A short hike leads leisurely along a forest road, showing you the village of Frassineto and the main village of Meltina
Image gallery: Frassineto
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Besides Salonetto and Vallesina, Frassineto is the third district of Meltina. The village is situated on a terrace high above the Valle dell'Adige Valley. Every South Tyrolean knows the Monzoccolo as a hiker's paradise with Haflinger horses and colourful larch forests in autumn, but few know that the low mountain range between Bolzano and Merano dates back to the time of volcanoes. The predominant porphyry rock is of volcanic origin and dates back to the Permian period.
The main square in Frassineto (Verschneid) and the school in Meltina are dedicated to the priest and artist Siegfried Tessmann (1880 - 1968), who worked here. In the centre of the village is also St. Blaise, a small church that hosts an expressive Baroque fresco with the title "The Banquet of the Rich Wastrel" from 1621. The rest of the church is Gothic, the tower still Romanesque.
Hiking trails and MTB routes stretch across the Monzoccolo to the neighbouring villages of Avelengo, Verano and San Genesio. The scattered hill churches and the rural cultural landscape are particularly charming, with Haflinger horses grazing in between and mountain huts inviting visitors to stop for a break. A family excursion, both in summer and in winter with snowshoes, leads to the Tschaufen Pond and the Tschaufenhaus mountain inn. The hike across the high plateau to the Gschnofer Stall Mountain Hut also rewards you with a South Tyrolean Marende.
