Parco Naturale Paneveggio - Pale di San Martino

Points of Interest

Val Venegia

Val Venegia, in the northern section of the Park, represents without a doubt one of the most important areas for its great naturalistic and landscape value. The Valley follows the northern slope of the dolomitic walls of Cimon de la Pala, where it is possible to observe Travignolo glacier with the summits of Bureloni, Focobon and Mulaz closing its head. Woodlands, pastures, screes and dolomitic slopes are the fascinating features of the area, while the traditional activities carried out in the summer mountain pastures give the valley the particular taste of local history and traditions.

• Sentiero geologico Valles - Venegia

Colbriccon Small Lakes

Two stretches of water with glacial origin. You can reach them from Passo Rolle, after a nice walk across Paneveggio Forest, or from San Martino Malga Ces. The landscape is typically alpine rather than dolomitic: as a matter of fact, the area faces Lagorai. Already 8,000 years ago, Mesolithic hunters used to visit these places leaving their tracks through some manufactures discovered thanks to the archeological excavations.

Val Canali

Another charming valley is Val Canali, the southern gateway to the Park. It is very fascinating thanks to the peaks of Cimerlo, Sass Maor, Canali, Lastei, Coro, Sass d'Ortiga and further peaks that, also along demanding paths, lead to many mountain huts.
The valley bottom offers further tour opportunities from the small lake Welsperg along the stream Canali, across the meadows of loc. I Piereni or the mixed beech and silver fir woodlands.

Calaita Lake

Moving westwards and going from Canal San Bovo along Valle del Lozen, tourists can reach a large plateau with another big stretch of water: Calaita Lake. The lake reflects the white walls of Cimon de la Pala, and the woodlands surrounding it create a natural setting. Several paths leave from here: following them, you can reach the surrounding summits or San Martino di Castrozza.

Malga Miesnotta

After following a stretch of Vanoi valley, always in the western section of the Park, and once you are in Caoria, take the path leading to Malga Miesnotta, a rural building used in the past for the summer grazing activities. The building has been recently renovated and is now used as a mountain hut. Therefore, the Malga represents an important example of traditional buildings recovery and acquires both cultural and historical meaning.

Fradusta Glacier

There are two glaciers resisting the test of time in Pale di San Martino: Fradusta Glacier and Travignolo Glacier. However, they experience the same fate of all the mountain glaciers of the Alps: the gradual withdrawal, to the extent that there is an ongoing study monitoring the state and evolution of both. Fradusta Glacier is the largest one: you can admire it along the traverse of Altopiano delle Pale, a route for well-trained hikers. The summit (2,939m) can be easily reached by taking a detour from the main path.

Litoteca - The Collection of Minerals

LITO derives from the Greek word "lithos", meaning ROCK, STONE.
For this reason, Litoteca is a collection of minerals.
Most of the rocks forming the Park mountains are gathered here.
However, thanks to the great geological diversity of this extraordinary territory, the collection houses the main rocks of Trentino and the whole alpine chain.
The "books" have been cut and carved by hand from the rocks gathered in the Park.
The front "cover" of each book has been polished; the spine has been smoothed; the back "cover" is crude, in order to show the many "sides" of each rock.

Xiloteca - The Collection of Woods

XILO derives from the Greek word "ksylon", meaning WOOD.
Therefore, the xiloteca is a collection of woods coming from adult trees.
Almost all the tree species growing in Trentino, including cultivated species, are on display here.
Besides the spontaneous mountain species - like, for instance, all the species living in the Park - the collection also houses more thermophile or even Mediterranean species, growing in Trentino in the area of Garda Lake.
Each "book" describes one species and has been created with the wood coming from it: the books have been made and carved by hand, with wood coming from already cut trees or from old timber.

Fruticoteca - The Collection of Shrubs

FRUTICO derives from the Latin word "frutex", meaning SHRUB.
Therefore, the fruticoteca is a collection of shrubs. It is dedicated to the Park territory, and houses wooden species of adult shrubs growing in the Park area.
For several species, it is not easy to say whether they are trees of "frutici", because if in the Alps they are shrubs, in more favorable areas they become real trees. Moreover, sometimes the same species includes very high specimens and more "shrubby" specimens".
The vegetable samples have been gathered without damaging the rest of the plant: therefore, they are only ends of small branches, and not vital parts like trunks and roots.