Leave your vehicle in the car park at the Parco delle Rimembranze and follow the provincial road that will take you into the centre of the village.
To the right of the town hall are the signs that will take you up the road that leads to a restored mule-track.
This takes you to the old quarter of Mascherpinga, with its 17th century church dedicated to St. Joseph. If you take the steep road opposite the church, you will get to a small votive chapel and from here, if you take the narrow road on your left, you can get to the beautiful little church of San Rocco. If you prefer, you can carry on walking until you reach a group of houses that dominate the valley: this is the Pennini quarter.
A few steps further on, you will notice a small reservoir on your right, and the signpost on your left. After the barrier, take the unsurfaced road: from here you can see the village of Adrara San Martino. A farmhouse and the signs on your right mark the start of a fairly steep stretch of footpath. You wind through the woods until you reach a level but narrow area equipped with metal cords. The path then continues up through a pretty hornbeam and oak wood where the land is rocky. You pass a dilapidated votive chapel dedicated to the Madonna of the Plague and, further on, a beautiful ancient oak tree in the Corna Nera district. After you have crossed another footpath, you can stop to admire the view of the valley of Adrara. As you come out of the woods, you will begin to see the first farmhouses and the signposts will direct you along an unsurfaced road. Follow it until the barrier, then turn right. Carry on walking until you see a little wooden house, where you will find the footpath on the left.
Cross over the field with its junipers and wild roses and you will get to the meadows of the Fienili di Gaiana (the Gaiana Hay Barns). You will cross footpath no.1 and after a short walk downhill you will be at the GEMBA refuge, which you will recognize thanks to its flagstaff and flag.
From here you can enjoy a spectacular view of the Padanian plain.Photos and text by:
Gruppo Sentieri Adrara San Martino e A.S.D Nordic Walking Lago d’Iseo – Paratico
www.grupposentieriadrara.it