Col d'Olen

A short hike leading to the most classic pass for descending into Alagna Valsesia.
The route mostly follows the ski-lift service track, with a climb that is never too steep.
In summer, clouds often arrive from the Piedmont side by late morning.
To reach the starting point, it is necessary to use the first section of the Gabiet cable car.

From the Pont-Saint-Martin motorway exit, turn right toward Turin. At the second roundabout, turn left toward Gressoney.
The road climbs for a few hundred meters before turning right onto the Lys Valley road, passing through the villages of Lillianes, Fontainemore, Issime, Gaby, and Gressoney-Saint-Jean until reaching the center of Gressoney-La-Trinité.
Without entering the town, turn right toward Staffal and follow the road to its end, where there are two large paid car parks.

From the lift station, follow the path uphill to reach the Adler's Nest refreshment point and then the Ponte Hotel, where you turn right to join the upper trail.
Continue along the contour line before crossing the ski slope. The service road continues on level terrain, then climbs the valley to about 2,700 m, where you take the path on the left, which soon crosses the service road again.
In this section, the trail is barely visible, but continue up the slope until a small flat area, where you turn right and find it clearly marked.
Follow it along a long diagonal, using the old mule track, until you reach Col d'Olen.
The descent is along the same route.