Balme

Discover Balme

At 1,432 metres above sea level, in the Valle di Viù, Balme has a current population of 105 and is one of the smallest municipalities in the province of Turin. As the main settlement of the upper valley, the village has historically served as the gateway to the alpine passes connecting Piedmont to France via the Colle della Croce. Anyone wanting to understand what to see in Balme should know that this is not a place defined by an accumulation of monuments, but a territory where altitude, geology and vernacular architecture come together to form a clear and readable whole.

The feast of the Holy Trinity, celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost, remains the most deeply felt liturgical and community event of the year.

History and origins of Balme

The place name Balme most likely derives from the alpine term balma, a word of probable pre-Latin or Celtic origin denoting a rocky hollow, a cave or a natural shelter beneath a cliff face. The same root appears in numerous other locations across the western Alps, confirming a linguistic layering that predates Roman settlement. Balme’s position — the last inhabited point of the upper Valle di Viù before the border ridges — has shaped the entire history of the settlement: a village of shepherds and mountain-pass travellers, not of merchants or craftsmen.

During the Middle Ages, the territory formed part of the system of control exercised by the House of Savoy over the alpine routes. Late-medieval cadastral records and land surveys document the presence of stable population groups practising vertical transhumance: livestock driven up to high-altitude pastures in summer and brought back down to the valley floor in autumn. This economic structure determined the built landscape: local stone farm buildings, stables integrated into dwellings, and hay barns with cross-shaped openings designed to ventilate the stored fodder.

The eighteenth century brought a new scientific interest to these valleys.

Piedmontese naturalists and alpinists travelled up the Valle di Viù documenting flora, fauna and glacial morphology. During the nineteenth century, Balme became a starting point for the first systematic explorations of the border ridges with France, at a time when the mountains were beginning to be seen not merely as an obstacle to be crossed but as a subject for study and — gradually — for sport. The Wikipedia article on Balme provides a summary of the key facts about the municipality’s administrative history.

What to see in Balme: 5 key attractions

1. The historic village centre

The centre of Balme is made up of houses built in grey gneiss stone, constructed using the traditional building techniques of Piedmontese alpine architecture. The volumes are compact, the openings few, and the roofs gently sloping — originally covered with stone slates. Walking among these buildings allows you to read directly the constructive logic of people who had to contend with cold and winter isolation.

2. The Church of the Holy Trinity

The main place of worship is dedicated to the Holy Trinity, patron of the village. Rebuilt and altered over the centuries, the church retains decorative elements and liturgical furnishings of local interest. The patronal feast — on the first Sunday after Pentecost — turns the churchyard into a gathering point for the entire valley community, including many former residents who return for the occasion.

3. The Alpi Cozie Natural Park

Part of Balme’s municipal territory falls within the protected area of the Alpi Cozie. This ensures the preservation of high-altitude habitats — alpine meadows, glacial moraines and wetlands — with a floral biodiversity that has been documented by botanists since the eighteenth century. Walks through the park offer the chance to observe plant species characteristic of the subalpine and alpine zones.

4. The high-altitude pastures and pastoral structures

Heading above the village, you encounter the pastures historically used for summer grazing. Some of these sites retain dry-stone structures — mountain huts, enclosures and watering troughs — that document centuries of agro-pastoral practice. The official website of the Municipality of Balme provides up-to-date information on trail conditions.

5. The mountain passes into France

From Balme’s upper valley, several border passes can be reached that once served as crossing points between Piedmont and France. The Colle della Croce is the best known of these. Today used by hikers, these passes were historically travelled by smugglers, shepherds and seasonal wayfarers — a human geography that the marks left on the landscape still document.

Local cuisine and food products

The cuisine of the upper Valle di Viù belongs to the gastronomic tradition of the Piedmontese alpine valleys, defined by high-calorie ingredients and preservation techniques developed to meet the demands of long winters in isolation.

Among dairy products, Toma Piemontese DOP is the primary reference: a semi-hard cheese made from whole or partially skimmed cow’s milk, with wheels aged for varying lengths of time. In the Lanzo valleys — of which the Valle di Viù forms a part — toma production has roots documented as far back as the Middle Ages. Equally present is Seirass del Fen, a fresh ricotta made from sheep’s or cow’s milk and wrapped in hay, a dairy tradition recognised among the traditional agri-food products (PAT) of the Piedmont region. Burro delle Valli di Lanzo, produced from the milk of cattle grazed on summer alpine pastures, retains organoleptic characteristics tied to the high-altitude flora — the cows graze on meadows that include wild aromatic species.

Polenta, prepared with maize or chestnut flour depending on historical availability, traditionally accompanies veal stew and dishes made with carne salada — beef preserved under salt with local aromatic herbs, a technique widespread across the Piedmontese and Aostan Alps. Fonduta piemontese, made from Fontina or Toma cheese melted with milk, butter and egg yolks, is a valley-floor dish that in its mountain versions is enriched with truffle or dried mushrooms.

Dried porcini mushrooms from the Lanzo valleys — gathered and dried according to traditional methods — feature in numerous local preparations as a flavouring for risottos, polentas and meat main courses. The inns and mountain huts in the area serve these dishes consistently, particularly during summer and autumn when regular hiker traffic makes regular opening worthwhile.

When to visit Balme: the best time of year

At 1,432 metres, Balme experiences long, snowy winters, with temperatures reliably below zero from November through April. The snow makes cross-country skiing and snowshoeing possible, but renders some alpine routes inaccessible without appropriate equipment. Summer — from late June to September — is the period of greatest accessibility for hikers: the paths to the high pastures and mountain passes are open, the mountain huts are operating, and alpine wildlife (chamois, marmots, birds of prey) can be spotted more frequently.

The first Sunday after Pentecost, with the feast of the Holy Trinity, brings a concentration of visitors and residents to the village that temporarily changes the scale of the place.

Autumn — September and October — offers particular conditions: low-angled light on the ridges, the larches turning yellow, the porcini mushroom harvest, and the end of the grazing season as livestock returns from the high pastures. It is a period of intense activity for local producers and, for those who want to experience the territory without the summer crowds, probably the most rewarding time to visit. The Touring Club Italiano’s section dedicated to Piedmont offers useful resources for planning a trip to the Lanzo valleys.

How to get to Balme

Balme is accessible only by car or private vehicle: there is no direct rail connection to the upper Valle di Viù. From Turin — approximately 60 kilometres away — take the northern ring road towards Venaria Reale, then drive up the Valle di Viù through Lanzo Torinese and Ala di Stura to the end of the provincial road. The journey from Turin takes around an hour and a half under normal conditions, but in winter it is essential to check road accessibility for snow and ice and to fit snow chains or winter tyres. Turin Caselle Airport is the nearest airport, roughly 50 kilometres away.

From Milan, the journey takes approximately two and a half hours via the A4 motorway to Turin.

Other villages to discover in Piedmont

The alpine and pre-alpine valleys of Piedmont offer a variety of settlement contexts worth comparing with the experience of Balme. Ala di Stura, encountered on the way up the Valle di Viù before reaching Balme, represents a different case: a lower altitude, a more complex settlement structure, and a history more directly tied to the commercial traffic of the mid-valley. Comparing the two villages allows you to see how altitude and geographical position determined profoundly different building choices and economic models along the same valley axis.

Moving towards the Canavese and the Piedmontese plain, other villages document further aspects of the regional territory. Azeglio, in the eastern Canavese, carries the memory of the family that gave its name to the well-known Risorgimento statesman. Alice Superiore, in the Biella Alps, retains a medieval layout that remains clearly legible in its urban fabric.

Further north, Biella offers the contrast between the industrial wool-manufacturing city and the Piazzo, the upper borough that overlooks the plain: a historical layering of considerable interest to anyone studying the development of alpine and foothill settlements in north-eastern Piedmont.