Apuan Alps
Apuan Alps seen from Viareggio
The Apuane mountains
Apuan Alps are in the hinterland of the Versilia Riviera. This is a range of mountains of great beauty, dramatic scenery and high and rugged peaks, hence the name "Alps", due to the resemblance with the real Alps. In fact, they are an offshoot of the Appennines, the mountain range that runs through peninsular Italy for all its length.
The Apuane (see picture) are very close to the coast; their blue and white silhouette dominates the scenery from Viareggio beach and sea.
Versilia is certainly a unique part of the world, where mountains of this great altitude are so close to the sea: it is a rare gift of nature. To swim in the sea and then look back and be able to admire those gigantic, majestic masses and their pointed summits as the backdrop is to experience two of the greatest forces of natural beauty at the same time.
The Apuane Alps are a protected area, the Regional Park of the Apuan Alps. Part of it lies in the Versilia district, and is called Alta Versilia (High Versilia) as opposed to the low-lying Versilia coast. Another section of Apuane lies in the Garfagnana area, which includes the valley of river Serchio.
There are excellent walks to be had all around the Apuane mountains. The trails are studded with "baite" of the CAI (Club Alpino Italiano), Alpine huts and chalets where to stop, have refreshments and in some cases stay overnight, having a sound sleep after a long hike and possibly a bicchierino of grappa.
Apuan Alps
marble quarries
The great beauty of the Apuan, this vast unspoilt area is also in its silence, which in some places is perfect and absolute. You can stand there and hear nothing at all, or rather you can have that eerie experience of almost hearing the silence itself.
The Apuan Alps are rich in marble, the white, world-famous Carrara marble, which has been extracted from open quarries in the side of the mountains for many centuries, since Roman times. Marble from the Apuane mountains was used by Michaelangelo to sculpt his masterpieces, and the great artist himself worked in the quarries for some time.
The medieval town of Pietrasanta, in Versilia, is an important center of quarrying companies and a thriving international artists' colony: visitors have included Henry Moore and Fernando Bottero. Marble is the backbone of the local economy of Pietrasanta, with 115 companies involved in quarrying and selling the white Carrara marble from the Apuan mountains.
Pietrasanta is rightly considered as the world's capital of marble working. Many internationally renowned art schools and sculpture laboratories are in Pietrasanta.
Suggested reading on the Apuane mountains
|
From USA Amazon
|
From UK Amazon
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
