Top 20 Natural Monuments around Challand-Saint-Anselme

Impressive view in good weather

The Pinter Lakes are located just below the hill of the same name, nestled in a grassy basin surrounded by rocky peaks. They are small mirrors of clear water that reflect the sky and the mountains, creating an almost magical atmosphere, especially on clear days. The path to reach them alternates between meadows and stony ground, with some slightly more technical but always rewarding passages. Once you arrive, the landscape repays all the effort: here the silence is profound, interrupted only by the wind and the distant call of a marmot. A perfect place for a long break, to soak your feet or simply to be enchanted.

itinerary designed by Arch. Maffei, where there are bas-reliefs that evoke the legend of the place

Legend has it that a young warrior fell in love with a beautiful girl. The wedding was organized and the rock not far from the lake was set up and decorated as an altar. The bride waited for her groom all day and night, but in vain. The next morning a man came to inform her that her groom had been found killed in a forest. The young woman buried him at the bottom of the lake and remained there for her entire life in the company of a bear, to guard her love. The young woman, having become old, was considered over the years a sorceress to whom the locals asked advice, remedies, spells and medicines. Upon her death, she was also buried at the bottom of the lake and according to Celtic traditions, the two spirits in love merged together.

Even in spring it's a spectacle!

finding peace like this place elsewhere, if you go there during the week, is very difficult

The Lago di Villa Nature Reserve was established in 1982 and extends over 25 hectares, at an altitude of between 810 and 980 meters, between the municipalities of Challand-Saint-Victor and Montjovet. An oasis of peace and tranquility where you can listen to the sounds of nature and observe the surrounding mountains. It is interesting to visit in every season, to admire the colors of the changing leaves, as well as the plant and animal species that populate it. Here are some technical data on the natural area: Environment: low mountain peaty lake basin, characterized by a clear contrast between the marshy environment of the lake and the surrounding arid environment. Fauna: the nature reserve represents the main regional reproductive station for the common toad. Among the reptiles there are the maraou lizard and the whip snake, while the fish fauna consists of cyprinids and eels. Flora: the lake waters are home to two very rare floating plants in the Aosta Valley, the white water lily (if you want to enjoy its bloom, the recommended months are June and July) and the amphibian polygon. The reed bed is mainly made up of common reed; the arboreal vegetation is made up of hygrophilous thickets near the banks and thickets of Scots pine and downy oak on the surrounding sunny slopes.

It deserves to climb Zerbion at least once in your life, with its priceless panoramic view over the whole Ayas valley. I therefore advise you to choose a clear day so as not to lose all the panoramas that can be admired both at the summit and during the upper part of the excursion. It starts from the hamlet of Barmasc and can be reached in about 3 hours, a trip suitable for everyone which, in the absence of snow, presents no difficulties, just a few steep sections. Along the way, many young people and even over 60s.