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MOUNTAINS
>> APUANE
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INTRODUCTION
Steep, rocky and wild, the Apuane Alps raise behind Massa
and Carrara, and dominate the coastline of the Versilia with rocky
spurs, needles and high pinnacles, signed by the white marble stripes.
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Nothing
in common with the sweet, green and rolling hills which characterise
the Tuscan Apennines. Here the nature features a rough face, which
makes it particularly fascinating.
Not very high, the Apuane Alps have rocky and steep walls,
a real challenge for expert excursionists, thanks to the sharp needles
and the caves which are among the most spectacular and treacherous
caves in Europe, where even expert spelaeologists have to pay attention.
Only the part towards the Garfagnana features a more rolling landscape,
with marvellous beech and chestnut forests which offer shade to the
pastures.
The curious and nature-loving tourist can find the typical
relax of the mountain villages and discover the Apuane Alps on foot
or on the horseback along the trails. The ruins of the old stone villages
which were used by the shepherds and timber-men, the steep mule-tracks
on the slopes of the mountain, offers an excellent chance to see how
people lived until the last century. Discover the stone villages perched
on the slopes of the Apuane Alps, the lakes in the valleys, the mule-tracks
in the middle of the perfuming pastures dominated by the white marble
tops of the mountains, is an unforgettable experience for any tourist.
Only the most experienced climbers can managed to reach the
peaks and the more "technical" rocky walls of the Apuane
Alps and take one of the more difficult itineraries to discover the
marble archaeology. These Alps can definitely compete with the real
Alps in the north of Italy. If you do not have the right preparation
to affront this wild mountain, you will certainly get great emotions
only by looking at the steep walls along the roads which you have
to take to reach the marble quarries, or by enjoy the pastures covered
with flowers at the foot of the mountain.
The marble extraction, which since the time of Michelangelo
has been the main font of wealth for the inhabitants of the Apuane
Alps, has become a problem for the environment. In 1985 the Parco
Regionale delle Alpi Apuane opened in order to develop the area but
at the same time protect the environment. The park features many trails,
a botanical garden, an oasis managed by Lipu and museums dedicated
to the Etnography and the local traditions. Even a tourist without
any preparation can discover caves, quarries and animals by taking
one of the trails in the park. The Alpi Apuanes are located in the
heart of northern part of Tuscany, in a privileged position for the
tourist. It is not far from the coast of the Versilia, enchanting
historical villages and the treasures of the closest art cities such
as Massa and Carrara and the extraordinary forests of the Garfagnana.
A variety of unique views and atmospheres, without forgetting the
white gold of the Apuane Alps, the marble, the raw material for genius
such as Michelangelo, who out of this stone created real masterpieces.
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