This stage marked the final day of the first part of my GTA journey. I set off early once again, despite having slept poorly during the night. The cook—or possibly the owner of the accommodation, I was never entirely sure—kindly drove me the five kilometers back to Rima early in the morning. From there, I passed through the still-deserted village and began the climb back into the mountains.
As on the previous days, everything was damp and wrapped in dense fog, limiting visibility almost completely. Even so, the landscape felt spectacular, and the trail climbed steadily back to an altitude of around 2,500 meters. Before reaching the pass, the route crossed several lingering snowfields, adding to the alpine character of the stage.
Eventually, I reached the pass, though the views there were once again muted by clouds. From the pass, the trail descended toward a rifugio lower down. Above this refuge lay a viewpoint known as Belvedere, reputed to offer exceptional views of Monte Rosa. Despite the additional effort, I decided to attempt the ascent.
The path to Belvedere was steep and exposed, noticeably more demanding than the terrain I had covered earlier—especially with a full backpack. When I finally reached the viewpoint, Monte Rosa revealed itself only briefly, emerging from the clouds for a short moment before disappearing again. After lunch at the viewpoint, I began the descent, which proved even more strenuous due to the steepness and the weight of my pack.
The route then continued down into the valley toward Alagna. Shortly before reaching the town, a thunderstorm developed nearby, centered around the rifugio area. From Alagna, the hike continued far down the valley before turning off into the Vogna Valley. The day ended with another climb of several hundred meters to the final destination: a rifugio in the Vogna Valley, reached in the evening.
By the end of this stage, I had completed—by a clear margin—the longest distance and greatest elevation gain of the entire first trip on the Grande Traversata delle Alpi.