Rural farmhouse in the Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise

Pizzone, in the heart of Molise's Mainarde mountains. Where we are. The Mainarde and the Upper Volturno Valley The Mainarde are an imposing limestone massif whose peaks are among the highest in Molise. Since the 1990s they have formed part of the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, of which they are one of the wildest areas. Beech woods cloak the slopes above 1,000 metres in altitude, while, lower down, oaks, turkey oaks, maples and hornbeams vegetate. These are the places where the great Apennine fauna finds its ideal habitat: deer, wolves, eagles, bears and chamois roam undisturbed in clearings, forests, prairies, gorges and ravines. Spring blooms abound, including many varieties of wild orchids. In spring, the swollen torrents of melted snow feed the Volturno, the most important river in southern Italy, which springs here from over a hundred resurgences at Monte Azzone. The numerous paths, today frequented by passionate hikers, are the mute witnesses of shepherds, farmers, pilgrims and brigands who have walked these lands for centuries. Dotted around the Mainarde and Upper Volturno Valley are a number of tiny villages, each with its own peculiarities: some perched on a rocky spur, some gathered at the foot of a mighty manor house, some clinging to the side of steep mountains. These centres were founded by the abbots of the famous abbey of San Vincenzo al Volturno, whose vestiges, brought to light by current archaeological excavations, testify to a past of greatness. Situated on the border of the Carolingian empire, the abbey played a leading political role and Charlemagne himself visited it several times. The crypt of Abbot Epiphanius is worth a visit, decorated with a cycle of frescoes depicting the Apocalypse of St. John. An unusual detail is a beardless Christ, painted according to the dictates of Eastern iconography. Not far away, the quadrangular 15th century castle of Cerro al Volturno, built on the remains of an earlier Longobard fortress, stands visible above the town. Pizzone, in the park since 1925, represents the heart of the Mainarde; it is the headquarters of the Sector Office of the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park and hosts the Marsican Bear Visitor Centre. It is a museum structure where not only the biology of the bear and its conservation problems are told, but also some lesser-known aspects of this extraordinary plantigrade: those linked to history, literature and the figurative arts. The Pianoro Le Forme, upstream from the town, is the ideal base for excursions to the Monti della Meta and the Mainarde chain, which, thanks also to the presence of the Rifugio del Falco, has become a recurring point of reference for hundreds of tourists who regularly visit these valleys for hiking, trekking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and hiking, but also for a simple day in the mountains or for a camping holiday. Castel San Vincenzo, perched on a rocky spur, dominates the Upper Volturno Valley framed by the Mainarde mountain range. Not far away, the lake of the same name, as green as the woods reflected in it, is a place for sports fishing. A Park Visitor Centre can be visited at Castel San Vincenzo: the Museum of Apennine Fauna, which houses interesting collections of rare and valuable species. Also of great anthropological interest is the tradition of the 'Stag' of Castel nuovo a Volturno. Here, on the last Sunday of Carnival, a pantomime of pagan origins is held, possibly linked to the annual purification festivities. There are also recent memories of the war years and, in particular, of the breakthrough, by the reconstituted Italian army, of the famous Gustav line that the Germans had garrisoned to stop the allied forces. Giaime Pintor, partisan and young voice of Italian literature found his death here on the slopes of Monte Marrone. Scapoli links its name to the bagpipe that is still made here in tiny workshops. Every year, in the last week of July, the town dedicates a festival of considerable cultural interest to this ancient instrument and others similar to it, attracting artists and enthusiasts from all over Europe. A museum dedicated to ethnic music can be visited throughout the year. Suggestive and poetic Rocchetta Alta. This is the oldest nucleus of Rocchetta, abandoned in the 1920s because it was threatened by a landslide: a cluster of crumbling houses, whose thresholds overlook narrow alleys and grassy steps that climb the mountain . Some rock churches are also interesting: the Church of the Madonna delle Grotte, of medieval origin, with a valuable wooden statue of the Virgin, and the hermitage of San Michele built in ancient times on the wall of a deep incision. About the hermitage and its statue, a rich heritage of pious legends remains, in which the figure of the Archangel is naturally accompanied by that of the Devil, who is said to have slept on a stone bed in the hermitage itself. In Filignano, poor agriculture, practised for centuries, has left traces in the innumerable dry-stone walls built to wrest small terraces from the mountain; there are also many votive shrines testifying to widespread popular devotion. The archaeological site of the Mennella Walls and the artistic craft workshops are worth a visit. Upstream, unspoilt nature is a treasure trove of rich biodiversity; downstream, villages rich in history, art, handicrafts and quality production. The Mainarde area as a whole presents itself as a treasure chest of natural and cultural riches where the visitor can move around following different thematic itineraries and where it is possible to rediscover a dimension lost elsewhere.