Its name is indissolubly tied to the Mont
Blanc: it is a modern alpine town known all over the world,
besides being one of Italy’s most patronized ski resorts. In
a wide basin, at 1,224 meters of height, at the foot of the
giant massif of the Mont Blanc, among larch trees and firs,
among mountains and glaciers which make it incomparable, boasts a first rate tourist-receptive
organization of an international standing.
Developed around the old Saints Pantaleone and Valentine
church, Courmayeur, since the 19th century, is to be
considered the capital of alpinism and of mountain touring,
even if, back at that time, the thermal activity which used
to be largely practiced through the cure of mineral waters
resulted to be much more important.
Today as back then the
hotel facilities are equal to the expectations of the
tourists who attend such resort. Downtown, Via Roma, pulsing
heart of the town, narrow and at intervals tortuous, is the
commercial and worldly fulcrum.
Also to be visited
in Courmayeur is the
House of the Guides, seat of the Duca degli Abruzzi Museum,
where are collected documents, relics and materials used by
the alpinists who marked the history of alpinism with their
enterprises.
Among the hamlets of Courmayeur we recall La
Saxe, famous for its source of mineral waters; Dolonne, a
locality where one of the first ski lift plants of the Valle d'Aosta was built; Entreves, which is at the head of the
Valley, at the confluence of the Dora river of the Veny
Valley with the Dora of the Ferret Valley, in the inhabited
center of which one can admire an ancient fort-house of the
year 1391.
On July 16, 1965 the Mont Blanc tunnel was
opened, a grand work of engineering, 11,600 meters’ long,
which crosses the chain of the Mont Blanc (on the vertical
line of the Aiguille du Midi.
The thickness of the granitic
rock cover is of 2,480 meters, which is a record measure for
road and railroad tunnels) starting from Italy, at the foot
of the Brenva glacier, to arrive to France, at the foot of
the Bossons glacier, both spectacular perpetual ice flows.
The initial project of the tunnel contemplated a maximum
movement of 14 vehicles per hour for each direction: it soon
turned out to be very faraway from reality; the passages are
today about 2,200 a day.
The Ferret and Veny Valleys, owing
to the multiplicity of the practicable sports, are a goal
for athletes and mountain lovers both in the summer and in
the wintertime. In the Ferret Valley, the fish tourist
reserve is much patronized and appreciated; and the
9-holes-golf course, which offers some really spectacular
passages, is well renowned. The lovers of winter sports will
find in Courmayeur a varied and qualified offer, such as to
make it one of the most appreciated ski resorts all over the
world: the Checrouit and Veny Valley ski districts, linked
up high, offer over 100 kilometers of ski runs at disposal
of the lovers of alpine skiing.
In the Ferret Valley, 35 are
the kilometers of ski runs prepared for Nordic Ski. In the
presence of the Mont Blanc, moreover, it is in function a
ropeway plant which, on account of the splendid scenario
which it crosses, has also been defined as “The eighth
Wonder of the World”. The Mont Blanc, with its mass, has
always stirred up alternate feelings of respect, attraction
and fear; in ancient times it even used to be called “
Mont audit” – Damned Mountain - . It is the highest mountain in
Europe, and has always been charming owing to its grandeur.
It is therefore granted that many alpinists have, deep in
their heart, the ambition of its climbing: the ascent to the
Mont Blanc, though, demands a good preparation and knowledge
of the mountaineering techniques. The Alpine guides of the
Valle d'Aosta are deep connoisseurs of their mountains and,
with their professionalism, they offer the possibility to
accomplish ascents and crossings in maximum safety
conditions. On August 15 of each year the traditional and
folkloristic Party of the Guides takes place in Courmayeur. On this
occasion spectacular performances are also carried out by
the working Guides.
An attraction of considerable interest is represented by the
crossing of the "Vallee Blanche", accessible, in springtime,
for skiers of a fairly good level, in a suggestive scenario,
in the presence of the Mont Blanc.
Saussurea
It is the highest botanic garden in Europe, at the Pavillion,
at 2,187 meters of height, a short way from the Torino
refuge; it is easily accessible by the cableway of the
Helbronner Peak. It was created about ten years ago, in
cooperation with the Donzelli-Gilberti Foundation and the
Regional Government. In the garden, which can be visited in
the Summer season, the species of the spontaneous flora of
the Mont Blanc and of some other mountain exotic flora are
studied and brought out. At Saussurea, furthermore, they
have introduced botanic species of different origin and they
have recreated natural environments such as the moraine and
the prater.
