Freeride Pila » Aosta

11 km long with a difference in height of 1,730 m: a unique route!

The route is suitable for all fans of free-ride, starts from Pila to get to Aosta and has a length of 8 km on a vertical drop of 1.170 meters, features that can increase up to 11 km on a total height difference of 1.730 meters using the tracks already present upstream and making it for these reasons one of a kind.

The Aosta-Pila track can be classified as a freeride path of medium difficulty and is passable both with MTB downhill, for those who like to compete against time and speed, either with free-ride or enduro, for those who prefer to enjoy the landscaping beauty that surrounds it as well as for fans of the evolution that can dabble in addressing the more technical steps also artificial.

The departure

The route starts near the departure station of the “Chamolé” chairlift at an altitude of 1.750 m asl The first part develops in a meadow area and is initially characterized by the presence of some tight curves and then becomes more flowing and a sparse wood where various single-track passes have been made.

The acrobatic zone

After passing another stage, enter the “ACROBATIC ZONE”. It is a part that develops inside a pine forest nestled in a basin inside which various types of passages such as drop in wood, jumps of various kinds and sizes, compressions and raised curves have been artificially constructed. The area is very suggestive for those who want to test their technical and acrobatic skills and, why not, for those who want to take some photos or make some videos to capture their skills.

Plan Praz

The route crosses a small farm road and presents two alternatives. Going to the left after a short flat stretch of about 300 m you reach the houses from which you can see the intermediate station “Plan Praz” (altitude 1.540 m asl) of the Aosta-Pila gondola with the possibility to go back up again, in a few minutes, until Pila.

The forest

By choosing instead to go to the right, follow a flat trail and continue the descent towards Aosta. Approximately at the altitude of the “Charvensac” pasture, continue on the track keeping to the left margin of a grassy area to then enter a steep and winding path through a wood until you cross the Aosta-Pila regional road. At this point two alternatives are presented again.

Les Fleurs

The first that goes up for about 400 m the road allows you to reach the intermediate station of “Les Fleurs” (altitude 1.373 m s.l.m.) of the Aosta-Pila gondola with the possibility of climbing once again to Pila using the lift. The second crossing the road allows to continue the descent towards Aosta.

Leysettaz

The path continues winding in a brushwood over a long section of about 1.5 km characterized by changes in slope, and various types of tracks (wide and narrow path) and terrain (slippery ground, etc.), coming out on a paved road that leads to the Coassod hamlet. Here you turn left for 50-60 m and then turn right into a downhill section where you can eventually take speed to face a natural step-up suitable for making changes. It then continues within a sparse wood that presents various possibilities of trajectory until arriving at “Leysettaz”. Once you have passed the village, you go down again for about 1 km on a dirt road characterized by several hairpin bends, which are very enjoyable to follow as they are beaten by the repeated passage of the MTB.

The variant of the mines

You then arrive at the bend of a paved road and go along it on the right and then enter again in a stretch inside the forest or on the left you can take the “variant of the mines”. Once you reach the village of Chanté, on the right, you enter the forest where you reach the mines, after which you rejoin the main path.

The technical variant

After about 200 m, before crossing the Aosta-Pila gondola, the path forks. On the left is the steep and tortuous “technical variant” of about 300 m, which then meets at the main path. On the right, at the exit of the wood, follow a stream along a flat dirt road to then go left and cross this stream. Continue along a small valley in a broad-leaved wood and follow a rather smooth path alongside a stream.

The arrival

The terminal part crosses the Clerod hamlet until it crosses the Gressan-Pont-Suaz regional road. Continue on the latter, on the right, for about 800 meters and after crossing the bridge over the Dora Baltea, at the first roundabout turn left following the road signs leading to the departure station of the Aosta-Pila gondola at 580 m altitude slm