THE BEST TREKKING ROUTES IN VAL D’AOSTA

Punctual as always our column on Italian regions in outdoor style is back. Today is the day of the Aosta Valley, with which we close our ideal mountain tour of Northern Italy.

It is not easy to choose which routes to offer, which is why we wanted to make others choose. For the Valle d’Aosta we’ll talk about the routes that are traced in the wake of the Tor dos Geants, the most important Trail of the World race. Clearly the routes that we will propose are recommended only to truly experienced mountaineers with excellent physical and athletic training.

The Tor des Geants, the giants’ tour, owes its name to the fact that it climbs between the four most famous Alpine peaks: the Gran Paradiso, the Monte Rosa, the Monte Cervino and the Mont Blanc. You can only imagine then which landscapes and what sensations this path can give.

This circular route, which begins and ends in Courmayeur, is about 330 kilometers long and has a positive height difference of 24,000 meters, allowing trekkers to cross 25 hills and admire 30 lakes. The Ultra Trail race is divided into seven stages of a length ranging from 36 kilometers to 53 kilometers. The race record, held by the Spanish Javi Dominguez Ledo is about 68 hours but, if your goal is to walk and enjoy nature to the full, we recommend that you dedicate no less than 18-20 days to this incredible tour.

Numerous sites recommend dividing each stage of the Tor des Geants in turn into three daily sections of “reduced” length. There are numerous sites that can guide you in this unique venture.

The first stage (46 kilometers) has its principle in Courmayeur and its conclusion in Valgrisenche; during this stage you will be able to admire the Mont Blanc chain, the Rutor waterfalls, the lake of the same name and the Fond lake.

During the second stage. in the 53 kilometers that will allow you to reach Cogne surrounded by numerous ibexes, you can enjoy the Gran Paradiso massif, the Grivola and the Djouan lake.

Third stage of the total length of 46 kilometers: both goes from Cogne to Donnes crossing the regional park of the Monte Avic, along the last stretch of an ancient Roman road.

The fourth stage will lead us, after more than 50 kilometers, to Gressoney-Saint-Jean. During this stage you can admire the Sanctuary of Notre Dame de la Garde, the Bridge of Moretta and the castle of Savoy while crossing the naturalistic beauties of the nature reserve of Mont Mars.

We start from Gressoney and arrive in Valtournenche in the fifth stage, the shortest of the 7 of the Giro dei Giganti – 36 kilometers – and for which there are two days of walking instead of the canons three. In this section of the route you will pass between the Walser villages of Alpenzu and Cuneaz and admire the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa.

We begin to see the end of our enterprise with the sixth stage (47 kilometers) from Cretaz to Ollomont, an appetizer of the seventh and last stage that from Ollomont leads us to the arrival of Courmayeur. In this last stop you will be able to walk a stretch of the Via Francigena, cross the village of Saint-Rhemy and admire the Mont Blanc (again … but 20 days have passed) and the Great Saint Bernard.

If during the 7 stages and almost 20 days of walking it was a problem that you probably have solved thanks to Bivo’s support, when it came to Courmayeur it was time to reward yourself with Bosses jambon, the delicious DOP raw ham from the Valle d ‘ Aosta.