Colle del Nivolet

The Valle Orco climbs north-west from the Canavese valley floor with a gradient that grows steadily steeper, until it reaches Ceresole Reale, a municipality in the metropolitan city of Turin set at roughly 1600 metres above sea level. From here, a paved road continues past the village and winds through a sequence of tight switchbacks, gaining height steadily until it reaches Colle del Nivolet, at 2612 metres above sea level. The pass marks the boundary between Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta, connecting the Valle Orco with the Valsavarenche, and lies entirely within the Parco Nazionale del Gran Paradiso (Gran Paradiso National Park), Italy's oldest national park, established in 1922.

The landscape unfolding along the climb and around the pass is typical of the western granite high mountains: rock smoothed by glaciers, short compact grasslands, sheets of water reflecting the surrounding ridges. Lago Serrù and Lago Agnel, both artificial and built during the twentieth century for hydroelectric purposes, occupy two successive basins along the road and dominate the view before the summit plateau is reached. Higher up, Lago Rosset — a natural lake with a small island at its centre — and Lago Leità are reached on foot, across open terrain. The peaks closing the horizon belong to the Gran Paradiso massif, with elevations exceeding four thousand metres.

The park's wildlife is especially visible here. The Alpine ibex, Capra ibex, reintroduced across the entire Alpine range starting precisely from the populations protected in this area, roams the rocky slopes with little concern for visitors. Marmots are common in the grasslands, along with several species of birds of prey that ride the updrafts along the rock faces. The density of sightings is among the highest in the entire western Alpine range, a direct result of a century of continuous protection.

Colle del Nivolet is also a reference point for climbing cyclists: the road from Ceresole Reale runs for about 23 kilometres with an elevation gain of over a thousand metres, and can be ridden by bicycle during the summer months, when motor traffic is regulated. In winter, with the road closed, the area becomes accessible by cross-country skis and snowshoes. The window for reaching the pass by car generally runs from June to October, depending on residual snow cover.

Far from ski resorts and the more organised tourist flows, the Nivolet retains a following naturally filtered by distance and altitude. There is no accommodation at the pass, and the human presence thins out as the afternoon fades, when the low light on the granite ridges shifts the colours of the landscape gradually and silently.