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COL DU PETIT SAINT-BERNARD
Namely the “lowest” mountain pass of the western Alps, that of the Little San Bernard offers a completely different landscape compared to the more traditional mountain roads, but nevertheless able to leave you speechless in front of the spectacle created by the valley that embraces those who cross it right from the first hairpin bends immediately after La Thuile, a few minutes from Courmayeur. In fact, within a few minutes you leave the picturesque villages behind and drive along the numerous curves, some faster and wider, others narrower and more tortuous. After about twenty minutes, a long straight stretch leads us up to an altitude of 2,188 meters and where once there was the border customs, there are only a couple of souvenir shops and a nice statue of a giant Saint Bernard dog. A few more moments behind the wheel and you reach the hospice built by Saint Bernard of Menton at the end of the 10th century. The aim was to ensure protection for pilgrims against brigands and the harsh winter temperatures.
Location: La Thuile (ITA) – Séez (FRA)
Type: mountain road
Length: 41 km
Elevation: 2.188 m
Even on the French side, the road maintains its characteristics, but since it is an Alpine pass that is easily accessible even by occasional tourists, it can happen to find more intense traffic than usual. Also an ideal destination for hiking, the Little San Bernard Pass manages to offer engaging driving moments, between history and two winter locations of great interest for their respective regions, not to mention that once you reach La Rosière, in a few kilometer you enter the equally splendid Val-d’Isère.
Photos by S. Lomax
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