GARGANO NATIONAL PARK

Gargano is the greatest headland zone of Italy. Thousand faces mountain kissed by the sun and hugged by the sea.  It’s rich of human history, since the ancient times.  Today Gargano has become National Park.  A national park is the part of a territory subordinates to particular laws that protect it. Because it has typical geographic characteristics, weather, cultural, so Gargano is like a coffer of jewels to discover and to admire.  The park's figures, museums,  visitors' centres, useful numbers.

The Gargano’s mountains have rounded tops; only someone of them is high more than1000 mm.  But its main characteristic is the “carsismo”.In fact, it is rich of big valley, caves and “doline”, created by rain force. There are about 600 land cavities, 52 of them were inhabited in the prehistoric age; on the cost between Vieste, Peschici and Mattinata there are about 128 sea caves.  The Gargano, in only 2000 Kmq of territory, has so many habitats, many animal kinds and several vegetables.On the high coasts, over the deep blue sea, there are large pines of Aleppo woods and “Macchia Mediterranea” (typical local vegetation), while the “carsismo”, as we have said before, models the cliffs and creates sea and land natural cavities.  In hinterland we find forests and woods, made by hundred-year old and majestic trees, like the Forest Umbra, one of the greatest Italian forest; a virgin place, ideal goal for all those who loves living in the nature and go to look for deer and orchids!!  In fact there are 61 kinds of orchids in the Park and hey are the highest concentrations in Europe of this kind of flowers.  Also the towns have a special charm and they are very close to each other. Everyone has a Middle age mark with narrow streets, little fortress, ancient building. They are witnesses of several historic marks (Byzantine, Longobard, Saracen...).  But there are more treasures in the Park:  several rests of ancient human civilizations, the lakes (Lesina and Varano) with their typical ecosystems, mountains hinterland, many farm, many Sanctuaries, churches and abbeys (Monte Sant' Angelo, San Giovanni Rotondo...).

MBut the most important element is the water that more than every other characterizes the National Park of  Gargano.  The sea with its force has given life to natural sculptures, which makes this zone of Italy unique.  There are cliffs, caves, sand beeches or of stone beeches, and off the coast there are Tremiti Islands. These islands represent a treasure of sea, sky, landscape, historical memories and natural monuments.

The towns in the National Gargano Park are:

- Apricena (Mrble processing, the Virgin Sanctuary)

- Cagnano Varano (Saint Michale Archangel's grotto, lots of pilgrims' goal)