STROLLING AMONG MEDIEVAL MANORS AND HISTORIC VINEYARS

A route that allows you to observe numerous castles, strongholds, and towers built to control villages and roads winds through an area ideally suited to cultivating vines due to its excellent exposure to the sun.

The route begins at the Verrès train station, from which you continue east on Rue des Alpes and, once you reach the road to Issogne, turn right under the railroad overpass; after 50 meters, turn left and skirt the Dora Baltea, proceeding on the rural road that in a short time leads to Arnad in the hamlet of Clos de Barme.

Entering the village, one finds oneself near the large wine press, recently restored; one crosses the entire town of Arnad to reach the parish church of San Martino with its beautiful façade, which features a central portal in 15th-century tufa decorated with a keeled arch depicting two intertwined tree trunks and surmounted by a rose window. Finally, it is worth stepping through the entrance portal and through the glass panes of a compass to admire the interior of the Romanesque church: imposing square pillars support Gothic cross vaults.

Leaving San Martino, with a slight detour, it is possible to visit the Arnad le Vieux charcuterie factory where Vallée d’Aoste Lard d’Arnad PDO is produced and then continue toward the hamlets of Clos and Pied de Ville until encountering the remains of the high-medieval tower and the hamlet that includes the Ohta stronghold. Lifting your gaze, you can see the remains of the 12th-century castle , built on a steeply sloping promontory overlooking the village below. On the right, a bell tower soars into the forest; this is the Machaby Shrine dedicated to Our Lady of the Snows and the nearby fortress, nestled among ancient chestnut trees.

We then cross the imposing south-facing terraces where the Nebbiolo vine, here called Picotendro, is cultivated and an area of Valle d’Aosta DOC Arnad- Montjovet wine production. Amid the vineyards appears the Vallaise Castle , a sumptuous mansion that belonged to the noble family of the same name in the 17th century: it has three floors flanked by two quadrangular towers.

In the park is the hexagonal chapel dedicated to St. Joseph, St. Anthony, and the Virgin Mary, with a Baroque altar made of polychrome marble. In the past, the castle was connected via a covered gallery to the “Lower Castle of the Coast,” now reduced to ruins. Acquired in 2010 by the Autonomous Region of the Aosta Valley, the castle is undergoing restoration and enhancement to make it accessible to the public.

We now head to the locality of la Keia, where every year, on the last weekend of August, there is the Arnad’s festival of Lard , a PDO product, a tasty and fragrant sausage made from the back of the pig, which is cured in oak or chestnut wood containers called Doils. In these special containers, layers of lard are prepared on top of each other, then a mixture of salt, water, spices, and aromatic mountain herbs is added and left to season for at least three months. A few steps away from the Keia is the la Kiuva social winery, where there will be a tasting of wines and typical local products, and with a slight detour to the route, you will reach the Maison Bertolin charcuterie factory where there is no shortage of delicacies, lard in primis.

The route now crosses the highway and railroad tracks until it reaches the picturesque Echallod Bridge , a symmetrical humpback structure on three arches supported by solid buttresses, built between 1770 and 1776.

We are now at the halfway point, continuing westward along the Dora Baltea River to the small village of Issogne , where you can take advantage of a visit to the castle built in the late 15th century by the Challant family, known for its famous pomegranate fountain and valuable lunettes frescoed with scenes of daily life.

In the Colombière locality, arrange a stop at the Priod Vini winery .

We then return to the Verrès train station.

Feasible route by bike or on foot

Trail length: 11.30 km

Height difference: 136 meters