At first glance the old quarry town of Ornavasso might seem an unprepossessing sort of place with nothing to show for its Walser heritage other than a signpost welcoming visitors to Urnafasch. 

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With many of its factories now defunct, the valley bottom town has clearly seen better days. So, head for the steep wooded valley slopes and the towering mountains above, where, fortuitously, the sites of interest are clustered.

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On the right hand side of the valley, looking upstream, across the river Toce, you should be able to make out what appears to be a gash in the slope, half way up the mountain.

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This is the mine-head of Candoglia, one of Italy’s most famous quarries and one of the world’s oldest continuously operating businesses, dating back to 1387!

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When quarries were being scouted before construction could commence on the Duomo Cathedral in Milan, the most important criteria were access and transport, and Candoglia fit the bill perfectly.

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Though over 100 kilometres from Milan, as the mine was located just above the river Toce, it meant that huge blocks of marble could be transported, relatively easily, by barge all the way to Milan.

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700 years later, stone is still quarried from deep underground and still taken to Milan to renovate the Duomo (a classic labour of Sisyphus).

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It is a little known fact that although the Duomo Cathedral was officially completed in 1965, there are still blocks of marble in dusty warehouses which are waiting to be carved.

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All that has changed is the means of transport: trucks instead of barges. The quarry, which resembles a colossal Bond villain lair, is open to the public by appointment.

 

World War One defences

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On the left side of the valley, looking upstream, you’ll notice a watch tower and a huge church. Continue uphill and around the next bend you’ll come to a junction with an unsurfaced road heading off northwards. Leave the car and walk and soon you’ll reach a WW1 bunker and defences.

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After no more than a couple of kilometres the road comes to an end at a ridge and here you will find an artillery piece placed scenically next to some more WW1 defences.

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It now makes a popular climbing frame for children. You can then return to your car or continue your explorations of the fascinating fortifications below, including a series of tunnels leading to trenches and gun emplacements.

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The road leads up to Madonna del Boden, an important local sanctuary, and the first indication of Walser heritage. In fact, given its anomalous position, at such as low altitude, the Walser people who colonised the mountain side were soon assimilated by the Italian speaking population and there is consequently much less sense of Walser identity here, though efforts have been made to foster ties with other Walser communities in Switzerland. 

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There are a few surviving Germanic words in the local dialect and in the names of semi abandoned hamlets dotted amongst the thickly wooded slopes, but architecturally, not a lot to see, also because several Walser hamlets were destroyed during the last war.

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Monte Massone (2161 m) and Eyehorn (2131 m), towering over Lake Maggiore, are in glorious hiking country, but the experience can be slightly marred by access hassle due to the fact that having to set off from such a low altitude, it can take hours until you are through the tree line.

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There is a road up, but as with other mountain hamlets in Val d’Ossola, the route is exceedingly steep in places, especially at hairpin bends, and often not suitable for normal family cars.

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Furthermore, it is maintained by a consortium of local home and landowners who do not take kindly to access by outsiders. So, essentially, if you can’t hitch a lift, you have to walk.

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This takes 3 hours along the consortium road or 2.30 taking the steeper route starting from just behind Madona del Boden. The latter passes through several interesting, semi-abandoned Walser hamlets. There is also an alternative route from behind, ascending from Val Strona up to Alpe Loccia at just over 1000 metres.

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The arrival point is Corte Vecchio, a delightful hamlet just above the tree line offering sublime vistas over Val Grande and Lago Maggiore. There are usually a few people milling about on weekends and during the summer months when sheep farming is carried out.

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Look out for the old ski tow rope just behind the hamlet and, towards Val d’Ossola, some World War One trenches. Having come so far, it is worth continuing all the way to Eyehorn and Mt Massone - ideally after staying overnight at the tiny, welcoming Oliva - Brusa Perona rifugio.

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Located at a choke-point where the two steep sides of the Ossola valley are just a few hundred metres apart, Migiandone provides a great opportunity to really visualise the scale of these ambitious World War One fortifications. With plenty of well-preserved hairpin mule tracks, tunnels, trenches, bunkers and gun emplacements, there'll be plenty to keep you occupied.

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If you've got young children, they might enjoy "playing soldiers" here. If you’re planning to explore the defensive tunnels, you’ll need to bring a torch.

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Located a couple of kilometres north of the town of Ornavasso, next to a main road, you'll have no problem finding the site: just look out for the huge post-war artillery piece in the car-park.

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From there, it’s a fairly steep zigzag climb along the Cadorna line up to another vintage weapon installed outside Bara Fort. Here, you can walk a kilometre or so along a track to an area above Ornavasso where you’ll find more fortifications, the famous Madonna del Boden church and the old marble caves.​

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The small village of Migiandone nearby also makes an interesting destination to explore. There is debate as to whether the village was also founded by German speaking Walsers.