Pollino National Park

Pollino covers about nineteen hundred square kilometres across two regions, the largest national park in Italy, with peaks above two thousand metres and deep limestone gorges. Its emblem is the Bosnian pine, Pinus heldreichii, which in Italy grows only here, on exposed ridges where it forms twisted skeletal trees that survive centuries; one specimen, named Italus, was dated by researchers in 2018 to around one thousand two hundred and thirty years, making it among the oldest dated trees in Europe. The Raganello gorge cuts through the massif, and wolves, otters and golden eagles live in the park.

What you actually see

• The Bosnian pines - twisted ridge trees found in Italy only here.
• Italus - a pine dated to around 1,230 years old.
• The Raganello gorge - a deep limestone canyon through the massif.
• The wildlife - wolves, otters and golden eagles across the range.

When to go

May to October for walking; snow closes the high routes in winter. The Raganello gorge requires a guide and is closed in high water after a fatal flash flood in 2018.

Honest expectations

The Raganello gorge is only entered with authorised guides and closes without warning in rain. The park is huge, remote and thinly served by public transport.

Nearby

Civita sits above the gorge; the Sila park lies south.