Rocca Sbarua ***

A magical place. Only the hut is visible through the trees. Your gaze is drawn beyond the rolling hills toward the majestic Monte Viso. Seemingly far away but yet so close is the dusty metropolis of Turin. Ideal as base camp for many climbs is the comfortable “Casa Canada” with beer on tap and local culinary specialties (in the fall plan on gathering mushrooms and bring them to the chef for a meal). In summer, these south facing walls are too hot, but otherwise you can climb almost all year round. During the week, you usually have the whole place to yourself, but on weekends half of Italy will be chalking up on the low angle walls.