Majella National Park
Encyclopedia
The Majella National Park (Parco Nazionale della Majella, 740.95 km²) is a national park
located in the provinces of Chieti
, Pescara
and L'Aquila
, in the region Abruzzo
, Italy
.
It is centered around the Majella
massif, whose highest peak is Monte Amaro (2,793 m).
The area of the Majella national Park, especially the Montagna della Majella, has been subject to a major international geoscientific research Project, TaskForceMajella
from 1998 up to 2005.
(the latter being one of the deepest caves in Europe open to the public). Many tourist centers are located in the park:
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
located in the provinces of Chieti
Province of Chieti
The Province of Chieti is a province in the Abruzzo region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Chieti.It has an area of 2,588 km², and a total population of 381,993...
, Pescara
Province of Pescara
The Province of Pescara is a province in the Abruzzo region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Pescara.It has an area of 1,225 km², and a total population of 295,463 . There are 46 comunes in the province. At May 31, 2005, the main communes by population are:For a complete list, see Comunes of...
and L'Aquila
Province of L'Aquila
thumb|left|200px|Map of the province.The Province of L'Aquila is the largest, most mountainous and least densely populated province of the Abruzzo region of central Italy. It comprises about half the landmass of Abruzzo and occupies the western part of the region...
, in the region Abruzzo
Abruzzo
Abruzzo is a region in Italy, its western border lying less than due east of Rome. Abruzzo borders the region of Marche to the north, Lazio to the west and south-west, Molise to the south-east, and the Adriatic Sea to the east...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
.
It is centered around the Majella
Majella
The Maiella is a massif in the Central Apennines, in Abruzzo, central Italy, at the boundary between the provinces of Chieti, Pescara and L'Aquila....
massif, whose highest peak is Monte Amaro (2,793 m).
The area of the Majella national Park, especially the Montagna della Majella, has been subject to a major international geoscientific research Project, TaskForceMajella
TaskForceMajella
The TaskForceMajella is an industry funded geoscientific research project conducted between the years 1998 and 2005. The project involved numerous universities distributed worldwide, and was sponsored by a number of international major oil companies...
from 1998 up to 2005.
Tourist sights
The park contains about 500 kilometers of Hiking trails through the mountains, cave paintings in Grotta S. Angelo and Grotta del CavalloneGrotta del Cavallone
The Grotta del Cavallone, also known as the Grotta della Figlia di Jorio, is a remarkable cave located near Lama dei Peligni, in the province of Chieti, Abruzzo, Italy. It is open during the warmer months; an admission fee is charged.-Overview:...
(the latter being one of the deepest caves in Europe open to the public). Many tourist centers are located in the park:
- Maurizio Locati Visitor Center, Colle Madonna, Lama dei PeligniLama dei PeligniLama dei Peligni is a comune and town in the Province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region of Italy- Points of interest :* Giardino Botanico della Majella* Grotta del Cavallone...
- sections dedicated to chamoisChamoisThe chamois, Rupicapra rupicapra, is a goat-antelope species native to mountains in Europe, including the Carpathian Mountains of Romania, the European Alps, the Tatra Mountains, the Balkans, parts of Turkey, and the Caucasus. The chamois has also been introduced to the South Island of New Zealand...
, archeology, a reconstruction of a Neolithic village, and the Giardino Botanico Michele Tenore.
- Museo Naturalistico, Piazza Municipio, Fara San MartinoFara San MartinoFara San Martino is a comune and town in the Province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region of Italy...
.
- Paolo Barrasso Visitor Center, Via del Vivaio, Caramanico TermeCaramanico TermeCaramanico Terme is a comune and town in the province of Pescara in the Abruzzo region of Italy, situated near the confluence of the Orfento and Orta rivers, on a hilltop between the Monte Morrone and the Majella mountains.-History:...
- geologyGeologyGeology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
including fossilFossilFossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
s discovered on the Majella Mountain, and archaeologyArchaeologyArchaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
from the Upper PaleolithicUpper PaleolithicThe Upper Paleolithic is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. Very broadly it dates to between 40,000 and 10,000 years ago, roughly coinciding with the appearance of behavioral modernity and before the advent of...
to the Roman age.
- Sant'Eufemia a Maiella, S.S. 487, Sant'Eufemia a MaiellaSant'Eufemia a MaiellaSant'Eufemia a Maiella is a town and comune in the province of Pescara, Abruzzo, central Italy. It is located in the Maiella National Park in a valley enclosed by the western slopes of the Majella massif, and the northeastern slopes of the Morrone group....
- Giardino Botanico Daniela BresciaGiardino Botanico Daniela BresciaThe Giardino Botanico Daniela Brescia is a botanical garden located in the Majella National Park at an altitude of 900 meters above sea level, Sant'Eufemia a Maiella, Abruzzo, Italy...
.
