POST CONGRESS - MAIELLA NATIONAL PARK TOUR

FRIDAY 17th JUNE
Afternoon
- Accommodation in hotel/B&B at hotel * in Caramanico Terme
- Introduction to the territory at the Natural History Museum “P. Barrasso”, visit of the latter (it consists of 3 sections: the one at ground floor about the geological history of the Maiella area, the following located upstairs shows a number of archaeological findings all belonging to the Maiella area, dating back from the Lower Palaeolithic to the Late Middle Ages, and a third one reproducing several environments of the Orfento Valley Nature Reserve).
Dinner
- local food-based dinner in Caramanico Terme

SATURDAY 18th JUNE
Morning
- 9.30 am: meeting with the Majambiente guides at the Orfento Valley Visitor Centre and visit at the Wildlife Research Centre of the Maiella National Park, focusing on the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation areas, currently hosting some individuals of red deer and roe deer.
- 10.00 am: hike into the Orfento Valley Nature Reserve along the Scalelle itinerary*
* technical details
Duration: 3 hours (breaks included)
Distance: 4 kms
Elevation gain/loss: + 150 mt / - 150 mt
Trail features: the hike unwinds along a single-trek path, rocky and exposed in some areas, allowing the visitors to descend gradually into the bottom of the gorge, where the trail follows the crystal-clear Orfento river, crossing it through wooden bridges, moving among a beautiful and lush vegetation.
Difficulty: E - Hikers (Easy)
Lunch
- 1.00 pm: packed lunch at the picnic area nearby the Wildlife Research Centre
Afternoon
- 3.00 pm: transfer to the Lama Bianca Nature Reserve
- 3.30 pm: hike into the beechwood within the Lama Bianca Nature Reserve, waiting for the sunset, talking about Apennine Wolf packs and Apennine Brown Bear conservation*
* technical details
Duration: 4 hours (breaks included)
Distance: 8 kms
Elevation gain/loss: + 350 mt / - 350 mt
Trail features: the itinerary follows for most of the time a large dirt road completely immersed into the woods, a fascinating beech forest alternating with small meadows leaving gradually room to a beautiful upland, at the foot of Maiella, with an astonishing view on most of Abruzzo mountains and the Adriatic Sea; the path then goes back into the woods to finally reach the starting point.
Difficulty: E - Hikers (Medium)
Dinner
- “Verace Pizza Abruzzese” dinner (Neapolitan pizza seasoned with local ingredients, cooked in a traditional wood-fired oven) at pizzeria in Caramanico Terme

SUNDAY 19th JUNE
Morning
- 6.30 am: meeting with the Majambiente guides outside the hotel and transfer to the Bruno Pomilio Refuge.
- 7.30 am: hike to the Murelle glacial amphitheatre and observation of the Apennine chamois*
* technical details
Duration: 7 hours (breaks and lunch included)
Distance: 15 kms
Elevation gain/loss: + 600 mt / - 600 mt
Trail features: the hike starts at the Bruno Pomilio refuge, on the northern side of the Maiella massif, and follows the P path towards the high altitude of the mountain, but first getting through the thick dwarf-pine scrub, walking on the edge between the Eastern side of Maiella, looking directly at the sea, and the Western side of it, looking inland. The view is wide, stretching from the sea to the Gran Sasso and the glacial morphology of several of Maiella's summits.
Once the trail leaves the dwarf-pines, it starts climbing on a rocky area leading to the bivouac Carlo Fusco, the best spotting point for the Apennine chamois, which lives in numerous packs in this area, surrounded by the fossil coral reefs of the Murelle amphitheatre, one of UNESCO Maiella Geopark's most important geo-sites.
Difficulty: EE - Expert Hikers