Bernina pass / Val di Livigno

(Local Name: Passo del Bernina) Fom the Bernina Hospice the Bernina road leaves the rail track, which runs over the Alp Grüm and down into the Val di Pila, and climbs past the Lago della Crocetta to the Bernina pass (Italian Passo del Bernina, 2,323 m/7,622ft), with the desolate landscape of ice-worn rocks commonly found on the high passes and beautiful views on both sides. From here the road runs sharply downhill in short bends and then descends in four hairpins, with magnificent views down into the valley, into the Val Agoné, the highest part of the Poschiavo valley. At La Motta a road branches off on the left over the Forcola di Livigno pass (2,315 m/7,596ft) into the Val di Livigno, in Italy (3.5km/2mi to the frontier, then 15km/9mi to Livigno: large skiing area, customs-free zone).