Formazza, as far north as you can get



Going up from Domodossola towards Crodo and the Valle Antigorio first we meet on our left the "Riviera Antigoriana" dominated by the severe Cistella, then – before Baceno – we meet the "Orridi di Uriezzo" and the "Cupola di Verampio" magnificent and unique geological testimony of the "zero element"; after Baceno, capital of the valley and junction for the wonderful "Parco Naturale del Devero", we enter the upper Antigorio where, just after Premia we find the famous "Terme"; here the valley flattens for a few kilometers giving the impression of closing, but we must not be fooled because above the austere dark rocks of San Rocco open the sunny plains of Salecchio and Cà Francoli, Walser settlements still wonderfully preserved. Beyond the hamlet of Foppiano we meet the mighty rocky step of the "Casse" that marks the border between the Valle Antigorio and the Valle Formazza, (Pomatt) in Walser language. This is the northernmost valley in all of Piedmont, deeply wedged in Swiss territory.


After passing the modern tunnel that for a few years has avoided the imposing, characteristic but uncomfortable "boxes", you enter the land of the Walser, a population of Alemannic origin that since about 1200 has colonized these valleys coming from the nearby Valais.

Vast plateaus, large artificial reservoirs that are now part of the landscape, the Toce waterfall "la plus belle et la plus puissante de toutes les Alpes", the historic routes of Gries and San Giacomo make Formazza a valley of great tourist attraction. In the hamlets of Chiesa, San Michele, Valdo, Ponte and Riale (further north above the Toce waterfalls at 1764 m.) you can find rooms and accommodations in hotels or historic houses to relive an atmosphere linked to the past in a still intact nature. The valley offers many sports opportunities ranging from alpine skiing on the only slope of Sagersboden, to cross-country skiing on the rings of San Michele and Riale, to the many snowshoe slopes, while in summer the excursions are truly countless both on foot and by mountain bike.