226 SECTION II. THE ALPS OF PIEDMONT AND SAVOY. PRELIMINARY INFORMATION. As the traveller in Switzerland, who has fully enjoyed the scenery of the Alps, and inhaled fresh spirit with the mountain air, must desire information upon such routes as are often or occasionally visited across the great chain of the Alps south of the Simplon, and which would lie within his summer's excursion, the following information upon such passes as debouche into the course of the route of the Simplon, furnished by a traveller who has himself examined all upon which he has written, will be found useful to those who are disposed, not only to examine the lateral valleys which fall into the Route of the Simplon, but such other alpine passes and retreats as the traverses of the great chain present, from Savoy and France into Piedmont Maritime Alps and the Mediterranean. -even to the Piedmont has on its northern, western, and south-western sides, a clearlydefined frontier in the ridge of the great chain of the Alps. From the valley of the Toccia, which lies within its frontier, to the Col de Ferret, near Mont Blanc, the Pennine Alps divide it from Switzerland; from the Col de Ferret to Mont Tabor, the Graian Alps separate Piedmont from Savoy; from Mont Tabor to the Col d'Argentière, at the head of the valley of the Stura, the Cottian Alps separate it from France; and from the Argentière to the source of the Tanaro in the Monte Cassino, the Maritime Alps divide the southern Piedmont from the county of Nice. East of the Monte Cassino the great alpine chain passes insensibly into the Apennines. The eastern boundary- the frontier of the Milanese and the States of Parma is not within the object of this section, which is to furnish to travellers useful information for excursions in the Alps of Piedmont. On the side of Italy, the Alps offer a striking difference in their appearance to that presented in the approaches from Switzerland, Savoy, or France. From these the intervention of secondary ranges, and the long valleys preclude any great extent of the chain from being seen at the same time; but from the plains of Piedmont, even as near as Turin not 30 miles in a Piedmont and Savoy - Preliminary Information. 227 direct line from the nearest point in the crest of the chain. -a range of the central peaks and passes, extending through 200 miles, is clearly seen. A day's journey is sufficient, from almost every accessible part of the crest of the Alps, for a descent into the plains of Piedmont; whilst on the western side of the chain, two or three days of approach from the plains, in deep valleys amidst the mountains, are requisite for its attainment. The rambler in the Piedmontese Alps will generally find accommodation equal to any in Switzerland, except perhaps in the beaten routes of the Bernese Alps, and sight-seeing excursions, as on the Righi. Crowds would find provisions short and want of room, but parties of two or three would fare well, be received with civility without obsequiousness, and meet with less extortionate hosts than in Switzerland. Fleecing the traveller has not yet grown into a system as among that independent people; and, generally, a traveller may devote more time, and visit more sublime scenes, at a less expense, and with nearly as much facility as in Switzerland. Piedmont only requires to be more known to turn the current of ramblers, and induce them to spend a part at least of their time and money among its romantic valleys and passes. The roads skirting the Alps, and the approaches to them from the plains of Piedmont, are generally excellent. Wherever there is intercourse there is a good road adapted to the wants of the inhabitants: if fit for volantins or chars, these may always be obtained at moderate charges, usually 12 francs a day. Mules may readily be obtained in all mountain routes accessible to them, at charges varying from 4 to 6 francs a day; and guides at 4 or 5 francs a day may be had in every alpine village of Piedmont. It is desirable to get men known to, or recommended by, the innkeepers or the Curès of their villages; for they are so fond of the employment, that few scruple to avow their acquaintance with passes and places of which they really know nothing: their only use then to the traveller is to bear his luggage, and talk Piedmontese, a jargon which few travellers are acquainted with. In Piedmont French and Italian are often unknown; among those, however, who act as guides, French is generally spoken, especially in those valleys on the frontiers of Savoy and France. If mules, horses, or a char be taken across the frontier, a boleta, or permission to pass the douane, is necessary; here the animal is registered, the course of the traveller stated, and money for the horse deposited as a duty upon the entrée, which is returned to the owner when he leaves the place on the frontier, indicated in the boleta, to return to his own country. As there is much smuggling on the frontier of France, the traveller is often subjected to vexatious delay, but time will always be gained by submitting to it. The French can rarely be bribed - the Piedmontese easilyto facilitate the passage from one country to another. It is almost unnecessary to advise a traveller not to sleep in the plains, if he can reach the mountains. His own love of that "Health in the breeze and freshness in the gale," 228 Piedmont and Savoy - Preliminary Information. which is so exciting and invigorating in the mountains, he would seek for the pleasure and spirit of breathing it; but the suggestion is offered to induce young travellers to avoid sleeping near the rice grounds of Piedmont, or near the ponds, where in the summer the Piedmontese steep their hemp: these are deleterious, and may produce fever-fatal to the continuance and enjoyment of an alpine journey. The wines of Piedmont are generally wholesome, often fine, nnd sometimes of great celebrity; and there is scarcely a hut in a village on the mountains where grisane-a fine sort of biscuit, long, like pipes, and made of excellent flour, I cannot be obtained. The traveller should never fail to supply his pockets with some of this, broken to convenient lengths; this, with a quaff from a fresh cold spring, having a dash of Kirschenwasser in it, will bear him, if taken at his intervals of rest, through a long day's journey. The money of Piedmont is the same as of France; i. e., of the same quality, denomination, and value. The mile of The measures of distance are very difficult to understand. Italy, 60 to a degree, is sometimes meant; but more frequently the mile of Piedmont, 40 to a degree: the difference is enough to add a weary length to a day's journey, when the mile is nearly double that of the mile of England. The French league of 25 to a degree is a common measure by which they estimate distances; but all these are vague as applied to mountain rambles, and it is best to estimate distance by trial. There can be no mistake where from point to point is stated as so many hours distant; and what has been accomplished in a day or six hours by one traveller, may be safely recommended as the time required for another. Pedestrian Tours of 6 Weeks or 2 Months chiefly in the Alps of Savoy and Piedmont. ** Carriage Road. * Char Road. + Mule Road. § Footpath. All names following the marks indicated are the same as the last. ** Geneva to Salenches, or St. Mar tin. (115.) * Chamouny. + Tête Noire to Trient. (116.) $ Breven. $ Montanvert, le Jardin. † Chamouny to Cormayeur, by the Col de Vosa, Col de Bonhomme, and the Col de la Seigne. (118.) ** Cormayeur to Aosta. (107:) * St. Remy. (108.) + Hospice of the Great St. Ber nard. Liddes. 230 Route 101.- Varallo- The Sacro Monte. on the road, especially the approach to the lake of Orta, where this beautiful lake is seen backed by Monte Rosa, is scarcely rivalled by any lake and mountain scene, from one end of the Alps to the other. At Buccione boats may be had to take carriages to Omegna at the lower end of the lake, distant 9 miles, and thence to Gravedona in the route of the Simplon, beyond the Lago Maggiore. From Borgomaniera there is an excellent road to the little town of Romagnano on the Sesia, where the inn is good. From Romagnano the road up the course of the Sesia is singularly beautiful; the mountains as they are approached offering richly wooded slopes, and the masses are relieved by castles, churches, and oratories. The vegetation is most luxuriant ; several villages are passed. The principal place before arriving at Varallo is Borgo Sesia; here the valley becomes narrower, and the road offers some striking scenes, though the range of view is more limited in the narrow parts of the Val Sesia. It opens again in the neighbourhood of Varallo, where the situation of this town, and the sanctuary on its celebrated Sacro Monte -La Nuova Gerusalemme nel Sacro Monte di Varallo, as the guide-book calls this extraordinary place of pilgrimage-form singular and interesting scenes. The Grand Falcone is an excellent inn, and the best in a place where many are required to provide for the bodily wants of the spiritual visitors to the Sacro Monte, who, especially on the Festas of the Church, crowd here as devotees. Varallo, from every point of view, is highly picturesque, but it is so in a striking degree when seen from the bridge across the Sesia, which is very lofty and narrow, having three arches. From the dry bed of the river below the bridge; the Sacro Monte seen through its arches, the old houses which overhang the torrent, and the richly wooded slopes of the mountains which descend to the Val Sesia, form a tableau that few sketchers fail to possess. The Sacro Monte is, however, the great object of attraction and pilgrimage. It rises immediately above the town by a paved path, which winds up the side of the hill, and offers from every turn the most picturesque and beautiful scenes. Just before the summit is attained, the visitor passes a chapel and crucifix, the er voto of a pious German serjeant-major, as duly announced by an inscription, which informs the visitor that, in honour of God and the Virgin Mary, John Pschel raised this chapel. A troop of vagabonds, always ready to serve the traveller, offer themselves as guides; and to facilitate the visit to this extraordinary place, one is necessary, to point out all the chapels or oratories in the order of their numbers, an affair of research by no means easy; for though the spot of ground which they occupy is small, it seems, from its varied surface, and its labyrinth-like arrangement, to be very extensive. This remarkable place has fifty chapels, or oratories upon it, besides the great church, fountains, &c. These oratories contain groups of figures modelled in terra-cotta, painted and clothed, placed and composed on the floors. They chiefly represent some of the principal events in the history of Christ, in the order of their Occurrence. These places are never entered; they are merely frames or cases for the subjects grouped within them, which, seen from 2 or 3 peepholes in front, like those in rareeshows, excite the devotion of the faithful, and the disgust, except in a few instances where they exhibit skill as works of art, of the merely curious. Externally, these oratories are rich in the architectural display of façades, porticos, domes, &c: the figures within are the size of life. The subjects are in the order of the numbers on the chapels. 1. The Fall of Man. |