Sampeyre Trails

Val Varaita

Trail circuit of superlatives around Sampeyre, the main town in the middle of Val Varaita. With ascents mainly on gravel and cart tracks and well-groomed enduro trails of the highest quality on the descent. Particularly worthwhile sightseeing stops in various dilapidated villages and hamlets.

Description

Two loops in a row that cover a wide range of the trail characteristics of Val Varaita apart from high alpine terrain: steep rock slides, loose gravel, grippy loam and sandy ground - you'll find it all on this tour. The loops start at a parking lot in the village of Sampeyre. Initially, the route heads uphill on a narrow road towards the northern slopes of Sampeyre. After about 1200 meters, the path changes to a cart track, which is sometimes wider, sometimes narrower. After a few kilometers you reach Serre di Raie. The once flourishing little village has fallen into disrepair, the houses are more or less in ruins. It is worth taking a stroll through the enchanted alleyways. Details such as old frescoes on the walls of the houses have been preserved. Directly after the village, a steep forest trail begins. The former mule track, which is the main connection to Serre di Raie, is a technical ride in parts and requires a sure instinct on the brakes. Shortly before the end of the descent, you come out of the forest into open terrain and have a great view of the slate roofs of Villaretto. The trail descends steeply down to the village.

We now roll back towards Sampeyre on small side roads, cross the Varaira stream and ride uphill on the Via Elva - now already on the southern side of the valley. At km 14.4, we leave the asphalt road and turn left onto a meadow path, which leads us to the start of the trail descent at km 16.6. A genuine enduro trail, not built but well-maintained, now awaits us. It is steep and sometimes quite blocked and tricky for three kilometers into the valley. There are lots of small bends along the way, which also provide some real flow. The difficulty levels are mostly in the S2 range with some easier, but also some S3 passages. The trail ends shortly before Sampeyre, and we roll the last few meters back to the parking lot on asphalt.

To view the detailed tour description, the topo map, the altitude profile and to download the GPX track, you need a user account on Ride-mtb.com with a subscription. Log in now or become a subscriber.