Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga National Park, National park in Abruzzo, Lazio and Marche, Italy
Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga National Park extends across three regions in the central Apennines and includes both the granite rock of the Laga chains and the limestone peaks of the Gran Sasso massif. The protected area encompasses high valleys, beech forests, mountain lakes and open grazing lands that shift between gentle hills and steep rock formations.
The protected zones formed gradually in the decades after World War II, when the state began placing threatened mountain areas under management. The formal creation of the park in 1991 united these separate territories and established a continuous network of protection measures.
In the higher pastures, walkers still encounter shepherds guiding their flocks according to methods passed down over centuries. Small stone villages cling to slopes, where residents maintain festivals and traditions from a time when these valleys were more isolated.
Visitors should bring weatherproof clothing, as mountain temperatures remain cool even in summer and weather changes happen quickly. The trails are marked according to different difficulty levels, so you can choose a suitable route depending on fitness and experience.
Several underground laboratories lie deep beneath the mountain peaks and serve particle research, with the rock itself acting as natural shielding for sensitive experiments. Some caves within the park contain ice that persists year-round and harbors microorganisms surviving in extreme cold.
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