Page 27 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Italian Riviera

A POR TR AIT OF THE IT ALIAN RIVIER A  25

The Val d’Aveto is protected
by the park of the same name (see
pp118–19). It includes the highest
peaks in the Ligurian Apennines and
valleys where upland agriculture was
introduced by monks during the
Middle Ages. The park encompasses
the forest reserve of Le Lame, which
has numerous (originally glacial)
lakes and teems with wildlife.
Along the rocky ridge separating the Alta Valle Scrivia
from the Val Trebbia is the Parco dell’Antola (see p112): all
sorts of excursions are possible here,
including a complete circuit around
Antola the artificial lake of Brugneto.

Lago del
Brugneto Santo Stefano
Torriglia d’Aveto
Aveto
Fiume Trebbia

Genoa
Area Marina
di Portofino
Portofino

Promontori E
Isole
del Levante
Ceparana
Cinque
The Parco di Portofino (see pp114–15), Terre
a coastal conservation area since 1935, La Spezia Fiume Magra
is exceptionally pretty. The natural Area Marina
beauty of the promontory (Monte di Cinque Terre Montemarcello
Portofino), a meeting point between Magra
the Mediterranean and the Apennines,
is not confined to dry land. In 1999, a
marine reserve was created to protect
the sea beds.
The Parco Naturale Regionale
di Montemarcello-Magra
(see p130) includes the estuary
of the River Magra, on the
border with Tuscany, and the
eastern side of the Gulf of
La Spezia. From the summit
of the promontory the view
stretches from the Alps to
Portovenere. The rich flora of the
park includes Mediterranean maquis
and flowering plants such as the
cistus (shown here).
The most famous protected area in the region is the Parco
Nazionale delle Cinque Terre (see pp122–5), now also a World
Heritage site. Crammed into narrow inlets between cliffs that
plunge into the sea, the five towns of the Cinque Terre are an
eloquent expression of the ancient relationship between humans
and their environment. The towns look up to sculpted terraces
carved into the steep slopes between the sea and the mountains.

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