Water world
Piedmont is wet, but perfect for the outdoors enthusiast, discovers Katie Hope
Every nation has its eccentric national pursuits. The Japanese play pachinko – an addictive cross between pinball and a fruit machine which pays out metal balls; the Dutch eat chips with mayonnaise; the Spanish fight bulls. And in Northern Italy, come the weekend they go hydrospeeding.
It’s a peculiar sport, like white water rafting, only without the raft. It’s just you, a wetsuit, a lifejacket and some flippers. Oh, and a kind of square float with big handles. You jump in the river and use the float to steer yourself through the rapids. It’s exhilarating, terrifying and exciting all at the same time. And very, very fast.
The weekend I arrive in the alpine valley of Valsesia, on the north-western border Italy shares with France and Switzerland, it’s been raining solidly for around five days, making the river Sesia very full and therefore much speedier than normal. Our group of three is briefed beforehand. “Avante” means go, “stop” (rather luckily) is “stop” and then there was the Italian for “right paddle” and “left paddle”, but I can’t remember those. In the end our Colombian guide, who fortunately speaks both Italian and English, shouts the instructions first in Italian and then in English for those like me who’ve forgotten the words.
Crash Helmet
It’s a pretty good system, but given the likelihood that you are soon going to be heading towards a rock at high speed and won’t have time to wait for instructions, instinct can be handy too. It sounds scary, but you are following your guide at all times , there’s a kayaker to help you if you get into difficulties. And you get a crash helmet, which is reassuring.
Although it might seem novel, it’s pretty big among the Italians. During the summer months outdoor enthusiasts and thrill-seekers head to Valsesia, dubbed the “greenest valley in Italy”. The reason it is so green, of course, is that it rains incessantly But if you are hydrospeeding, kayaking or rafting (all are possible here) then getting wet doesn’t matter.
The area might not be top of most Brits’ list of Italian destinations, but it is very accessible. Leave the office at 1pm on a Friday, as I did, and by 6pm Italian time you can be sitting sipping a glass of wine on a balcony overlooking Monte Rosa, Switzerland’s highest mountain. It’s so quiet that on my first night I struggled to get to sleep.
Local Guide
I stayed in the small town of Alagna, right at the foothills of the mountains, which is a good base for any activity you fancy, although hiking is one of the most popular. We hired a local guide, thought that is not necessary if you’ve got a good map as the paths are clearly marked. But it’s worth it, if you want to find the best polenta in town.
Our guide Marco, from the Alagna tourist office, took us not only up the mountains, but on unexpected diversions. We stopped off at a small house hiding an even smaller factory making toma, a hard cheese renowned in this area. For €8 you can buy a pretty decent ball which sells for double that in some of the priciest Milanese restaurants. He also showed us the old style Walser houses, settled in by ancient Germans who formed a protected and isolated colony in the high altitude area, housing their animals on the ground floor of the three storey wood and stone structure houses. The culture’s still strong to this day and the locals can spot someone of Walser descent easily.
Downpour
Marco’s advice on gear was pretty handy too. In spite of the bright sunshine at 7am, he was insistent we packed our waterproofs. After an hour of trudging up hill, it became clear why. First a drop, then a few more, then the heavens really did open and didn’t stop. We persisted, but it’s hard going when you’re all soggy and can’t see anything. I realised that “water resistant” on the label of your jacket really isn’t the same as “waterproof”.
Luckily, there are a few villages en route. We stopped to dry out and for coffee – even out in the sticks the espressos are great. And after a brief venture outside to see if the rain had stopped (it hadn’t) we went back in for lunch. The speciality in this area is polenta, basically boiled cornmeal.
Spiced up with cheese and cream and onions, it was a like a comforting macaroni cheese. Then there was a spicy sausage stew. Mixed all together, with a hefty helping of some local red Bramaterra wine, it was the perfect post hike meal.
The region is well known for its fine dining: miacce, soft and crunchy waffles paired with everything from gorgonzola to honey, Valsesian toma, a typical cheese made in the valley, moccetta, wafters of cured beef and capunet, stuffed cabbage, are just some of the specialities created to fight off the cold winter at high altitudes.
After our brief respite from the rain, we finally got to see what we’d been hiking through. Surrounded by towering mountains on all sides, the view was worth the wait. There is some serious hiking here, including the Tour del Monte Rosa, a ninestage walk that goes via the towns of Alagna, Macugnaga, Saas Fee, Zermatt and Gressoney. But if that’s a bit too serious, then you can just, as we did, have a gentle-ish four-hour hike and be home in time for your dinner.
And what dinners they do. On our last night we dined in a local Alagna restaurant on “stag special”: basically, everything bar the horns: a starter of raw stag, followed by stag gnocchi, then stag stake. It was delicious, but filling. Perhaps time for another hike, just to burn off the calories. Monta Rosa anyone?