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STAGE 1

Chardonney to Rifugio Dondena

The Alta Via 2 begins amid the beautiful alpine landscapes of Valle di Champorcher. The close-knit local community, with its time-honoured traditions, is descended from herdsmen-settlers from Valle Soana to the south. Two picturesque stories account for the curious name Champorcher: the first concerns San Porciero, a Roman legionary and companion of San Besso (see Walk 27) said to have taken refuge in AD302 near Lago Miserin (Stage 2), where he was inspired to begin preaching. A second story attributes the origin of the name to the pigs once bred in the valley on the fruit of the oak and beech trees that then died out after a dramatic temperature drop in the 16th and 17th centuries.

The starting point of Chardonney (nothing to do with the grape but a reference to ‘agglomeration of thistles’) has grocery shops where you can stock up on sargnun, a tasty cheese (object of the ‘fêta d'i sargnun’ village festival held late September) which comes fresh, salted or smoked. It is consumed with pane nero, the local rye-bread, these days likely to be freshly baked rather than rock hard according to tradition. It used to be baked only twice a year, leading to the invention of those wooden bread boards with a built-in chopper which you will see on display. A handful of hotels operate (such as Hotel Chardoney tel 0125 376011 www.hotel-chardoney.com).