Selected walks

Description: it is the most classic of the walks in Valpelline, along the farm road that leads from the wall of the Place Moulin dam to the village of Prarayer (there is a refuge with the possibility of lunch). To avoid crowds, it is advisable to follow the farm road (which becomes a path halfway) that runs a little further upstream (consult the Europe 3D app).

How to get there: from Thoules take the regional road for Bionaz. Continue to the end of the road, where there are paid parking areas (symbolic cost).

Curiosity: the lake generated by the dam has a unique color, a light blue of rare beauty, due to the suspended glacial sediments. For those with legs, the path continues to the Aosta refuge, from where you can enjoy the glacial views of Valpelline

Description: Easy walk around Valpelline, for days of uncertain weather.

How to get there: from the house cross the bridge over the Buthier and go down to the right. Immediately take the path on the left near the hamlet of Montcorvé and climb up to the beginning of the wood. Turn right at the electricity line and take the path that runs alongside the Montcorvé wood. After crossing the Arpisson stream, you reach the asphalt road for Arpisson and cross it at the first bend, then descend to Valpelline. Cross the ancient town of Valpelline along the uphill road and take the old mule track to Ollomont. When you reach the fontine deposit, turn right onto the carriage road to a small village (recognizable by the "honey sale" signs. Go up between the houses until you cross the municipal road for Ollomont. Cross it and take path no. 3B for Semon. The long flat path offers a panoramic view of the mountains surrounding Valpelline and a different glimpse of the Buthier valley. Once near Semon, continue towards the Breuson stream along the rockfall valley, cross the Bruson stream on a wooden bridge and continue to the left, level, on a track that is not evident (do not go down towards the houses along the stream!) recently built for the “Tor de Valpelline” foot race. After about 1 km the trail ends on the regional road, near Thoules.

Curiosity: The path is known for being a destination for walks by Abbé Henry (Courmayeur, 10 March 1870 - Valpelline, 1947) was an Italian presbyter, botanist and mountaineer, originally from the Aosta Valley, commonly called Abbé Henry: he became parish priest of Valpelline in 1903 and studied the valley thoroughly, climbed all the surrounding peaks, giving several names to the various peaks. Here is what Abbé Henry tells of the walk: "Afterwards I accompanied the princess [Maria José] on a walk: she wanted to see a little of the Bionaz valley and the Castle of Oyace ... we stretched out on the plain of Montcorvé, where the princess and the lady-in-waiting took pictures [do it too!]. Once in Montcorvé we crossed the Thoules bridge and returned to Valpelline when it was night ”

Description: it is a ring in the woods in front of the hamlet of Thoules, a small walk in the cool of the woods.

How to get there: from the house cross the bridge over the Buthier and go down to the right. Immediately take the path on the left near the hamlet of Montcorvé and climb up to the beginning of the wood. Turn left (senitero 6a) as soon as you have entered the woods for a few tens of meters: be careful not to go straight up an old and steep track. After about 20 minutes you will find a fork on the left at a rocky wall: take the path that goes down steeply to a clearing. It is advisable to turn in the clearing, up to its edge, you will enjoy a panoramic view of Thoules and the plain of Montcorvé. From there the path descends to the asphalted road which comfortably reaches Thoules.

Curiosity: why not go around the woods looking for some porcini mushrooms?

Description: a fun walk to discover a Ru, or a stream (often of medieval origin) created to carry water towards the sunniest and most arid slopes of the valleys. Don't forget to visit the Chatelair chapel, from where you can enjoy a priceless view.

How to get there: go to the Fontina house (road to ollomont) and park. Returning back to the asphalted road, after the bridge over the stream, take a road on the left that was initially paved and becomes a mule track. The mule track reaches the hamlet of San Cristoforo. From there you go down to the bridge and then go up to the Creton hamlet. From the hamlet, take the steep path no. 8 which in about half an hour will take you to the Ru du Mont estate.

Curiosity: An ancient legend tells that the old Ru des Monts carried water from the valley of Ollomont to the sunny plateaus of Doues, thanks to a daring work of hydraulic engineering that bypassed the steep rocky walls between these two environments. A water guardian (then called "garde-ruisseaux") checked its path every day; in this job he was always accompanied by a white snake, which was actually the animal form of the Fairy that protected the Ru itself. A kind of genius loci, a feminine protective spirit of very ancient origin. When the role of guardian passed to a new person, this, annoyed by the presence of the white snake, killed him. In doing so, he killed the Fairy protecting the fate of the Ru, which immediately began to fill with cracks and to collapse. All attempts to rebuild it since then have failed. Only in 1949, by drilling the mountain with a tunnel that is medium high, a little more than one meter wide and about 800 meters long, was it possible to build the new Ru.

Description: The Champillon Adolphe Letey refuge, inaugurated on 3 July 2005, is located at an altitude of 2465m upstream from the Tza di Champillon mountain pasture on a panoramic hill from which you can enjoy a beautiful view of the Ollomont valley and the Lower Valpelline. It takes its name from the historic first citizen of Doues, Adolphe Letey, mayor from 1951 to 1990. His idea and his merit for having always believed and invested in the importance of tourism in small realities like that of Doues.

How to get there: Stopping your car at Plan Detruit at 2000 meters above sea level, you can access the refuge after a short walk through the path that winds for about an hour through the woods and mountains of the Champillon basin, making the refuge an ideal destination for all types of users (professional hikers, families and children).

Curiosity: the refuge hosts temporary art exhibitions and is equipped with wi-fi and a Sauna & Hot Tub. Before descending, we recommend that you go up to the Tibetan viewpoint (visible from the refuge a 5-minute walk away) and go down on the other side of the viewpoint to the ephemeral lake (without a name).

Description: The Ru de By allows, safely and with relatively little physical effort, to have an excellent view of the Conca di By, the mountains of the Central Valley and the majestic Grand Combin. The itinerary, although it has a very low altitude difference, is 19.2 km long (round trip) but since the return takes place on the same path as the outward journey, it can be interrupted at any time.

How to get there: By stopping with your car at Plan Detruit at 2000m of altitude, you can easily access the Ru, as it starts about 200m from the parking lot on the left of the farm. Ru de By is an ideal destination for families with children.

Curiosity: the Ru, of ancient origin, brought water to the sunny meadows of Doues from the By basin, rich in water but cold and hardly cultivable. The Aosta Valley is rich in water, but the summer rainfall is very modest and therefore many canals (Ru) were built for irrigation to make the sunny and arid slopes productive.

Description: along the Nordic ski slopes on easy dirt roads you reach the Besazze huts. From there in a few minutes you can reach the ancient mining center.

How to get there: by car to the Lexert di Bionaz lake. From there follow the signs. Attention at the first fork go right. Once the visit is over, it is advisable to go up to the regional road and return to the lake first along the road and as soon as possible, along the Nordic ski slopes, passing by the biathlon stadium.

Curiosity: the copper mine was mainly cultivated in the twentieth century but was probably already exploited in previous centuries. You can collect the yellow and orange stones to make charms.