Valdieri thermal baths
Guest of the Terme in 1857 was Cavour himself, who declared to the Chamber of Deputies: “The locality of Valdieri is the richest in healthy waters that exists in the State, and perhaps even in all of Europe. I don't really know if there is any other locality, where such a great variety of very effective waters are gathered, and this in a healthy climate beyond any other ".
When the king of Sardinia Vittorio Emanuele II visited the Valle Gesso and its thermal baths, he was fascinated by such great beauty and majesty and the mayors of the municipalities, well aware of his hunting passion and the advantages that would derive from a presence in the area of the royal family, they decided to cede hunting and fishing rights to the king. The House of Savoy built the summer residence in Sant'Anna di Valdieri, the hunting lodges in San Giacomo di Entracque and the Piano del Valasco. Four chalets were built at the spa, one of which is still called the “Casa della Bela Rosin” today in memory of Rosa Vercellana, the commoner with whom Vittorio Emanuele II had a love affair. The presence of the royals made the valley a privileged destination for many politicians, nobles and sovereigns of Europe, and had a very positive influence on the economy of the area, since the families of the gamekeepers could count on a safe job and many other valley dwellers, employed seasonally in hunting trips, in the maintenance of paths, in cooking and cleaning jobs, they could supplement their poor earnings.
From the spa complex, immersed in the green of the centuries-old woods, it is easy to reach the "Valderia" Botanical Garden, where a naturalistic path, within everyone's reach, allows you to admire the various habitats of the Maritime Alps, to recognize the many floral species and the 14 species exclusive endemics that the particular microclimate of the Gesso Valley offers.
The Terme establishment is one of the highest in Italy because it rises to m. 1,375.
The natural sulphurous caves are dug into the rock of Monte Matto and are heated to a temperature of 46 ° C.
The sulphurous thermal waters flow from 32 springs, whose temperature varies from a minimum of 42 ° to a maximum of 72 °.
Sulfur algae are the main feature.
"VALDIERIA" BOTANICAL GARDEN
The "Valderia" Alpine Botanical Garden, inaugurated in 1990, is a reconstruction as faithful as possible of the different plant environments present in the park. It is structured by environments, each of which identified by a wooden panel that describes its main characteristics.
The Garden is open from June to September with paid admission. Guided tours for groups are also organized by appointment at the park headquarters.
In the mixed coniferous forest that forms the backdrop to the garden, a Nature Trail has been set up complete with information on geology, zoology and ecology.
The entrance is reached by crossing the Gesso del Valasco stream on a wooden bridge, from which you can already admire the richness of the vegetation and the daring cliffs that rise towards the Rocca di San Giovanni which dominates the garden.
The path has a development of 950 m with departure and arrival at the Garden, a difference in height of about 60 m and requires a travel time of about an hour.
(see Gardenia Magazine n.339 of July 2012 page 90 Valderia Botanical Garden)
