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Switzerland · Ticino
Quarzader
Slab pitches give way to a vertical wall threaded with quartz veins, which gives the route its name. It is shady in the morning, and the pitches are short (about 35 m), so 11 go quickly.
6a11 pitches400 m
Zombi, vai dove vuoi
Speroni di Ponte Brolla · Ticino · Switzerland
Bail with caveatsBolting confidence: high
An easy, sustained slab route following the edge of the spur just left of Quarzader. Every pitch is about 4c on compact gneiss, so there is no real crux and no real rest. Impossible to lose and often crowded.
- Hardest pitch
- 4c
- Pitches
- 7
- Length
- 210 m
- Approach
- 25 min
- Aspect
- NW
- North-west-facing
- Rope
- 2×50 m
The route
Overview
The Speroni di Ponte Brolla are two gneiss spurs about 400 m high at the mouth of the Valle Maggia, a few minutes from Locarno. Zombi is the easy classic of the lower spur: seven pitches of steady 4c slab climbing that roughly follow the arête, starting a few metres left of Quarzader. It dates from 1981 and was fully rebolted in 2011. The SAC portal calls it an easy and fun route with plaisir bolting, and warns that it is often crowded.
The climbing
Pitch by pitch
| Pitch | Grade | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| P1 | – | Slab near the arête. Gulliver, following the Versante Sud guide, gives every pitch 4c and notes that the bolts sit a little left of the most obvious holds, which can make 4c feel tight. |
| P2 | – | Slab, about 4c. No pitch-by-pitch description is published outside the topos. |
| P3 | – | Slab, about 4c. |
| P4 | – | Slab, about 4c. |
| P5 | – | Slab, about 4c. |
| P6 | – | Slab, about 4c. Gulliver's breakdown ends here. |
| P7 | – | The SAC portal counts a seventh pitch to the end of the route. |
Getting there
Approach
To the parking
From Locarno follow the Valle Maggia road for about 4 km to Ponte Brolla. Go over the level crossing and continue a short way up the valley to the first pedestrian bridge over the Maggia (a red iron footbridge, not a true suspension bridge although some descriptions call it one); park opposite it or in the bays along the cantonal road. Spaces are limited at weekends. Ponte Brolla has a railway station on the Locarno to Domodossola line and buses from Locarno, and the SAC portal times the approach from the station.
On foot · about 25 min
From the parking take a stepped path for about 50 m, then follow the sign 'sentiero di montagna'. After a few zigzags you reach an electricity pylon; take the path clearly to the right, cross a stream (cairns; a 2019 landslide moved the ford a little downstream) and arrive at the foot of the spur. The SAC portal gives 30 minutes and 170 m of ascent from Ponte Brolla station (T3) and ten minutes less from the car park; camptocamp parties take about 20 minutes. Several faint tracks start through the wood and merge higher up. Zombi starts on the left, a few metres before Quarzader and close to the arête.
Map of the walk-in
- Crag
- Parking
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Parking
46.18700, 8.75235
Tegna – Ponte Brolla access point (camptocamp waypoint 219851); roadside parking along the cantonal road
Point from camptocamp waypoint 42199 (Speroni di Ponte Brolla)
For your phone or watch
Download GPX
Contains the route point and parking. Opens in most mapping apps and GPS watches.
Points are compiled from published sources, with the precision stated above. They were not surveyed on the ground: check them against a current topo.
Coordinates: 46.19302, 8.76617 (crag) · Parking: 46.18700, 8.75235
Getting down
Descent
Abseil the route with two 50 m ropes (the SAC portal marks abseiling as possible and Gulliver gives it as the descent). The SAC author advises walking down instead when several parties are on the route, so as not to get in the way of those climbing; the usual walk-off on the spur is the one from the top of Quarzader, graded T4 and about 30 minutes.
Retreat
Bailing off the route
Bail with caveats
Abseiling the route is a recognised descent, so you can go down from the belays with two 50 m ropes. The catch is traffic: on a busy day you abseil onto parties below, which is why the SAC author prefers the walk-off.
- Retreat from
- Any belay, abseiling the line.
- Point of no return
- None documented.
- Carry
- Two 50 m ropes.
- Basis
- Part stated, part inferredThe SAC portal and Gulliver both state that the route is abseiled; the belay hardware on each stance is not described.
Partly inferred from the route facts
Safety
Hazards
- Friction slab between bolts: the bolting is sound but not close, and the moves between bolts are obligatory.
- Crowds. Parties abseiling the line meet parties climbing it.
- Wet streaks after rain make the slabs much harder.
- Accidents do happen here: the regional press has reported an injured climber on the Speroni and a fatal fall near Ponte Brolla. The easy grades do not make the spur harmless.
Sun and weather
Conditions
Low-altitude gneiss slabs facing west to north-west, between about 420 and 650 m. Spring and autumn are best and mild winter days work; the dark rock is very hot on summer afternoons, though there are natural pools in the Maggia just below. Sections stay wet for a while after rain: parties in April 2021 and July 2014 found seeping pitches on the neighbouring lines.
Usual season · Mar to Jun, Sep to Nov
JFMAMJJASOND
Sun on the wall · NW-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
- January: not yet worked out
- February: not yet worked out
- March (usual season): not yet worked out
- April (usual season): not yet worked out
- May (usual season): not yet worked out
- June (usual season): not yet worked out
- July: not yet worked out
- August: not yet worked out
- September (usual season): not yet worked out
- October (usual season): not yet worked out
- November (usual season): not yet worked out
- December: not yet worked out
Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season
Estimated from the wall's aspect only. Ignores surrounding terrain, gullies and the wall's exact shape. Clock times are local to the wall (Central European time), for the 15th of each month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar (usual season) | Apr (usual season) | May (usual season) | Jun (usual season) | Jul | Aug | Sep (usual season) | Oct (usual season) | Nov (usual season) | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | 6 | 7 | 11 | 14 | 19 | 23 | 25 | 25 | 20 | 16 | 10 | 6 |
| Mean daily low °C | −2 | −2 | 1 | 5 | 9 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 12 | 8 | 3 | −1 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 9 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 12 | 10 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 432 m. Area climate from Open-Meteo reanalysis. Temperatures are adjusted to the height of the crag; rain comes from a grid cell of about 10 to 25 km, and summer highs on sea cliffs can read a few degrees low. The wall and valley can differ. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
What to carry
Gear
Two 50 m ropes and 12 quickdraws (SAC route portal). No nuts or cams: the slab takes none. Helmet.
Checklist
- Quickdraws
- 12
- Rope
- 2×50 m
- Helmet
- One each
- Abseil device and prusik
- The descent or the retreat involves abseiling
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
Reader reports
Reader reports are not being collected yet. Until they are, check a current topo and the local club or guidebook publisher for recent changes to Zombi, vai dove vuoi.
Worth knowing
Tips
- Go on a weekday or start early; the SAC portal singles the route out as often crowded.
- If Quarzader has a queue, this is the natural alternative at an easier grade, and Nika is nearby.
- Take the walk-off if anyone is below you.
Open questions
Where sources disagree
- Pitches: 7 on the SAC route portal, 6 (all 4c) in the Gulliver description.
- Aspect: north-west on the SAC portal, west on Gulliver.
- Bolting: the SAC portal says 'very well equipped'; Gulliver says the bolting is right but not close and that you must climb between bolts. Both agree nothing can be added.
- Grade: 4c on the SAC portal and in the Gulliver pitch list; Gulliver's summary box shows plain 4, and one search listing shows 5b with 5a obligatory.
- Descent: the SAC data sheet ticks abseiling and not a foot descent, while its text recommends descending on foot when the route is busy.
Provenance
Sources
- SAC Route Portal – Speroni di Ponte Brolla: Zombi, vai dove vuoiUsed for: grade, pitches, length, aspect, protection rating, gear, history, 2011 rebolt, descent advice
- Gulliver – Ponte Brolla (Speroni di): Zombi Vai Dove VuoiUsed for: pitch grades, bolting remarks, approach details, start position, abseil descent
- SAC Route Portal – Speroni di Ponte Brolla: approach and area overviewUsed for: approach time and grade, walk-off from Quarzader, crowding
- Camptocamp – Speroni di Ponte Brolla (neighbouring routes)Used for: path from the parking, heat, wet rock
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Compiled from published sources and last verified October 2026. Bolts, anchors and access change. Climbing is dangerous and you are responsible for your own decisions: check a current topo and read the disclaimer.