—the smugglers who, with a bricolla (a traditional pack) on their backs, secretly crossed the border between Italy and Switzerland along rugged paths. Every year, the association builds a series of events around this memory, combining historical trekking, stories of frontier life, and the promotion of the valley's pastures and mountain huts. The launch evening serves as a prologue to all this: an opportunity to understand the cultural significance of these trails before setting out to walk them.

The 2026 Tenth Anniversary Edition

In 2026, the presentation, titled "Beyond All Limits: The Call of Freedom," opened the celebrations for the association's tenth anniversary. The evening took place on Saturday, May 16, at the Oratorio Sant'Abbondio in Masera, featuring an artistic performance by CTF Ossola dedicated to the courage of those who live on the peaks, followed by the unveiling of the annual calendar of guided hikes, cultural initiatives, and educational projects. The 2026 program received the patronage of the Piedmont Regional Council and was included in the events of the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists 2026, proclaimed by the UN and led by the FAO.

An evening of art, words, and flavors

The event format alternates live performance, historical storytelling, and a final social gathering: the evening concludes at the Museo dello Spallone with a buffet of typical Ossola products. It is the association's way of rooting its activities in the territory and its mountain communities, restoring dignity and memory to a heritage of trails that had long been forgotten.

Why attend

• Get a sneak peek at the annual program of Spalloni hikes and events
• Watch an original artistic performance by CTF Ossola
• Learn about the history of the spalloni and frontier life between Val d'Ossola and Switzerland
• End the evening with a buffet of local specialties at the Museo dello Spallone