|
|
Parco Alpi Apuane |
Itineraries |
||||
|
||||
|
On footA big network of trails covers the Park territory: about one hundred of them are signaled by Club Alpino Italiano and other long distance itineraries have been prepared by Comunità Montane, like Garfagnana Trekking, Apuane Trekking, Lunigiana Trekking or Alta Via delle Apuane. Before going along every route, it is advisable to buy detailed maps, to check the accessibility of the route and the weather conditions. Here you are some of the most classic itineraries you can go along by yourself or together with the Park Guides.
Further information (Italian text) |
|||
|
|
||||
By bikeThere are several opportunities to carry out tours by mountain bike along the trails and the dirt roads within the Park. The FS railway lines train+bike service is very interesting; all trains travelling along the Lucca-Aulla line and various trains of the coastal line grant this service which gives the opportunity to carry out itineraries by using the train to return to the departure point. Here you are some of the most known and charming itineraries, none of which has specific trail markers; it is advisable to have a good cartography or a detailed guidebook.
Further information (Italian text) |
||||
|
|
||||
 |
On horsebackIf you do not consider the mule tracks at intermediate altitude, Apuane do not represent an easy territory for tours on horseback. It is necessary to have obedient and well-trained horses and to be led by expert guides. With these assumptions, a trekking on horseback in Apuane becomes an exciting experience. The Ring-route of the Anarchic
Further information (Italian text) |
|||
|
|
||||
 |
By car and by trainReaching the main "entrance gates" of the territory of Apuane is easy: from the highway exit of Aulla you can easily reach the slope of Lunigiana, by taking the Genova-Livorno highway you can reach the Park slopes of Versilia and Massa, while for the inner slope, from Lucca you can follow the course of the river Serchio, crossing the whole Garfagnana. Also the train is an ideal means of transport to reach the Apuane, above all if you want to face traverses on foot or by bike: all trains travelling along the Lucca-Aulla line are provided with bike transport service, and several itineraries are directly signaled from the railway stations. Further information (Italian text) |
|||
|
|
||||
MountaineeringThe rock of Apuane is often unstable and therefore not very suitable for mountaineering. However, many famous hikers have climbed these mountains by tracing trails which have become classic routes. Moreover, in the last years, with the development of sport climbing, several new possibilities have been found in almost all the mountain groups of the chain. From the famous northern wall of Pizzo d’Uccello, to Gabellaccia, to Torri di Monzone, to Contrario, to Sumbra, to Corchia until Procinto and Mt. Penna. Natural Climbing Walls
Route fitted with ropes, metal ladders, etc.
Further information (Italian text) |
||||
|
One tour leads to another!!! |
||||
Accessible Trail |
||||
|
Parco delle Alpi Apuane has created its first "accessible trail". It is situated in Val Serenaia, in the bag between Garfagnana and Lunigiana, and it has been prepared within a project including other interventions of environmental requalification and trail recovery, with the precise aim of placing a "first brick" for the fruition of the protected area also by disabled people. The works terminated at the end of 2001, and the official inauguration took place on 29th June 2003. Such structure has been prepared in location Orto di Donna, in the Municipality of Minucciano, on the northern Apuane: it is surrounded by a typically alpine environment consisting of beech tree woods of great beauty, in the east of Mt. Pisanino, along Serenaia valley, in a large and charming basin of glacial origin dating back to the Wurmian period (20-18 million years ago) where the stream Serchio di Gramolazzo springs. The route, equipped for the accessibility of disabled persons both with motor and sight problems, leaves from nearby a rest area situated on the last hairpin bend of the asphalt road reaching the quarries of Orto di Donna, and develops for a length of about 500 m with a maximum difference in height, for short stretches, around the 5%: it has been delimited on both sides by wooden kerb with a twofold aim, that is to make walking safer for people with motor difficulties and to work as a tactile kerb for blind people. Most of the trail is delimited by a wooden fence, useful as a support and handrail to protect and favor the walking about of stretches with a greater slope. In order to cover uneven stretches represented by stream beds present in the valley, two wooden crossings with relative support and protection fences have been built. In order to give the visitors the possibility to autonomously move, particular building techniques and specific materials have been used: as a matter of fact, the paving has mainly been made with a product called “Sacatrasparent” which favors and differentiates the tactile perception of people stepping on it. Along the route, two rest areas delimited by stockades have been created: within them, tables and benches have been placed in order not to hinder walking. Along the same trail you can also find two perception areas for blind people, enabling them to recognize by touch some features of Apuane: as a matter of fact, there are some rock samples (photo), with relief-labels, also in Braille, identifying their typology, as well as branch samples gathered and displayed in showcases, whose relief-labels, also in Braille, identify the species they belong to. In the parking area at the beginning of the trail, some places reserved to disabled people will be available soon, as well as information panels placed at an adequate height: they will be placed also along the trail and will contain information - also in Braille - on the Orto di Donna area and on the naturalistic, historical, and landscape features of the territory, with some information on the issues linked to the project. As far as the immediate future is concerned, there is already a preliminary project to complete the above-described trail, which will be equipped in the same way for 450 m more with “Sacatrasparent” paving, a rest area and an area of olfactive perception, as well as with tactile information panels. However, the accessibility projects do not regard only Orto Di Donna: during the next interventions for the enhancement of the botanic gardens of Pian Della Fioba, also accessibility measures dedicated to disabled people will be taken. Among the other things, the creation of wooden footbridges in the first part of the trail and the elimination of architectural barriers within the restructuring activities of Pian Della Fioba mountain hut will be carried out. ... everything to eliminate the barriers from Apuane, to transform it into an accessible Park, with particular attention to disabled persons! |
|||
Some images of the first "accessible trail" of the Park:
|
