Go skiing in Haut Asco
In the Corsican regional natural park, the Haut Asco ski area is located at an altitude of 1450 meters above sea level and it offers the latest equipment (a ski lift, a cable car and a magic carpet) serving two 600m long slopes and two 100m beginner slopes. Ski school and ski, snowboard, snowshoe and sled rental are also available. To see what the current weather situation is like, you can watch the ski resort via webcam at the web address mairieasco.arobase-multimedia.com/Webcam_page_182_1,575.htm.
In Corsica, especially in winter, public transport is not always very operational, so a functional way of reaching this ski center is by ferry on the Livorno – Bastia line, perhaps even embarking the car; once disembarked in the port of Bastia, if you have a vehicle with you, you will arrive at your destination in an hour and a quarter: you have to travel 34 kilometers on the N193 until you reach Ponte Leccia; from here, a short stretch on the N197 towards Calvi leads to the next crossroads for Asco; it is the D147 road which must be traveled for about 28 kilometres. If you are on foot you must first take a bus to Ponte Leccia (there are two trips a day, for more information the address is corsicar.com/it/autocars-lignes-regulieres-autocar-corse_11.html) and then continue up to Asco or Haute-Asco (19 or 27 kilometers) by taxi, with a total journey time by road of one hour and forty minutes.
The municipality of Asco is part of the department of Haute-Corse: with 127 inhabitants, it is the town of the homonymous valley. The village is located in the middle of junipers and clings to the side of the mountain at an altitude of 650 meters, where the river Asco flows.
The ski resort
The ski resort is located in the heart of the high Corsican mountains. From the municipality of Asco the road winds along the river, in the middle of the municipal forest, up to the Stagnu plateau. This forest is mainly populated by Corsican larch pines and it is located between 1500 and 1000 meters above sea level. It is the D147 road, which passes inside the Gorges of Asco, carved by nature in the red granite and four kilometers long.
An international ski school is available in the Haut Asco resort: a technical team of qualified instructors has been selected to supervise and animate the activities in complete safety. Small groups of a maximum of eight people are organised. Lessons can be both individual and in groups, with courses for beginners and experts, adults and children aged three and over. Before the age of three, children can start doing specific exercises under the guidance of a special instructor. The awarding of medals (internationally recognised) to children and teenagers takes place at no extra charge, because it is rightly considered an important moment that allows the little ones to validate their learning and feel valued. Excursions and walks with snowshoes are also organised, to discover the nature of the valley with a guide.
