Aspromonte National Park

Aspromonte is the southern end of the Apennine chain, a granite and crystalline massif rising to Montalto at 1,955 metres, close enough to the coast that the slope from sea to summit happens in about twenty kilometres. That compression stacks climate zones: citrus and olive at the bottom, chestnut and beech higher, silver fir on the tops. Waterfalls including the Maesano falls cut the eastern side, and fiumare, wide stony torrent beds that are dry most of the year and violent after rain, run down to both coasts. Bergamot, grown almost exclusively on this coastal strip, supplies most of the world's essential oil.

History

The park, at the southern end of the Apennines in Calabria, lies close to the sea and takes in summits near 2,000 metres, Montalto reaching 1,955 m; its forests of beech and silver fir shelter the Italian wolf, the peregrine falcon and the eagle-owl (Wikipedia, Aspromonte National Park).

What you'll find

• The compressed zones - sea to 1,955 metres in about twenty kilometres.
• The fiumare - wide stony torrent beds, dry then violent after rain.
• The Maesano falls - a series of waterfalls on the eastern slope.
• The bergamot strip - a citrus grown almost only on this coast.

When to go

May to October for walking; snow lies on the tops in winter. Summer is hot at low level but cooler high. Roads are winding and slow throughout.

Before you go

Roads are narrow, winding and slow, and public transport is minimal. Trail marking is inconsistent. Fiumare are dangerous in and after rain.

Nearby

Pentedattilo lies on the southern flank; Reggio Calabria is west.

Key facts