The Italian cultural association of the "Chambra d'Oc" is  organizing a trek across Occitania, a linguistic and cultural  area that covers parts of northern Italy, southern France and northern Spain.    

The Occitania hike begins in Vinadio in the valleys of Piedmont in Italy on August 30, 2008 and ends in the Arran Valley in Catalonia, Spain, on November 7.    

The trek covers over 1200 km of trail, with a large chunk of the hike slicing across the Alpes-Maritimes, Alpes de Haute Provence, Vaucluse in the PACA region of France. Just above the Côte d'Azur, the hike enters France via the Park du Mercantour, to St-Dalmas-le-Selvage, to the Lac d'Allos and by the Col d'Allos (famous or infamous Tour de France summit), into the northern section of the Verdon Valley.


This trekking initiative is part of an awareness-raising project for the Occitania area, entitled "Occitania a pe"  (Occitania by foot). It's looking to encourage awareness for the Occitan language (we often hear it referred as "Provençal Language") and to foster dialogs between linguistically diverse people.

The hike is also part of a Chambra d'Oc campaign to add  the Occitan language to  UNESCO's world heritage list.

Click on the Occitania A Pe icon for details on the hike (in Oc, Italian and French :). You can join the fun at any of the organized stop points.