The 'King of Stone' and Pian del Re
With its isolated, pyramid-shaped peak reaching 3,841 metres, Monviso dominates the western Alps of Piedmont and is visible from much of northern Italy, from Turin and the plain to the Apennines of Liguria. Called the "Re di Pietra", the King of Stone, it was considered a sacred mountain by the ancient Ligurians, and Virgil and Pliny mentioned it as "Vesulus". It was first climbed in 1861 by the English climbers William Mathews and Frederick Jacomb, and the ascent of Quintino Sella in 1863 led to the founding of the Club Alpino Italiano.
At its foot, in the Valle Po, a road climbs from the village of Crissolo to Pian del Re, a high plateau at 2,020 metres, where the source of the Po, the longest river in Italy, is marked by a stone plaque: a small spring of clear water that flows among the stones of the meadow and begins its journey of 652 kilometres to the Adriatic. From Pian del Re, a classic walk leads in about two hours to the Lago Grande di Viso, at 2,593 metres, and the Rifugio Quintino Sella, with a spectacular view of the north face of Monviso, and passes small lakes such as Lago Fiorenza and Lago Chiaretto, with turquoise water. The area is part of the Monviso Transboundary Biosphere Reserve of UNESCO, shared with France. Nearby is the Buco di Viso, a tunnel dug in 1480 to link the Marquisate of Saluzzo with France, the first Alpine tunnel.
Tip: the road to Pian del Re is closed to private cars on some summer days; go early in the morning, when the light on Monviso is clearer.
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