Cogne, the village at the gates of Paradise

Cogne is a small high-altitude village, situated at an altitude of 1,500 meters, in a wooded valley at the entrance to the Gran Paradiso National Park.

Like every village in the Aosta Valleyeach house is a work of art in stone and wood, covered by a heavy lauze roof.

Whether in the main town of Cogne, at the far end of the valley in Valnontey, on the heights of Gimilian or in the neighboring hamlet of Lillaz.

It's through these villages that we're going to discover this valley at the foot of one of the Aosta Valley's 4000s, the Gran Paradiso.

Cogne

Cogne is reached via a winding road that climbs up from the central Aosta Valley, after passing through Aymavilles and its elegant castle overlooking the valley. The valley becomes narrow as you pass through a dark, narrow cluse, before widening as you approach the first houses in Cogne.

What immediately catches the eye is the immense, very gently sloping area devoid of any habitation, which seems to extend right down to the foot of the glaciers overlooking the valley.

The Saint Ours meadow, as this large field is called, is a protected area for growing hay, essential for local livestock farmers to feed their cattle. Signposts explain the irrigation system that was set up to divert the course of the torrent and provide the water needed for the crops. In winter, this area becomes the cross-country ski center that makes Cogne the place to be for cross-country skiing in the Aosta Valley.

In the village, narrow streets lead to the church, inside which you'll see a statue of Saint Barbara, made of aluminum (which is quite rare) and a protector of miners.

Iron mines and lacemaking in Cogne

Today, Cogne may seem like a village where nature reigns supreme, but for five centuries the main activity in this small valley was the extraction of magnetite, an iron-rich mineral. If you look up, you can see the mine entrances and the buildings that housed the miners. You can still visit the the miners' village and the Costa del Pino mine mine, which you can visit on board a small train. It's a good goal for a hike: sport and knowledge.

In the village, Cogne's reputation comes from its lacemakers, whose finest pieces can still be seen at the Maison di Pits. Lace stitches are handed down from mother to daughter, and can be recognized by experts in the art.

Discovering Valnontey

Naturally, visitors are drawn to the peaks of Grand Paradis. This is quite straightforward, as the path runs alongside the very large Pré de Saint Ours and therefore climbs at a very gentle gradient. After the first lock, where you approach the torrent, the valley widens again near the hamlet of Valnontey. At an altitude of almost 1700 metres, the flower-filled meadows surrounded by forest are dotted with cows enjoying the fresh grass and abundant water flowing straight down from the Gran Paradiso glaciers. These overlook the hamlet.

It's from here that the trails rise up and enter directly into the territory of the Gran Paradiso National Park. This territory, formerly a hunting reserve for the King of Italy, was donated in 1911 by Victor Emmanuel III to the Italian state as a protected area.

If you're tempted to spend a night in a refuge and climb to the 4061-metre summit, the valley guides are ready to take you there.

Other shorter, less difficult hikes take you to sites with grandiose landscapes, such as Lac Lauson at 3300 m altitude, where ibex come to quench their thirst while contemplating the glaciers of Gran Paradiso. However, you'll need a full day to make the round trip, via the Vittorio Sella hut.

For those content to discover nature at their fingertips, the Alpine garden Paradisia alpine flora.

A walk in Lillaz

From Cogne, Lillaz is just a few kilometers away, either by road or on paths through forests where cross-country skiing is practiced in winter.

Before starting your walk in this hamlet, take the time to look back at the road leading down to Cogne and admire Mont Blanc, whose silhouette is perfectly interwoven between the mountains.

Lillaz is very similar to Cogne. The valley floor is fairly flat, with wide meadows cultivated for animal fodder and forests covering the mountain slopes. In the background, snow-capped peaks mark the border with Piedmont.

Lillaz is famous for its small waterfalls , which can be approached from below and from the side. A popular walk with tourists, it's best to go early in the morning.

From Lillaz, numerous hikes take you over the surrounding passes, and it's possible to reach the Champorcher valley via the Madonna delle Nevi sanctuary, perched at over 2,500 meters above sea level. This is an important place of pilgrimage for the believers of Cogne and Champorcher , in honor of the Virgin Mary, who is said to have indicated to the Pope of the time the site for the construction of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome by an unexpected snowfall on August 5, in the year 356. A snowfall in Rome in the middle of August is obviously a sign from heaven, and something to celebrate.

Gimilian

This small hamlet, high above Cogne, offers an unrivalled view of the valley. The main town and the Pré de Saint Ours, the Valnontey, the glaciers and peaks of Gran Paradiso and the Grivola pyramid, the emblematic mountain of the Aosta Valley.

This very sunny, south-facing balcony allows you to hike facing Gran Paradiso, both downhill, with views of Mont Blanc, and uphill, on large, pleasant, cool plateaus for high-altitude walks. On the other side, the Pila ski resort overlooks the town of Aosta.

This is also the place to go to see the mines mentioned in the article.

Each of the valleys that make up the Aosta Valley has its own special character. Some are steep, others wild, some sporty, others more traditional. The Cogne valley is a good blend of all the qualities that give the Aosta Valley its tourist identity: architecture, nature, mountains, sport and tradition. A stay in Cogne is a true discovery of the spirit of the Aosta Valley.

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