To be precise, the complete and official name is Parco Nazionale d'Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise (http://www.parcoabruzzo.it/), but many continue to use the original name, adopted at the time of the establishment of the Park, on 9 September 1922, made official with the Decree Law of 11 January 1923. Browsing the official website of the Park you will find all the information on the purposes, nature, history and how to experience the Park in all its aspects. For our part, we tell you that the experience of a week in this month of July 2021 has allowed us to see how the structures of the park are well organized and the signs are new, clearly legible and comprehensive. We were based in the town of Pescasseroli and the routes we tested are in the municipalities of Villetta Barrea and Opi (Val Fondillo). We were very positively impressed by the extent and quality of the accessible routes that we were able to try and which we will try to document in as much detail as possible; with some unexpected surprises that we see immediately. We were starting on the path that from Villetta Barrea, starting from the intersection at the entrance of the town for those coming from Barrea, leads to the Lake of Barrea, when we made this beautiful meeting:
It is true that Villetta Barrea is the town of deer and that there are many signs that invite you not to harass and not to feed the cute animals, but certainly finding one that walks quietly through the streets of an urban center has certainly surprised and amused! After saying goodbye to the deer, we continued on the path towards Lake of Barrea, a dirt track that can be easily traveled with the Triride. This is the village of Villetta Barrea:
and this is the Lake of Barrea:
Let's stay in Villetta Barrea and take a relaxing walk on Lungo Sangro, the river that starts in Pescasseroli, crosses Villetta and, intercepted by a dam, forms Lake of Barrea and then continues towards the sea. This first route starts at number 171 in Via Benedetto Virgilio, crosses the river and enters a path through a somewhat steep descent, to be tackled with caution:
Otherwise you can take the easier stretch, which starts from where the path to the lake begins and goes in the opposite direction, going up the course of the Sangro:
What beautiful clear water, right? But this is a characteristic of all the waterways we have encountered in these days, in particular in the walk we took in the Val Fondillo, within the territory of Opi. Val Fondillo is rich in woods, clearings and greenery, even if most of the route winds along a dirt track exposed to the sun. And then, having parked the car (free for the disabled) at the beginning of the valley, you can stock up on water in the refreshment center (*) and leave for the path that runs along the Fondillo stream. We stopped at the shaded clearing of the suspension bridge, about 1 km from the beginning, and in any case we would like to recommend the use of the motorized chair, because the manual chair seemed impractical on this type of track. Furthermore, the following destinations were at a distance of at least 2 hours of walking to reach places, such as the Grotta delle Fate, inaccessible to us. Here are the pictures:
And here we are at the pedestrian suspension bridge, built in steel in 2019, certified to carry up to 10 people simultaneously. The bridge allows you to cross the Fondillo stream; for the physically disabled it is technically accessible, even if we have not tried it, given the slope of the path that leads to the entrance of the bridge which would have required a little help:
On the same day as the excursion to Val Fondillo, another one can be made, in a locality, La Camosciara, not far from the entrance to the valley. Leave SR 83 and take what was the old provincial road. Cars have to stop at a parking lot and visitors have to travel, on foot or by train, the 2.7 km of road that leads to the square from which the paths that climb up to the waterfalls branch off. Disabled people are allowed to continue with their car to the square and park there, where there are refreshment points without bathrooms equipped for us. What we can do is cross the bridge over the Scerto stream and stop to enjoy the coolness and take some photos, since one of the paths starts immediately after the bridge:
The Park tends to document its activities and to make naturalistic dissemination through a series of structures open to the public, which are the Visitor Centers and the Museums dedicated to specific activities and animal species. We visited the main Visitor Center, the Pescasseroli Nature Center, which houses, among other things, three bears rescued from circus exploitation in Lithuania, which made them unable to survive in nature; there are also deer, roe deer, porcupines and sheep:
COVID has caused closures ...
In the Nature Center of Pescasseroli there is also a Naturalistic Museum, of which for us only the ground floor can be visited; the museum houses didactic structures, illustrative panels, a skeleton found in the necropolis of Val Fondillo together with tools from the Stone Age and skulls of prehistoric animals found in the Park area. The Museum is also equipped with a small souvenir shop:
The time has now come to talk about Pescasseroli, a town of about 2200 inhabitants, located at 1167 meters above sea level, whose historical roots date back to before the year 1000. Pescasseroli is in a certain sense the capital of the Abruzzo Park, since it hosts its headquarters, but it is above all a very pretty town, rich in historical testimonies and with an ancient center perfectly preserved and kept with great care by its inhabitants, who they do not fail to decorate every corner, every balcony and every niche in the walls of the village with flowers. Let's start with the images:
We close with the usual logistical information: we stayed in a hotel just outside the city in an area full of greenery, from which it is easy to reach the center on the sidewalks provided with appropriate slides. Il Picchio Via Valle dell'Oro, Pescasseroli +39 0863 910760 https://www.ilpicchio.com/
Two other hotels in the area, equipped with rooms for the disabled, are: Corona Hotel Circumvallazione B. Trillo 2, Pescasseroli +39 0863 91731 http://www.coronahotel.it/corona/ Pagnani Hotel Via Collacchi 4, Pescasseroli +39 0863 912866 http://www.hotelpagnani.it/ And finally, we cannot miss the indication of a restaurant equipped for our needs: La tana del lupo (*) Via Principe di Napoli 19, Pescasseroli +39 0863 911039 https://www.facebook.com/La-Tana-Del-Lupo-485365731648917/ with a photo of their main dish: tagliatelle with porcini mushrooms, parmesan flakes and truffle scent:
(*) symbol indicating the presence of toilets equipped for the disabled