Skip to content
Enjoy Piedmont
  • eBook
    • Do it yourself TURIN eBook – The guide for independent travelers
    • Checkout
    • Purchase History
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Why Piedmont?
  • Videos
  • Blog
  • English
    • English
    • Italiano
Val Grande natura
Val Grande: nature and trekking in the largest wilderness area of the Alps

Val Grande: nature and trekking in the largest wilderness area of the Alps

Elisabetta

Article and photos by Luigi Ranzani

If you look north from the lakefront of Stresa or from the enchanted gardens of Isola Bella, you will be fascinated by the continuous profile of mountains that seem to embrace the basin of water of Lake Maggiore from above. Below this rock belt a succession of valleys and hills, intertwined and overlapping each other, covered by a thick mantle changing from dark green to ocher, ruby red, to the warm yellow of autumn tones.

These are the mountains and forests of the Val Grande, a unique and fascinating territory, once much exploited and inhabited by man and today protected as a National Park, which since 1992, has preserved and promoted its landscape uniqueness and naturalistic richness.

… a succession of valleys and hills, intertwined and superimposed on each other, covered by a thick iridescent mantle from dark green, to ocher, to ruby red, to the warm yellow of autumn tones.

We are located at the north-eastern end of Piedmont, between Lake Maggiore, Ossola and Switzerland. A hundred kilometres from Milan, in the middle of the Alps, there is a dense labyrinth of mountains and rivers, pastures and forests, gorges and cliffs: 150 square kilometres of exuberant and intact nature, a mountainous island the size of Malta, where the only way to visit it is to forget the car and wear a good pair of boots.

  • Val Grande: nature and trekking in the largest wilderness area of the Alps 1
  • Lake Maggiore Piedmont
Views from Cicogna – Val Grande

A favourite starting point to begin a journey of discovery is Cicogna (770m) the “small capital” of these valleys. A tiny village behind Verbania, with stone houses with long wooden balconies, lined up in parallel rows, clinging to the mountain and surrounded by chestnut woods. Cicogna can be reached by going up an asphalted road that runs high above the San Bernardino torrent, the most important river in the valley.

See also  Why Lake Viverone? Because it has everything!

This small transfer alone has the flavour of a journey of exploration because, as you go along the groove of the valley, the sense of isolation and estrangement becomes more and more pronounced. After a tunnel we are in Ponte Casletto: here, forty meters below us, the wedding between the Val Grande stream and the Pogallo stream is celebrated, in an evocative and dizzying scenario, where the sparkling water turns emerald green and breaks the primordial silence of the mountain.

  • Val Grande: nature and trekking in the largest wilderness area of the Alps 2
    Rio Pogallo from Casletto bridge
  • Lake Maggiore Piedmont
    Rio Val Grande from Casletto bridge

Immediately after, you ascend quickly with rapid hairpin bends and also the view of the valley begins to widen: we are now close to the town of Cicogna. About twenty inhabitants, a church, a restaurant, a hostel, a farmhouse, b & b, and the park’s visitor centre: not a little, considering the difficulties and inconvenience of living and working this far from the city. After a good coffee with grappa – as per tradition – it’s time to put your backpack on your shoulders and take the path towards Alpe Prà.

The beautiful paved mule track climbs smoothly into the ancient chestnut grove and allows us to observe the signs left by the ancient peasant civilization: numerous and regular terraces built stone by stone to create flat land where rye, millet, beans, and potatoes can be grown. Even if one feels the effort, step by step, we reach the magnificent clearing of Alpe Prà.

Val Grande: nature and trekking in the largest wilderness area of the Alps 3
Alpe prà and refuge for the Alpine troops

Prà, in the local dialect, means “meadow”: a pasture obtained by exploiting a natural terrace on the ridge that descends from Cima Sasso, where the grass was cut twice a year and stored in the barns as winter food for goats and cows. At the top of the pasture, a small and welcoming refuge is the ideal place to enjoy a relaxing break. From its parterre, the panorama is wide and surprising.

On our right, beyond the dark sinking of the valley, a long indented ridge, rugged and dense with impenetrable woods, marks the western boundary of the Park. Further on, the massive Monte Rosa closes the horizon, overhanging and immense, with ice and snow peaks over 4000 meters.

Towards the south, we are struck by the transparent and subtle light that comes from the reflections of Lake Maggiore. We can play at recognizing the name of the islands of the Borromean Gulf as that of the towns on the shore. On our right, beyond the dark sinking of the valley, a long indented ridge, rugged and dense with impenetrable woods, marks the western boundary of the Park. Further on, the massive Monte Rosa closes the horizon, overhanging and immense, with ice and snow peaks over 4000 meters.

See also  Madama Palace & Acaja Castle: A Unique Castle-Palace with a Hidden Pearl

In the shade of a centuries-old ash tree, you can indulge in the scent of polenta cooked on the woodstove, seasoned with red meats stewed for a long time with vegetables, or accompanied by semi-hard (local) or soft (gorgonzola) cow cheeses. Before returning to Cicogna, we wait for the low light and the more intimate atmosphere of the late afternoon to create the right environment to visit the enigmatic “coppellato boulder”:

Trekking Piedmont

a stone slab with a flat surface, naturally lying on the lower edge of the pasture, in a dominant position over the valley. The upper face of the boulder is engraved with a series of cupels – small trays of a few centimetres in diameter – connected to each other by channels: it is a religious symbolism that comes from the depths of history, probably carried out during the Iron Age (II-I millennium BC).

  • Val Grande: nature and trekking in the largest wilderness area of the Alps 4
  • trekking Piedmont
Farmhouse Corte Merina – Val Grande

Still touched by the mystery of our ancestors, we sink into the cool stillness of the wood to reach Cicogna where it is not a bad idea to sit under a fragrant vine pergola, enjoying the evening while tasting the specialities (goat cheeses and salami) of Rolando, patron of the Corte Merina farmhouse.


Nature
Alps, Lake maggiore, Nature, Trails, trekking, Val Grande

Post navigation

PREVIOUS
The Wines of Langa – between Tradition and Innovation
NEXT
Torino Piemonte Card & Abbonamento Musei Piemonte – Are they worthwhile buying?

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Search

Follow us everywhere!

Turin travel guidebook

Do-it-yourself TURIN – your ultimate guide to Turin, ItalyDo it yourself Turin travel guidebook

Mailing List

Sign up for our newsletter

* indicates required
Language Preference
Website

Check out our Video Tours on YouTube!

Latest Reviews

star rating  Just spent a wonderful afternoon exploring Turin with the delightful Elisabetta. She was an excellent guide - engaging, interesting and so enthusiastic about her fantastic city. She was... read more very informative and had lots of stories to tell. Our two boys also enjoyed the walking tour....More

tripadvisor logo
GabrielleM750
October 28, 2019

Recent Posts

  • Where to have the best aperitif in Turin – for a truly unique Turinese experience
  • Torino Piemonte Card & Abbonamento Musei Piemonte – Are they worthwhile buying?
  • Val Grande: nature and trekking in the largest wilderness area of the Alps
  • The Wines of Langa – between Tradition and Innovation
  • Lakes of Avigliana: a captivating afternoon between history and nature

Categories

  • Art (14)
  • Food and Drink (16)
  • General (4)
  • History and Culture (22)
  • Nature (11)

Archives

  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • September 2020
  • July 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

© 2025   All Texts, Images & Video on this site are Copyright by Enjoy Piedmont/Elisabetta Testore/Adam R. Reardon. All Rights Reserved. Unauthorised Usage Prohibited.