Monte Armetta is a mountain in

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

northern Italy Northern Italy ( it, Italia settentrionale, it, Nord Italia, label=none, it, Alta Italia, label=none or just it, Nord, label=none) is a geographical and cultural region in the northern part of Italy. It consists of eight administrative Regions ...

, part of the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, ...

. At an altitude of 1,739 metres is the highest summit of the Ligurian Prealps.

Etymology

According to the historian Emanuele Celesia the name ''Armetta'' comes from

Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orato ...

, but other scholars think that it's a diminutive of ''arma'', a local term used in

Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...

for ''

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

''.

Geography

The mountain stands on the

main chain of the Alps The main chain of the Alps, also called the Alpine divide is the central line of mountains that forms the drainage divide of the range. Main chains of mountain ranges are traditionally designated in this way, and generally include the highest ...

between Tanaro and Arroscia valleys. It belongs to the

province of Cuneo Cuneo ( Italian), or Coni (Piedmontese), is a province in the southwest of the Piedmont region of Italy. To the west it borders on the French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (departments of Alpes-Maritimes, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and Hautes ...

, in

, and is located on the border between the municipalities of Ormea and Caprauna, not faraway from

SOIUSA classification

According to the

SOIUSA Alps by SOIUSA. SOIUSA (an acronym for - English: ''International Standardized Mountain Subdivision of the Alps-ISMSA'') is a proposal for a new classification system of the Alps from the geographic and toponomastic point of view. It was desig ...

(''International Standardized Mountain Subdivision of the Alps'') the mountain can be classified in the following way: * main part =

Western Alps The Western Alps are the western part of the Alpine Range including the southeastern part of France (e.g. Savoie), the whole of Monaco, the northwestern part of Italy (i.e. Piedmont and the Aosta Valley) and the southwestern part of Switzerland ...

* major sector = South Western Alps * section =

Ligurian Alps The Ligurian Alps are a mountain range in northwestern Italy. A small part is located in France. They form the south-western extremity of the Alps, separated from the Apennines by the Colle di Cadibona. The Col de Tende and the Vermenagna valley ...

* subsection = Prealpi Liguri * supergroup = Catena Settepani-Carmo-Armetta * group = Gruppo Galero-Armetta * subgroup = Costiera Galero-Armetta * code = I/A-1.I-A.3.a

Environment

The northern side of the mountain fells with overhanging cliffs towards Ormea, while its gentle southern slopes are covered of woods and

pasture Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep, or s ...

s. On Monte Armetta, in spite of its not so high elevation, grow several typical mountain flowers as

Leontopodium alpinum ''Leontopodium nivale'', commonly called edelweiss (german: Alpen-Edelweiß, English pronunciation ), is a mountain flower belonging to the daisy or sunflower family Asteraceae. The plant prefers rocky limestone places at about altitude. It is ...

Access to the summit

The mountain is accessible by off-road mountain paths and is crossed by the ''

Alta Via dei Monti Liguri The ''Alta Via dei Monti Liguri'' (AV, literally "High Route of the Ligurian Mountains") is a long-distance waymarked hiking trail in the Italian region of Liguria. In about and 44 day hikes, it runs through the arc formed by Ligurian Al ...

'', a long-distance trail from

Ventimiglia Ventimiglia (; lij, label= Intemelio, Ventemiglia , lij, label=Genoese, Vintimiggia; french: Vintimille ; oc, label=Provençal, Ventemilha ) is a resort town in the province of Imperia, Liguria, northern Italy. It is located southwest of ...

(province of

Imperia Imperia (; lij, Inpêia or ) is a coastal city and ''comune'' in the region of Liguria, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Imperia, and historically it was capital of the ''Intemelia'' district of Liguria. Benito Mussolini created the ...

) to

Bolano Bolano ( lij, Bolan) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of La Spezia in the Italian region Liguria, located about southeast of Genoa and about northeast of La Spezia. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 7,490 and an ...

(province of

La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest ci ...

). It's also possible to reach monte Armetta from ''Madonna del Lago'' sanctuary (located several km from the centre of Alto) through a footpath with signposts, which also crosses Monte Dubasso (1,545 m).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Armetta, Monte Mountains of the Ligurian Alps Mountains of Piedmont One-thousanders of Italy