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Rifugio Bogani

Centro Lago

Esino Lario →

The Rifugio Arnaldo Bogani stands at 1,816 metres near the Moncodeno alp, in Esino Lario, among the larches of the northern flank of the Grigna Settentrionale. In 2026 its long-time management ended and CAI Monza decided to sell it: before climbing it is best to check whether it is open.

History

CAI Monza built it between 1905 and 1906 under the name Capanna Monza, not far from the Capanna di Moncodeno of CAI Milan, the first hut of the Grigne, built in 1881 and destroyed by an avalanche in 1897. During the war of Liberation it hosted a detachment of partisans of the 89th Garibaldi Brigade and in 1944 it was destroyed; it was rebuilt between 1948 and 1952 and named after Arnaldo Bogani, former president of CAI Monza. The Esino Lario tourism site describes it as the first hut opened in the Grigne, with a kitchen that uses products from the Moncodeno alpine pasture.

For 31 years, until December 2025, it was run by Mariangela Buzzoni and Enrico Benedetti. In May 2026 CAI Monza, which found managing it ever more complicated, started collecting expressions of interest to buy it, closed on 30 May; according to the local press about fifteen arrived, from private individuals, bodies and associations but not from other CAI sections, and the board is reviewing them. A surveyor valued the property, and the price will be negotiated. In June it was reported that the summer season was by then compromised, with the aim of avoiding a long closure. We found no news of a buyer or a new management.

Getting there

From Esino Lario you reach the Cainallo and, beyond it, the car park of the Vò di Moncodeno (1,440 m); it is best to buy the parking ticket at the Cainallo hut’s pump before going up (eccoLecco). Path 25 (“Bogani-Brioschi”) starts in the beech wood, passes near a Madonna shrine, keeps path 24, to the Bietti hut and the Piancaformia ridge, on the right, and looks out on the two towers called the Frate and the Monaca; then it climbs to the Moncodeno alp, where only pasture and larches remain, and from there to the hut. From the Cainallo you need about 1 hour 30 and 500 metres of ascent. For experienced hikers there are path 39 from Prato San Pietro, at Cortenova (about 3 hours, 1,300 metres), and path 36 from Primaluna by the Passo di Zapel (about 4 hours). In May 2026 a landslide in the Valle delle Lavine cut the path the animals use to climb to the Moncodeno alp (La Provincia, via Scintilena): we do not know whether it has been restored. From the hut you climb to the summit of the Grignone and to the Brioschi hut. Times, difficulty and trail conditions change with the season and should be checked before setting out (CAI, hut manager, weather forecast).

Practical information

  • Height: 1,816 metres. Beds: about fifty according to the Esino Lario site and the regional portal, about 40 according to the local press in 2026.
  • We give no contacts: the management changed at the end of 2025 and the building is for sale. To know whether it is open it is best to look for news from the CAI Monza section.
  • The hut is the base for climbs of the Grignone, for the scenic Piancaformia ridge and for the Palone and the Pizzo della Pieve (eccoLecco).

Sources

On the map

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