Colle della Lombarda
Maritime Alps, border between Italy and France
The road over the main Alpine ridge between the Italian Valle Stura di Demonte and the French Tinée Valley was built by the Italian military. The road on the Italian side is very winding and very narrow, with only one lane in some places.
From the top of the pass, two roads lead down into the valley, another branches off to a ridge road and there are numerous remains of military installations all along the pass. The pilgrimage church Santuario di Sant’Anna di Vinadio can be seen in the background on the left.
Until the Second World War, the Italian border ran down to what is now the French Tinée valley; today it is right at the top of the pass.
I had been taking photographs on the French side all day. The scenery there is characterized by the infrastructure of the ski resort Isola 2000. I was very happy when I found this scenery with the soft light mood on the Italian side. I just had to be patient until the herd of cows finally spread out nicely for the photograph.
It has become one of my favorite photographs. I like the peaceful mood.





























