Valnontey to Rifugio Vittorio Sella, Gran Paradiso

This is the signature day hike of the Gran Paradiso National Park, Italy's oldest, established in 1922 on the former royal hunting reserve of King Victor Emmanuel II and straddling the boundary between Piedmont and the Aosta Valley. The walk begins in the hamlet of Valnontey at around 1,666 metres, a short drive up a side valley from the resort village of Cogne, where the Giardino Botanico Alpino Paradisia displays the high-altitude flora of the park. From the trailhead the well-graded former hunting mule track, trail 18, climbs steadily up the eastern flank of the Valnontey valley through larch forest and out onto open alpine pasture, gaining around 780 metres over roughly 6.5 kilometres to reach the Rifugio Vittorio Sella at 2,584 metres, a stone refuge converted from a royal hunting lodge and run by the park. The plateau of Loson around the refuge is one of the most reliable places in the entire Alps to watch Alpine ibex, the emblem of the park, along with chamois, marmots and golden eagles, especially in the early morning and evening. Cumulative ascent is steady rather than steep, but the altitude and length make it a proper mountain outing requiring fitness and sturdy footwear. The path is well marked with the standard CAI red-and-white blazes and park signage, on a surface of stone, dirt and the cobbled remains of the old hunting track. Fit walkers can extend the day beyond the refuge to the Lago di Loson and the Colle di Loson at over 3,200 metres. Snow lingers high into June and returns from October, so the practical season runs from late June to September, when the refuge is staffed and serves meals and accommodation for those wishing to stay overnight and continue deeper into the massif. Water is available at the refuge and from streams along the way, though sun and afternoon thunderstorms are real considerations at altitude. The combination of abundant wildlife, royal-hunting history and high-alpine scenery makes the Valnontey to Vittorio Sella climb the definitive introduction to the Gran Paradiso.