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There are no longer the princesses of yore


Taking advantage of the early summer I decided to venture into a slightly different way of interpreting MTB. Often concentrated in discussions of shock absorbers, geometries, tire compounds, more or less difficult passages and personalized workouts, we forget to share and involve our families in this strange world of ours. As I said initially, summer days, clear skies and a great desire to discover. A series of calls to the association's friend Daniele PleinAir mtb, as well as a point of reference for the maxi of Cervinia, and an atypical weekend is beginning to emerge, definitely exciting and exciting. A series of excursions that focus on the family, which are within the reach of little bikers and wives or companions who have not yet been irremediably affected by the two-wheel virus.

MTB is a passion to be shared

Sharing your passion with the people around you and discovering the environment is one of the most beautiful things that can happen. I'm not just talking about adrenaline, speed and the emotions given by the descent, but above all by sharing the gesture of pedaling, crossing meadows, woods and everything that mother nature has decided to invent in her great imagination. Returning to the concrete, the theme of the service is a weekend in Valle d'Aosta. Riding our bikes as if they were steeds, transforming ourselves into knights and modern Valkyries we will go to the assault of some of the most evocative castles and forts of the Aosta Valley. We will then finish this weekend with the Cervinia dips, adapted to the physical and technical abilities of little bikers.

Coming down from the Bard fort

The first day opens with the fort of Bard, a fort that, coming from Piedmont, welcomes you with great grandeur. Here we have been able to do the impossible. Anyone like me who has visited this piece of history in civilian clothes will surely have noticed the two cobbled streets that surround it, one towards Piedmont and the other that passes through the barracks, looking directly towards the valley. In our slightly deviated imagery it will have prefigured advances, folds during the hairpin bends deviate nations on the rock rocks, in short, as always happens to every biker, he will have made his own film of how to get off with his own two wheels. Well a little dream that comes true. Up the lifts, through the parade ground and then down, up again through the door that looks at the kingdom that was once the Savoy and down again, a snake that unwinds to the village below. Ok, this was just a digression on the subject, but the weekend was much more.

Thinking about excursions that can be within the reach of families is not easy, the approach, the estimated average speed, the physical and especially the psychological strength of the participants must be completely reviewed. Here, thanks to Corrado, PleinAir mtb instructor, we were able to build a project that satisfied both the desire for exploration and that of pedaling.

One day my friend Fausto told me something simple but true, try to take your daughter's bike and take an easy stretch of dirt road, of those that seem trivial to you, only in this way will you be able to understand how they see their difficulties. Said and done, the answer is that children are heroes. Twenty wheels, 12 kg bicycles (about half their weight), v brakes and fake forks. Yet they come down from where mothers have more than a few perplexities and pedal for miles, managing to shoot in sight of the ice cream or the castle.

 Thanks to Corrado, Plein air instructor, we were able to build a project that managed to satisfy both the desire for exploration and that of pedaling. The result is 15km on the first day and 12km, of which 3km of descent on the second. Great satisfaction, fantastic scenarios, traces of a history that has crossed this valley over the centuries and a truly unique weekend. 

DAY 1

THE CASTLE

Aosta Fénis. The departure is from the capital, a city of Roman origin, from where the cable car departs. A long cycle path that takes us to the castle of castles. take a test: close your eyes, think about what shape a castle should have in your opinion and then reopen them. The castle of Fénis will surely materialize before your eyes. Laces, towers, loopholes from which to shoot with crossbows, double line of walls, faces set in the walls to keep ghosts and evil presences away, a green lawn that surrounds it dotted with trees and small woods. If the castle of the prince charming who saves the princess and defeats the dragon existed, this is definitely Fénis. 

The tour is interesting, flat, there are some short stretches but overall within the reach of many, you pass small villages, a wildlife oasis prohibited to bikes, meadows and fields dedicated to traditional games, challenges that are almost unknown outside the valley. but which attract many fans in individual countries. And then he comes out, almost by surprise, The Castle. The first day ends here, with a visit to the rooms and a picnic in the grove below. An area that will make everyone happy, for the occasion we wanted to make it big, a picnic in true royal style, complete with a restaurant, which being us a little late, decided to come down from the mountains and take us its delicacies, when it is said 'if Muhammad does not go to the mountain, the mountain goes to Muhammad.

If Mohammed doesn't go to the mountain ... the Mountain goes to Mohammed

The restaurant The Tzeno in this way he has redefined the concept of hospitality, embroidered tablecloth, basket for food, pasta with sauce, savory pies, typical cold cuts, cheese and kindness have transformed a moment of relaxation into a unique experience, in the shade of the plants and with the severe figure of the castle to be the master. The first day ends here, with a ride on the pulley of the playground near the castle and a last look at the fortress.

Thanks to the organization of our guides, the shuttle that will take us back to Aosta is also waiting for us, from where we will leave for our evening buen retiro. In St. Pierre an atmosphere of great peace awaits us, the silence of the mountain, the greenery that surrounds everything and the feeling of inner peace that the small villages give here are amplified by a charming hotel, La Meridiana, full of charm. . To complete the picture between the romantic and the emotional, the view from the room on the royal castle of Sarre, a structure with a large tower from which 4 turrets emerge that seem to call dragons and wizards from all over the world. then in the evening everything lights up with a red-pink-purple color that gives an ethereal sensation to the structure. Only time to refresh ourselves, rest a little and it's already morning.

DAY 2

Castle of Sto Germain-Issogne- Arnad

Here you play at home, you start from the top and go down, guaranteed adrenaline and moments of thrill. Then you go back to the level of the Dora and start exploring again.

This second day has the most suggestive moment in the first part. The castle cannot be visited but from here you take the old Roman road, still recognizable at times, with the grooves that were made to guide the carts and the cantilevered panorama. The descent is suitable for everyone, fun for the little ones, a panoramic view for the more scam.

Then you go back to pedaling, among hidden villages and often out of the classic tours, but rich in history and charm. He pauses in Issogne to visit the castle, less impressive than Fénis from the outside, much more interesting inside. We then head towards Arnad, a center famous for lard, where we end the day with a lavish lunch.

We say goodbye to Corrado of PleinAirMTB who accompanied us like a modern Virgil and we head towards the last stage of this intense seventh end. Cervinia, home of Mike Bongiorno and a popular destination for the most famous mountaineers, here Bonatti has opened a route that has remained etched in the minds of all mountaineers. But we will not go here to climb, but to descend. After days of culture that have fed our brain's hunger for knowledge, the time has come to inebriate it with large doses of adrenaline and speed. It is time to test our skills of balance and as the knights of the past showed their courage in duels narrated in the deeds of the songs of courtly love, we will defy the scornful gravity of danger. Ok, I let myself be carried away by the enthusiasm, by the emotion that was breathed through history and perhaps by two days of cycling without even a real descent that generated what is defined as a withdrawal crisis.

DAY 3

Down from the white peaks

Cervinia-peaks white lake and back

Helmet, kneepads and go! We take the lifts that take us directly to Cime Bianche lake, a look at the starting point of the Maxi and then off we go. We manage to cover almost the entire first part of the bike park, calmly and being careful to avoid accidents. The emotion of sharing these scenarios with loved ones is strong, because describing them, narrating emotions is one thing, but only by experiencing them can you understand what it means to pedal in the high mountains, savor the sensations and scents. In a heartbeat we are down a little tired a little excited but happy. 3 days of riding miniature but true, with all the ingredients of the all mountain but made for #superminibikers.

The Aosta valley surprised us, enchanted corners and a way of interpreting nature that has allowed us to fully experience this early summer. But ours is just a goodbye, there are still many corners to discover, and streets to visit.

Info:

For the organization of the tour: Plein air association www.pleinairmtb.com

Where to sleep: Hotel La Meridiana www.hotelmeridiana.it



Written by

[email protected] Mountain bike travel editor and expert. Chiropractor and personal trainer, for years following some of the strongest national interpreters of enduro mtb.

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