Val d’Ossola is the valley that from Lago Maggiore stretches toward Domodossola. Seven more valleys have their origin from it: each of them different, special and unique. They distinguish this western corner of Piedmont as unique in Europe, for both morphological and geographical reasons. What makes this region unique, is the relatively short distance between the 190 meters above sea level of Lago Maggiore (the second biggest lake in Italy) and the 4634 meters of Punta Dufour, highest point of Monte Rosa massif and second highest in Europe after Mont Blanc. No other place in the Alps offers such a big difference in altitude in only 45 kilometers in a beeline, while no other european mountain face is as long and vertical as the one that overlooks Macugnaga basin. The two thousand vertical meters nosediving from the four highest points of  Monte Rosa – Punta Gnifetti, Zumstein, Dufour and Nordend – make Monte Rosa east face, the most himalayan wall in the Alps. In between the Lago Maggiore, Mergozzo and d’Orta crowded shores, and the high summits, lay an incredible variety of mountains, beautiful and rich in bio-diversity, that offer a great naturalistic interest. Behind Verbania we find Val Grande National Park, that protects since 1992 the largest wild area in the Alps . Inside it a few trails, no huts and seldom evidence of a past difficult human presence, exist side by side with an untouched nature, a real living laboratory for future generations. Unlike many Alpine areas, permanently inhabited by humans, the seven Ossola valleys offer the chance to live outdoor 365 days a year, enjoying situations where time often seems to be frozen. Villages, meadows, ancient trails, mills, fortifications, signs of an ancient hard life based on the very little help this harsh land could offer, complete incredible views. Steep and wild peaks, glaciers, big walls and remote forests  form the landscape, together with canyons, waterfalls, cliffs, high meadows and inaccessible walls.