Alpine ibex
Near the trails.
Gianfranco Gasperi — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Tiia Monto — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Tiia Monto — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Fulvio Spada from Torino, Italy — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Boletus69 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Tomatis Davide — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Paolo Panero — CC BY-SA 4.0
Gran Paradiso National Park is Italy's oldest national park, in the Graian Alps between the Aosta Valley and Piedmont, about 24 km in a straight line south of Aosta. It takes its name from the Gran Paradiso, at 4,061 m the only peak over 4,000 m that lies entirely within Italy, and it borders France's Vanoise National Park. The area began as a royal hunting reserve of King Victor Emmanuel II, set up in the 19th century to save the Alpine ibex, which hunting had reduced to a few dozen animals. The park was founded in 1922, and today thousands of ibex live here along with chamois, marmots, foxes and golden eagles, often easy to see near the trails. The main valleys are Cogne, Valsavarenche and the Val di Rhêmes on the Aosta side, and the Valle Orco and Valle Soana on the Piedmont side. From the hamlet of Valnontey near Cogne an easy path leads up the valley, and longer trails climb to high pastures, lakes and mountain huts below the glaciers. In winter Cogne is a centre for cross-country skiing and ice climbing on frozen waterfalls. Entry to the park is free. Summer and early autumn are the best times for walking, and late September brings golden larch forests.
Near the trails.
An easy path.
Golden in autumn.
Cogne, Aosta Valley, Italy
Yes.
On the higher trails around Cogne and Valsavarenche.