San Lorenzo Bellizzi	Civita	Cerchiara Di Calabria	Francavilla Marittima

POLLINO NATIONAL PARK
TEXT received from VINCENZO Tarantino on 6-5-2010

The name Pollino derives from Apollinea; it refers to the beauty of Apollo, the Sun God. The area now comprised by the Park was considered the garden of the gods due to its exceptional beauty.
Located in the heart of Southern Italy, between the regions of Basilicata and Calabria, the Pollino National Park encompasses an area which is characterized mainly by rocky formations and in which fifty-six small towns and villages, belonging to both regions, are located. The towns have distinguished cultural characteristics. Some are inhabited by people who emigrated from Albania in the fifteenth century, in an attempt to escape the Turkish invasion; the population still keeps its language and traditions alive.
This massif complex, of rare beauty, is the land of mystery and discovery, made by astonishing geological, morphological and biological diversity, where the only sound is that produced by the wind blowing through shrubs and mountain peaks. High peaks are followed by forests and plateaus, meadows, pastures and steep rocky crests.
Water is synonymous with life. In addition to shaping the grooves and gorges, water gives the vegetation a lush appearance. Nature is uncontaminated and unscathed. The mountains peaks are home to the Pino Loricato (Pinus Leucodermis Antoine), symbol of the Pollino National Park, where it finds its ideal habitat. The Pino Loricato has disappeared from most of Europe; it is a powerful and elegant tree that, when observed, seems to unite heaven and earth. Its roots defy the powerful forces of nature; only the negligence and the hand of man could destroy its wilderness, by fire, as happened to some rare specimens.
At the Porta del Pollino there is a Pino Loricato called "Sentinella", which, with its twisted body and branches, seems almost to protect other pines; it is very old, and at its roots a young pine tree was planted - to be its successor.

Among the many scenes of rare beauty that the park gives us, the Raganello Valley is certainly the most spectacular and rugged valley of the Park, located entirely in Calabria on the borders with Basilicata.
Here in a unique setting, one can admire astonishing scenery comprised of rocky walls hundreds of meters high, with very deep and beautiful gorges. The "Timpe" are beautiful massive white limestone mountains with a silvery appearance, sloping at 70-80 degrees. The Foresta della Principessa and the oak forest of Santa Venere, with their small springs, offer the sensation to be in a fairytale world!
The Raganello Valley is of prime importance for its peculiarity, considered to be one of the most famous in terms of geological grandeur of the Pollino Park, the most beautiful in Italy and among the most beautiful in Europe. The Raganello Torrent has modelled the deepest canyon in Europe. Its course is a marvel of nature. It originates from a spring at the foot of the Serra Ciavole, flowing down through thick, green, lush forests, reaching the base of Timpa San Lorenzo, where it has dug a spectacular, deep gorge, with nearly vertical walls in the massive rock, called "Gola di Barile", where the narrow deep gorge prevents access to the sun for almost the entire day.
The Raganello makes a curve below the village of St. Lorenzo Bellizzi, then enters its most amazing 10 km bed, partially filled with chaotic huge boulders; rock outcrops are polished, and river walls are as high as 700 feet. Along the torrent's course, there are all types of erosion, sparkling waterfalls, slides and crystal clear water pools during dry season. After about 10 km, the torrent runs along its dark and twisting bed, reaching Civita, a small Albanian origin town, and, just after the Ponte del Diavolo, starts to flow freely towards the open valley, to reach the Gulf of Sibari. This last section is a wide, mostly dry river course, named Fiumara del Raganello, with its bed and banks covered by gravel and sand, where water infiltrates rapidly; a minor flow is maintained during dry months, when its banks are embellished by odorous oleanders, blooming during summer.
This is the spectacular and astonishing canyon of the Raganello! Its altitude varies sharply from 550 m at Ponte Illici to 1,650 m at the top of Timpa San Lorenzo. The latter one, from one side is smooth and stepped (named Lisci di Pascalone ) and, descending to the valley is characterized by massive stratified rock layers; on the other side, impressive walls overlook the river banks marked with crevices and small caves, where birds (including the royal eagle) build their nests.

The geological structure of the "timpe" consists of Mesozoic dolomite and Miocene limestone.
In the Park Reserve Area there are also some agro-pastoral settlements that witness the ancient relationship between man and his mountain.

Additional interesting information on the geomorphologic and anthropological evolution of the Raganello Valley is found in the beautiful and inspiring book of Dr. Costantino Faillace, a former UN expert, and well-known hydrogeologist of international repute. It is documented with numerous photos and cultural history of the area, the latter contributed by Dr. Leonardo Larocca and Dr. Francesco Carlomagno. The book is entitled "San Lorenzo Bellizzi - Dirimpettaio dell Gole del Raganello e del Massiccio del Pollino (Travel Guide of San Lorenzo and neighbouring areas); The book is published by Maria Pacini Fazi Editor, Lucca, Italy.

Along the cliffs of Timpa di S.Lorenzo from RedAlert on Vimeo.

The hike of the two bridges from RedAlert on Vimeo.