The trailhead is located in Pian di Gembro, in front of the La Quercia Antica farmhouse. It is a historical-military trail dating back to World War I, easily passable and well documented by a series of explanatory panels. It was part of the Cadorna Line for the defense of national borders in the event of an attack by the Austrians. The tunnels and trenches of Monte della Croce were in fact part of the "Poschiavino Barrage" and the "Aprica Pass Presidium," aimed at defending the central Valtellina and the important Aprica pass, which connected the Valtellina sector with that of the upper Val Camonica. It is important to mention the construction of a fort in the Canali locality of the same name above Tirano, which with its 149-mm pieces pounded the valley and the Poschiavo railway. From a naturalistic point of view, the prevailing tree species are firs, lodgepole pines, larches, birches, and, in the undergrowth, the blackberry. At the end of the trail, from a lookout, one can admire the spectacularity and extent of the peat bog.

The trail can also be walked from the dirt road that runs alongside the Pian di Gembro Nature Reserve. The bulletin board indicating its beginning is located at the roadside as you pass the teaching hall to the west.