Overview
If you want to unplug and get away from traffic, smog and insidious noise, come to Campo di Giove, in the province of L'Aquila, the highest altitude (over 1,000 meters) town in the entire Maiella National Park.
The village, a renowned resort, very popular in both the summer and winter seasons, embraces you with all the affection of the greenery of its mountain pastures, pine and beech forests rich in valuable fauna and flora, which surround it. At the sight of them you will already feel better.
The village has very ancient origins, as early as 1136 it was remembered by its present name; later, it was a fiefdom, assigned from time to time to different lordships who fortified it. It rises on the edge of a plateau, formerly occupied by a moraine lake, that has the appearance of an alpine valley embraced in the distance by the peaks of Mount Amaro, of the Round Table and the sharp ridge of Mount Porrara.
As a reminder of that ancestral water remains today, less than a kilometer from the town, the tiny Ticino Lake, the only lentic habitat (of inland noncurrent waters) in the entire park.
Admire the delightful historic center, with urban and architectural elements typical of the medieval and Renaissance periods, shining especially on the portals and windows of the civic buildings. Don't miss among them, Casa Quaranta (15th century), with a wide eaves projecting on the outside staircase, Palazzo delle Logge (16th century), Palazzo Nanni (17th century), and the parish church of Sant'Eustachio.
The latter, possibly erected on the site of a pagan temple, is worth a visit for a beautiful, richly carved wooden choir and a statue, also wooden, from the 14th century.
Housed on the ground floor of Palazzo Nanni in the main square, there is the park's Information Centre as well as the starting point for numerous guided hikes and activities to explore the protected area.
Choose the route that fascinates you most, such as the undemanding seven-kilometre one that leads to the Roman Spring on the road to Caramanico Terme. For the super champions, with a hiking time of 5 1/2 hours, there is the path to the Cavallone Cave of great speleological interest, which opens into the Taranta Valley.
In winter, for you masters of ski touring, it is a joy to go up to Le Piane with a series of ad hoc itineraries; from Guado di Coccia, on the other hand, there are routes dedicated to ski mountaineering.
You cannot leave Campo di Giove without setting foot in the PineCube©, an original observatory made of wood and glass for scrutinizing the surroundings, losing yourself with your gaze among the peaks and, with a stroke of luck, spotting one of the rare Marsican bears, honorary citizens of the park.
