Foppiano is a charming tiny local hamlet located at the very end of the mountain road. Just around, you will find the bouldering place discovered 20 years ago. It’s an enchanting woodland where the boulders seem higher than trees. Definitely a dreaming place for climbers since many years.

The Foppiano boulder discovery is associated to Andrea Aleotti and Elisa Fantonetti in 1999. They were hiking along the strike which conduct to the Cistella mount during the summer and found this huge boulders garden. That’s how was born the first lines in the sector of “Mezzaluna” (named like this because of its shape looking like the moon) and “Frontal Assault”. Few years later were also open great lines in the sector of “Prosciugator”. Mauro Colombo, Marcello Azzari, Fabio Bricalli and the Varese group contributed highly in the development of the place by opening some of the hardest lines in the woodland.

Foppiano is a famous bouldering place in Italy, located in Ossola county, at  1217 meters. You can find more than 80 boulders and 200 lines. Some sectors are also adapted for children. The boulders could reach until 6 to 7 meters high (“Sass Fendù” is one famous example). The place is visitable during a long period of the year : from april to october. The best period still remain  spring and start of fall. At the end of afternoon in summer, the moisture often fall down . Beware of the bugs ! Nevertheless, the woodland keeps the place fresh and pleasant even in the warmer days.

« Where the boulders 
seem higher than trees »

From 2002 to 2007, a second step of valorization has been started by Dario Rota and Lorenzo Deho who totally felt in love with the magnificence of the place. Then in 2011, the Rota-Cendou society with the precious collaboration of Graziano “Il Druido”, began the permanent cleaning of the boulders and of the wood. They reveal the beauty of 80 stones and 200 lines. The “Fendù” started to begin a huge symbol of Foppiano. This is a huge split boulder, so impressive !

The next year, in collaboration with the Way out group, they have organized an opening session. This was an amazing meeting which gathered 250 participants. 40 more lines were opened and added in the Foppiano boulder guide. In 2012, three new sectors were cleaned :  Sass Giana, Canyon and Curve. Since 2013, Foppiano is in a permanent development thanks to the effort of foppianoboulder.it team and guys from Way out.

The actual sectors are only one part of the incredible potential offer by the woodland. In the next year, they will be enhanced by the vertical community.