Apuan Alps

Under Regional Law 5/85, the Tuscany Region established the Apuan Alps Park. This mountain range in north-western Tuscany, unique for its geo-morphological and natural characteristics, extends for approximately 60 km along the Tyrrhenian coast across the Versilia, Lunigiana and Garfagnana areas.
Safeguarding such an imposing ecosystem has become essential given the considerable economic interests surrounding the Apuan Alps. The marble from the Apuan Alps, for example, is of exceptionally high quality and has been extracted since ancient times; the extraction of this limestone, renowned worldwide, is indeed the most flourishing and typical economic activity in the region.

The Apuan Alps stand apart from the nearby Apennines due to their extremely rugged morphology, with their deeply carved valleys and imposing, steeply inclined slopes. The Apuan Alps are renowned for the beauty of their marble and for the deep chasms and vast cavities of the karst underground.

The massif’s geographical position, its exposure and the varied nature of the rocks create an exceptionally diverse and contrasting range of environments, fostering remarkable plant and animal richness across the territory. Moving from north-west to south-east, the Apuan Alps begin with the peak of Monte Pisanino, surrounded by the sharp crests of Pizzo d’Uccello, Monte Grondilice and Monte Roccandagia. Further south lies Tambura, the upper Sella, Monte Sumbra and Monte Altissimo, which borders the Corchia group, Pizzo delle Saette, Pania della Croce and Pania Secca. Still further south are Monte Forato and Matanna, from which the Turrite Cava valley in Garfagnana can be seen.

The Apuan Alps are a morphologically complex mountain chain; their geological structure has undergone numerous changes since the Palaeocene, caused by sedimentation, submersion and re-emergence that have shaped their composition. In general terms, we can say the Apuan Alps consist of a central core with rocks formed in situ through sedimentation and subsequent metamorphosis, a sheet (known as Tuscan) of non-metamorphic rocks surrounding the central core, and a framework composed of various rocks such as diabase, gabbro and serpentine.

The various series of caves at different depths and with different extents are particularly characteristic, often featuring underground watercourses and spectacular stalactites and stalagmites. The mountain area uncovered by tall vegetation is also abundant; the rocky, precipitous surface makes these ridges very similar to the Alps, from which they have therefore taken their name.

Where the terrain’s morphology has allowed it, lush vegetation has taken root and, thanks also to the current low timber usage, chestnuts, beeches and oaks find their ideal environment, forming woodlands of rare beauty.

Places of interest

• Montignoso: Aghinolfi Castle, Pasquilio locality, the Gothic Line trenches on Monte Corchio and Monte Folgorito
• Massa: Malaspina Castle, the village of Resceto, Via Vandelli, Valle degli Alberghi, the “lizza roads”, the Forno mill, the Apuan Alps Botanical Garden, the San Carlo and Fonteviva springs, Vergheto locality
• Seravezza: The Medici Palace with the Museum of Work and Popular Traditions, the Capella parish church, the Serra river “pools” for summer bathing, Michelangelo’s quarries.
• Camaiore: Archaeological Museum and Museum of Sacred Art, the Romantic Parish Church, Grotta dell’Onda (archaeological site), Candalla, the Barsi Ironworks and the Lombricese river, the Iron Exhibition at Gombitelli
• Stazzema: Corchia cavern, Le Marmitte dei Giganti (karst phenomena), the Fociomboli peat bog, the alpine pastures of Mosceta and Puntato, the Monte Procinto and Monte Forato group, the Memorial to the Fallen and the Historical Museum of the Resistance at Sant’Anna di Stazzema and the Iron Exhibition at Gombitelli
• Careggine: Monte Sumbra, the submerged village of Fabbriche di Careggine (every 10 years), the Isola Santa lake, the ski lift at Vianova locality, the Monte Volsci educational trail
• Gallicano: The Trassilico Fortress, the educational trail through chestnut groves and “metati” (chestnut drying sheds)
• Minucciano: The Orto di Donna valley, the old church of Gorfigliano and the Statue Steles in the Madonna Sanctuary
• Molazzana: The Panie group, the villages of Sassi and Cascio, the climbing rock gym “Le Rocchette”
• Vagli di Sotto: The glacial cirque and LIPU oasis at Campocatino, the San Viano Hermitage, the Church of Sant’Agostino, Lake Vagli, Arnetola valley and the artistic events at Cava Borella
• Fabbriche di Vallico > The 18th-century mill for organic flour production, the Castelvenere grotto
• Pescaglia: The Galgani ironworks, the Chestnut Museum at Colognora, Monte Piglione, Val Pedogna
• Vergemoli: The Cave of the Wind, the Calomini Hermitage and Monte Forato and the Panie group.

Recommended hotels in the area Apuan Alps