Nature: Châtillon, Issogne, Montjovet, Saint-Vincent, Verrès, ** Valle d'Aosta **

The Mont Avic Park, first natural park in the Aosta Valley, preserves since 1989 the natural resources of the upper Chalamy stream valley in the municipality of Champdepraz and, since 2003 the Dondena valley, in the territory of Champorcher.

The protected area is characterised by extremely captivating landscapes and environments only marginally affected by human activities.
Crossing the paths that meander through the protected area gives visitors the chance to come into contact with particularly interesting and various natural aspects: rugged and characteristic geological formations, floral alpine endimisms and peculiar plant associations tied to the green rock substratum. The largest mountain pine forest (pinus uncinata) in the region with a couple dozen ponds, marshes and peat bog, it is unrivalled in number and in extension in the Aosta Valley. All the most widespread alpine animals in the region are represented.

You can hike along the park paths all year round. Most of the paths are snow-covered from November to May and only advisable for experts with appropriate equipment. Some paths can be ridden on horseback or on mountain bike.

Audio guide mp3

Col de Joux (1640m) is a woody pass linking Saint-Vincent with Brusson, and is thus a beautiful alternative route to the road that goes up from Verrès, to reach Val d’Ayas.
It runs past charming hamlets and goes through beautiful woods, providing wonderful views of the central valley and Val d’Ayas.
The word “Joux” has pre-Latin origins and means woody highland, however, can also be traced to the Latin Jugum, yoke, and hence hill.
Col de Joux also hosts the final Ayas section of Ru Courtod, an irrigated canal coming from the Ventina glacier and dating back to the 14th century.
Several trails of varying difficulty start here, for example those leading to Testa Comagna or Col Tzecore, but you can also go for a pleasant walk along the private road towards Sommarèse, or towards Pallu, with its artificial lake.

A glacial lake, with water from the subsoil, a niche of interesting species

The Lake Villa nature reserve was established in 1982 and covers 25 hectares at altitudes between 810 and 980 meters.

An oasis of peace where you can listen to the sounds of nature and admire the surrounding mountains. It is interesting to visit it in every season, to admire the colors of the changing leaves, as well as the plant and animal species that inhabit it.

Here is some information on the protected area:

• Environment: low mountain lake-marsh basin characterised by a clear contrast between the marshy lake area and surrounding dry area.
• Fauna: the nature reserve represents the main reproduction station on the regional level for the common toad. Some of the local reptiles include the lizard and the coluber while the fish fauna is made up of cyprinids and eels.
• Flora: the lake waters are home to two floating plants, rare in Valle d’Aosta, the white waterlily and the amphibian lily. The reed field is mainly populated by marsh reeds. Shrubs include hygrophilous woods near the shores and Scots pine and downy oaks on the surrounding sunny slopes.

It may be interesting to combine a visit to Lake Villa with a walk along path 11 which connects Lake Villa to Col d'Arlaz (along stage 6 of the Cammino Balteo trail, Challand-Saint-Victor - Saint-Vincent path) to discover the artistic path with works created using natural materials.

Accessibility
The lake site can be reached by everyone, even by people with disabilities: in the immediate vicinity of the entrance to the path that leads to the lake, there is in fact a parking lot for the disabled and the road surface has been completely paved, to also allow wheelchairs to move comfortably .

How to get there
The municipal road which leads to the site is well indicated at the junction, along the regional road 45 of the Ayas Valley, after the village of Challand-Saint-Victor (a signboard indicates “Natural Reserve of Lake Villa”). 2,5 km after this junction, you will reach a small parking located directly on the side of the road. There you will find a signboard with the description of the site and its principal trails.

Located in the Cret de Breil hamlet, on a rocky hill 1 km west from the centre of the Châtillon village, the park surrounds the castle, commissioned by baron Carlo Maurizio Gamba in the first years of ‘900, which is nowadays seat of a modern and contemporary art collection owned by the Aosta Valley Autonomous Region.
This green island, developed on a total area of 54.000 square meters, is a typical “english park”, holding more than 150 trees of different species: beeches of considerable dimensions and the Austrian pines, among the oldest living in Aosta Valley. Moreover, it is possible to see fir trees, cedars, ginkgo biloba, lime trees, Norway spruces, oaks, asch trees, horse chestnuts, maples, etc.
The park is characterized by the presence of monumental trees, identifiable thanks to a plate containing the essential data in order to recognize them. The most important are:
-the giant Sequoia from California, with a 37 meters long trunk and a circumference of 217 centimeters;
-the bald Cypress, originating from Florida’s swamps, rising at the western edge along the park fence;
-the Honey Locust (Gleditsia triacanthos), indigenous tree from North America.
In spring walks among the trees in the park are more pleasant thanks to 17 thousand square meters of meadow.

Location
The park is part of the castle with the same name, situated on a height behind the Châtillon parish church.

History
The park, like the castle and the French styled Renaissance garden, assumed its current conformation in 1706. In fact, thanks to Paolina Solaro di Govone, wife of Giorgio Francesco di Challant, the castle was fully reconstructed and new trees were planted in the park. Nowadays the park belongs to the countness Claudia Passerin d’Entrèves.

Description
Various trees were identified in this park as “monumental plants”, of different varieties, protected by a specific regional law. A linden with a 5 meter circumference, the old and majestic beech tree with a 5.5 meter circumference and an atlas cedar with a 4.5 meter circumference are among these. There are also ash, oak and maple trees of impressive sizes considering the characteristics of these species and the famous and majestic “linden and beech-lined lane” that offers a truly enchanting view of this site. The park covers about 3 hectares but only 2 hectares are accessible and constantly monitored. A sign has been placed before all the monumental plants listing their characteristics.

The arboretum is on the orographic left bank of the Évançon, at the start of Val d’Ayas. It can be reached on foot from Verrès, where you should leave the car, then up a section of the Val d’Ayas regional road.

At the both entrances, you will find panels describing the area, which includes nine panoramic viewpoints with benches and litter bins. The landscape from this site is extraordinarily vast: on the left is Verrès castle, built in the second half of the 14th century; to the north-east is Val d’Ayas; to the north-west is the magnificent outline of the iron cross erected on Mont Saint-Gilles (an offering of gratitude for the village’s escape from bombing during the second world war); to the south-west and south-east are the great plain of Verrès and Issogne castle just beyond it.

The varied vegetation is described on signs which also give the botanical names, along with their French and Italian versions. The typical local species of this xerophilous environment, such as downy oak, cornel, hawthorn, elm, European nettle tree, robinia etc, mingle with more demanding species, such as the cherry, ash, chestnut, linden, while it is possible to discover what are botanical rarities for this area growing spontaneously: medlar, butcher’s broom, laurel and spindle.
Grass and shrub flora is also diversified. We find species typical of very hot and dry environments such as soapwort, silene, dog rose, old man’s beard, wild lilies, and other more demanding species, such as the violet, strawberry and heather.

The inhabitants of Verrès call this place “Borna di Laou” in patois or “Tampa del luf” in Piedmontese (wolf’s den), since, until the end of the 19th century there apparently used to be a wolf’s den.