Chabot Hut
Hundreds of valleys emanate out from the
Aosta. The Savarenche Valley (Val
Savarenche) extends S.W. from the west end of the Aosta and this area of the
alps is dominated by the Grand Paradiso peak and the national park of the same
name. Val Savarenche gives skiers access
into the heart of the park. After a half
hour drive up a winding cliff lined road we arrived at the trail head and our
first taste of Italian touring. Zig
zagging up a forested path the snow grew increasingly deep. Passing ancient looking stone buildings and
stables gave an appreciation of how long people had been living here.
Trails in the park were originally built by
the soon to be King of Italy in the mid 1800’s.
In an amazing piece of early conservation he declared the area a
protected reserve in order to save the last of the Alpine Ibex (of course he was preserving them so he could shoot them himself but it worked and Ibex are plentiful today). The track was beautiful. Switchbacks were carefully crafted out of stones, it is funny what New Zealanders appreciate. It is all so civilised!
We skinned from 1850m to 2700m where the
day’s efforts ended at Chabot Hut (called a rifugio in Italy). Huts come in all shapes and sizes here but
they are always welcoming with beer and pastry on arrival and 3 course dinners.
With the summit of Grand Paradiso (at 4061m the highest peak entirely contained in Italy) standing above the hut, the plan is to wind up through the glacier below and have a crack at summiting tomorrow. You can ski tour nearly to the summit and the exposed rock scramble to the top is a coveted achievement here. We are not sure if our lungs are up to it but we will give it a try.
The Google Earth image of todays track does not reflect the amount of snow at this time of year which reaches the valley floor.
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