THE VALTELLINA AND ITS MOUNTAINS
Vast granite walls, imposing mountain panoramas and nature reserves, such as the Stelvio glacier, characterise the Valtellina – one of Italy’s most beautiful, yet lesser known Alpine regions.
Valtellina is one of Italy’s most beautiful, yet lesser known Alpine regions, characterised by vast granite walls, imposing mountain panoramas and nature reserves, such as the Stelvio glacier. The valley stretches for a hundred kilometres and is flanked by steep vineyards that are painstakingly farmed. With its dry stone walls, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is an area full of traditions and contrasts. Part of northern Lombardy, Valtellina stretches from the ancient trading town of Chiavenna to the Stelvio Pass – where the region borders South Tyrol and Switzerland. High peaks rise at the point where the Eurasian and African continental plates collided, between them meanders the narrow valley. At the foot of enormous granite walls, where some of the region’s most famous mountains can be found, is a barely accessible terrain, inhabited by a mountain population that turns out to be surprisingly cosmopolitan. The documentary introduces us to the valley’s natural wonders and the special people who live there.