Riserva naturale guidata Gole di San Venanzio, Regional nature reserve in Raiano, Italy.

Riserva naturale guidata Gole di San Venanzio is a 1,072-hectare protected area in the municipality of Raiano, province of L'Aquila, established by Abruzzo regional law no. 84 of 1998. A steep pale grey and beige limestone gorge rises from dense forest, its face streaked with tan and orange and broken by ledges where shrubs cling. The Aterno river leaves the narrow gorge beside the hermitage of San Venanzio, at 501 m above sea level, opening onto cultivated alluvial plain.

The reserve was established by Abruzzo regional law no. 84 of 1998, covering 1,072 hectares in the municipality of Raiano. It largely overlaps a Natura 2000 site of community interest and forms an ecological corridor between Maiella National Park and the Sirente-Velino regional park. The Aterno leaves the gorge beside the medieval hermitage of San Venanzio, at 501 m, opening onto cultivated alluvial plain.

The hermitage of San Venanzio stands at 501 m on the Aterno, where the river leaves the gorge for the cultivated plain. San Venanzio is the patron saint of Raiano, and the sanctuary is one of the stops on the reserve's trail network, together with the Chiesa dell'Assunta and the Sorgente La Solfa.

The reserve is crossed by a network of trails that reach all its points of interest, from the hermitage of San Venanzio at 501 m to Monte Urano and the Castellone. Paths run over limestone and uneven ground, so sturdy hiking boots are needed. The Aterno leaves the gorge beside the hermitage, where the route opens onto cultivated plain.

The reserve forms an ecological corridor between Maiella National Park and the Sirente-Velino Regional Nature Park. Its narrow Aterno gorge, with overhanging limestone walls, shelters breeding raptors including the golden eagle, lanner falcon, peregrine falcon and red-billed chough.