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la thuile |
| If the cable car seems too pricey, you can walk up to the Testa
d'Arpy from the sprawling resort of LA THUILE , on the road to the Petit-St-Bernard
Pass into France, for sweeping views of the peaks and glaciers of Mont
Blanc. Buses run from Pré-St-Didier at the end of the Valle d'Aosta
railway line to La Thuile, from where it's just over two hours' walk by
path or road to the old La Genzianella hotel at the top of the Colle San
Carlo. From here a path leads through woods to Testa d'Arpy in around
ten minutes, a natural balcony with a bird's-eye view up the valley to
Mont Blanc. It's well worth having a good map (FSB Monte Bianco ), not
so much to find your way as to identify the peaks and glaciers spread
out before you. As for La Thuile, it's rather an overdeveloped resort, and it makes sense to pass through quickly, after calling in at the tourist office , at Via Collomb 4 (daily 9am-12.30pm & 3-6pm; tel 0165.884.179, www.lathuile.it ), for maps - and to sleep instead up the mountain at Du Glacier (tel 0165.884.137; L150,000-200,000/77.47-103.29), in the little hamlet of Golette; it's open all year but phone in advance to check that there's room. Of the other walks starting from the hotel the most interesting is the 45-minute hike to Lago d'Arpy , from where a path leads down into La Thuile. |