On 1 December 1916, Alfonso Vinci was born in Dazio, in Valtellina. He was a man of many talents: a mountaineer, man of letters, partisan and explorer in South America, particularly in Venezuela, where he also made a number of notable ascents, such as the first ascent of the north face of Pico Bolívar (4,981 m). The south-western ridge of the Cengalo, on which he pioneered the route, is named after him.