Val d’Aosta

According to popular tradition, the mountains of the Val d'Aosta are inhabited by the Dahu, a deer of sorts with two shorter legs (on the same side of the body) that allow it to remain upright on the steepest slopes but that force it to walk around the mountains always in the same direction. Therefore, there would be right-handed Dahus and left-handed Dahus.

The Gran Paradiso National Park was established on December 3, 1922, making it the first national park in Italy. It covers more than 710 km² and is home to an extraordinary biodiversity of animals and plants that grow almost exclusively here, such as Astragalus leontinus Wulfen.

When walking in Val d'Aosta, especially in Val d'Ayas, you may come across people wearing wooden shoes. These shoes are called the “sabot”, traditional footwear that is robust and warm and still a valid alternative to mountain boots. At the peak of the market growth, there were more than 200 sabotiers - the artisans who produced sabots - in Val d'Ayas.