ITINERARIES
A visit to Fiastra Abbey Nature Reserve is a unique and unforgettable experience for its harmonious landscape, the light sounds in the air, and the colours characterizing each season. You can stroll or bike along the trails (maps and tactile maps are available at the Visitor Center).
Nature Trails
Nature Trail "La Selva"
The itinerary consists of seven rest points, and its aim is to show the different aspects of the wood: you walk along a trail going through the whole Selva,where you can still find the traces left by human activities during the latest century, like the pheasant breeding and the ornamental evergreens.
The last stretch of the itinerary shows the most natural side of the wood and the dynamics of its vegetation, like the development of high-trunk trees which are gradually replacing the coppice woodland dominating until a few years ago.
Nature Trail "Le Vene Lake"
The trail crosses the agricultural territory between “La Selva” and the river Fiastra. The morphology of this area is mainly due to the action of the river which has been shaping the landscape since the Quaternary period. This itinerary gives the opportunity to observe a peculiar kind of forest which reminds the ancient forests which covered this valley in the past. Moreover, the itinerary can be considered among the best ones for wildlife observation, since it crosses three different environments: the cultivated fields, the river, and the wood.
Along the trail you will see the Prince’s shooting lodge, which was built when the Abbey areawas a hunting reserve; following the course of river Fiastra, the river ecosystem with its characteristic riparian vegetation; finally, the lake "Le Vene", a former gravel quarry which has been subject to a careful project of environmental restoration since the establishment of the Nature Reserve. Here it is possible to observe interesting species of migratory birds such as the grey heron, the little egret, the coot, the little grebe, and nesting species like the kingfisher and the moorhen.
The trail continues entering for a short stretch the Selva, it goes along an interesting farmhouse, and then gets to the "Pignolara", a pinewood, and finally back to the Abbey.
Sensory Trail "The Wood and the River"
Following this trail, you will be able to discover nature not only through the sense of sight, but also through the hearing, the touch, and the smell. All the obstacles have been eliminated from the trail, to make it accessible to everyone. It develops in the plain and it takes about 30 minutes. The ground is made with pressed gravel and it is delimited by a fence in order to guarantee a safe visit.
Along the way, six stops will focus your attention on the history of the territory, the hedges, the features of the riparian vegetation, the river Fiastra, the white poplar, and the importance of the dead trees.
A visit to Fiastra Abbey Nature Reserve is a unique and unforgettable experience for its harmonious landscape, the light sounds in the air, and the colours characterizing each season. You can stroll or bike along the trails (maps and tactile maps are available at the Visitor Center).
Nature Trails
Nature Trail "La Selva"
The itinerary consists of seven rest points, and its aim is to show the different aspects of the wood: you walk along a trail going through the whole Selva,where you can still find the traces left by human activities during the latest century, like the pheasant breeding and the ornamental evergreens.
The last stretch of the itinerary shows the most natural side of the wood and the dynamics of its vegetation, like the development of high-trunk trees which are gradually replacing the coppice woodland dominating until a few years ago.
Nature Trail "Le Vene Lake"
The trail crosses the agricultural territory between “La Selva” and the river Fiastra. The morphology of this area is mainly due to the action of the river which has been shaping the landscape since the Quaternary period. This itinerary gives the opportunity to observe a peculiar kind of forest which reminds the ancient forests which covered this valley in the past. Moreover, the itinerary can be considered among the best ones for wildlife observation, since it crosses three different environments: the cultivated fields, the river, and the wood.
Along the trail you will see the Prince’s shooting lodge, which was built when the Abbey areawas a hunting reserve; following the course of river Fiastra, the river ecosystem with its characteristic riparian vegetation; finally, the lake "Le Vene", a former gravel quarry which has been subject to a careful project of environmental restoration since the establishment of the Nature Reserve. Here it is possible to observe interesting species of migratory birds such as the grey heron, the little egret, the coot, the little grebe, and nesting species like the kingfisher and the moorhen.
The trail continues entering for a short stretch the Selva, it goes along an interesting farmhouse, and then gets to the "Pignolara", a pinewood, and finally back to the Abbey.
Sensory Trail "The Wood and the River"
Following this trail, you will be able to discover nature not only through the sense of sight, but also through the hearing, the touch, and the smell. All the obstacles have been eliminated from the trail, to make it accessible to everyone. It develops in the plain and it takes about 30 minutes. The ground is made with pressed gravel and it is delimited by a fence in order to guarantee a safe visit.
Along the way, six stops will focus your attention on the history of the territory, the hedges, the features of the riparian vegetation, the river Fiastra, the white poplar, and the importance of the dead trees.
Photogallery
