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Route 136.

- From Digne to Barcelonette.

in 4 hours from Digne; thence a path leads down through parched valleys, rather resembling those of the north of Spain than of France, to the village Château Garnier, 7 hours from Digne, where there is a poor inn, the only resting place. From Château Garnier, the traveller soon reaches the valley of the Verdon, and, in its ascent, the interest increases to Colmar, a very small fortified town, which commands the entrance to a gorge, and was, with Barcelonette, formerly in possession of the Piedmontese government. It is still garrisoned, and its gates are shut at 9 P. M. with as much regularity as when it was a more important station. From Château Garnier to Colmar is 3 hours. A little above the town, in the valley there, is a small intermittent spring. Still higher up the valley of the Verdon, 1 hour above Colmar, is the little town of Alos, situate nearly 5000 feet above the level of the sea, in a high Alpine valley, surrounded by lofty mountains; the accommodations for travellers are poor, but the people very obliging. The neighbourhood of Alos is scarcely known to English travellers, but it well deserves their examination, and an excursion should be made to the lake of Alos, a distance of about 4 hours. The route to it lies by the village of Champ Richard. The lake is one of the largest and most profound in the French Alps, though it is situated at the height of 7500 English feet. Its form is almost circular, and its circumference is nearly 4 miles. The Mont Pela, which rises from the side of the lake, has an elevation of 10,500 feet, about 3000 above the lake. There is, perhaps,

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no spot in the Alps so sublimely wild
and sequestered as the valley of this
The surrounding mountains
lake.
are covered with snow and a few
stunted pines, amidst vast precipices
and deep ravines. Surrounding this
retired lake are some of the grand
materials of this most picturesque
solitude. The lake is remarkable for
its outlet, which, after a course under-
ground for 1500 feet, bursts into the
valley, and after foaming through a
succession of cascades meanders in
gentleness and beauty through pastu-
rages rich in their floral display.
From Alos to Barcelonette the route
lies up the valley of the Verdon, and
after passing the village of La Foax,
and crossing a stone bridge, the path
to the Col de Peire, which divides
the valley of Verdon from that of
Barcelonette, this col is soon gained.
It is a fine pasturage to the summit;
and from it a charming view is sud-
denly presented on looking up the
valley of the Ubaye. The descent to
Barcelonette from the col is exceed-
ingly romantic, leading down through
a valley of great boldness richly
wooded.

There is an excellent path down to the valley of the Ubaye, but the descent is steep and fatiguing. Barcelonette may be reached on foot in 7 hours from Alos. The Hôtel du Nord affords good accommodation. In descending from the col, the valley of the torrent Bachelard opens on the right, flanked by grand precipices; it leads to St. Dalmas le Sauvage, and thence by St. Etienne, in the valley of the Var, thence across the Col de Mont Penche, to the Baths of Venadio, in the valley of the Stura, in Piedmont, p. 379.

INDEX.

In order to facilitate reference to the Routes, most of them are repeated in the Index
twice: thus, GENEVA to Chamouni, is also mentioned under the head Chamouni* to
Geneva; such reversed Routes are marked in the Index with an asterisk to distinguish
them.

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Auxonne, 140.

Ayent, 118.

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Bellinzona* to Splügen and Coire, by the
pass of the Bernardin, 234.
Bipp, castle of, 10.

Beresol, 171.

Bergamasque shepherds, 217.
Bergell, 230.

Bergun, 216.

BERNARD, ST., pass of the GREAT, 280-289
Hospice, 282. Dogs, 284. Monks, 282. 285.
Morgue, 284. Jupiter Penninus, 286. His-
tory of the pass, 286.

Bernard, St., the "Apostle of the Alps," 339.
-, pass of the Little, 306. 346. The route
of Hannibal, 308.

Bernardino, St., pass, 231. Villago, 232.
BERNE, 64. Clock-tower, 67. Fountains,
66. Bernese Alps, 67. Minster, 67. Mu.
seum, 68. The Bärengraben, 69. Cha-
ritable institutions, 68. Promenades, 69.
History of, 70.

BERNE to Thun, 71.

to Lausanne, by Freyburg, 122.
to Lausanne, by Morat, 126.
to Neufchâtel, 128.

Bernina pass, 219.

Bersesio, 379.

Bertha, queen of Burgundy, 126. Saddle of,

126.

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