NATURE
Nature and landscapes to be experienced
NATURE
The wonders of unspoilt, astonishing nature thanks to its vitality, sounds, and colours
Valmarecchia and Valconca are hilly lands drawing slowly nearer the Apennine without ever turning harsh, with alternating wheat fields and vineyards, olive groves, and a few chestnut woods; oak woods and the first grazing lands used for sheep breeding and also purebred bovines on high grounds. And at the top of the hills, entire villages stretch out on tapered ridges or rise above the top of promontories.
Visitors are amazed by the beauty of the countryside and the panoramas, where the sea is always present and the mounts, even the most distant ones, complete the horizon.
A unique and characterising landscape, where inhabitants meet and recognise each other, which over time has influenced the thoughts and work of many important artists and intellectuals, among whom it is worth mentioning Master Tonino Guerra.
Onferno Caves
and their oriented natural reserve
The Oriented Natural Reserve represents a karst complex in the gypsum of considerable value with an important bat colony reserve.
The site is called Onferno, a name which starting from 1810, substituted the ancient Infernum or Inferno. The original name evoked the uniqueness of this place: the presence of a cave complex, underneath the spur of rock on which the residential area is found, which develops along over 850 metres in the depths of the surfacing gypsum in Val Conca.
TOUCH YOUR EXPERIENCE
INTERREGIONAL NATURAL PARK
The Sasso Simone and Simoncello Park
One opposite the other, for over millions of years the large limestone rocks of Sasso Simone and Simoncello, together with Mount Carpegna with its 1415 m, have faced each other outlining the horizon of the entire area. Their profile is unmistakable: they have always been an essential reference point for those crossing this territory, imposing their sight and exercising a strong evocative power.
Around them, woods, meadows, and rural environments stretch out dotted with castles, fortresses and villages which tell fascinating stories, as in the case of the fortified town of Sasso: built by Cosimo I de’ Medici around the first half of the 16° century.
TOUCH YOUR EXPERIENCE
The Marano River Park
Luxuriant and varied nature
Situated a few kilometres from the beaches of the Riviera, the park stretches along the basin of the Marano river, in the municipal territory of Coriano. The protected area amazes for its luxuriant nature with its varied flora which comprises several tall trees among which black poplars, white willows, and different species of flowers. The fauna is rich in species, among these several birds like little egrets, hoopoes, cuckoos, kingfishers, and several species of small and medium-sized mammals among which squirrels, porcupines, and foxes.
The Cava Park
Fossil sites
This is the park dedicated to the important fossil site in the Marecchia valley. It is found in the municipality of Poggio Torriana, right on the riverbed. Its location is highly significant for two reasons: on the one hand, because the park has enabled the environmental resuming of the activities inside a cave which was created in it; on the other because of its nearness to a fossil site. As of the Seventies in the last century, several scholars have indicated the presence of fossils in the Marecchia River. Several excavations have unearthed over 2,000 pieces in this place. Most of the fossils are made up of fish as in Pliocene the entire area of the site was flooded by the sea, like most of Italy. The visit to the park, with free admittance by appointment, is articulated over two moments: the projecting of slides, viewing of didactic material related to fossils, and a visit to the park.
TOUCH YOUR EXPERIENCE
Naturalistic Observatory
Torriana and Montebello wildlife oasis
Born in 1993 for the safeguarding and observation of a part of the territory ‘of high natural value’, where a large number of animal and vegetal species live such as mammals, reptiles, birds, oak groves, orchids, pond vegetation, etc…The centre, born for didactic and scientific purposes, proposes animation and environmental education activities aimed at promoting more conscious methods of interacting with the environment and the territory. In the exhibition rooms, the several natural environments in Valmarecchia are represented with reproductions of the Marecchia river and Valley, from its spring to its estuary and the corresponding flora and fauna. In the external area, an amphitheatre is present which is used as a suggestive green classroom, an innovative sensory path both inside and outside the facility for the disabled, and a large equipped picnic area to spend relaxing moments of leisure in the open air. In the territory surrounding the Observatory, a well-structured and well-signposted network of trails starts suitable for trekking, mountain biking, and horseback riding.
Ca' Brigida oasis
Verucchio
It is situated in the Marecchia Valley, in the municipality of Verucchio, in the village ‘Il Doccio’. It stretches over 17 hectares along the banks and the valley floor of the Rio Felisina. Woods, cultivated areas, reforested areas, and an old country house with an annexed park with a stream crossing it for a large stretch of it. The fauna is characterised by roe deers, porcupines, badgers, daytime and nocturnal predators, various species of amphibians and reptiles. Among its facilities: a reception hall with an exhibition room proposing material witness of the natural history of the valley, the Documentation Centre next to it, the WWF library, the guesthouse, nursery, the Wild Animals Rescue Centre, the Butterfly Garden, the Garden of Ancient Plants, Work Camps. This legacy was donated by the latest Gustavo Voltolini, a member of WWF which now runs the Oasis–one of the 100 WWF reserves.
TOUCH YOUR EXPERIENCE
Wildlife oasis
The River Conca
It was formalised in 1991 by the province of Rimini and includes the Conca torrent between Morciano di Romagna and the mouth of the river, stretching over 702 hectares. It concerns the riverbed and flood plain environments within the municipalities of Cattolica, San Giovanni in Marignano and Morciano on the right banks, and Misano Adriatico and San Clemente on the left banks. Visiting the area following the cycle and pedestrian paths that develop along the two river banks is highly recommended. The ornithological observatory is situated along the left bank and is signposted along the main roads. It consists of a prefabricated wooden structure and an external shield with slits. The building which can be used by both children and adults has openings for observing the birds. The river basin is the reproduction site of various species of Rallidae, Anatidae, waders, and passerines. Among the rare aquatic birds that can be seen are the White Stork, the Black Stork, the Spoonbill, the Pelican, and the Great White Heron.
TOUCH YOUR EXPERIENCE
The Mondaino Arboretum
Mediterranean Flora
A few kilometres away from the elegant dwellings of Mondaino, in the Conca Valley, there is the Arboretum park, a botanic garden, and ex – experimental Arboretum of Mediterranean Flora. Nine hectares contain a collection of around 6,000 plants representative of the Mediterranean area, small forests, a pond, and a dozen signposted paths. An unusual observation point where there is space for various initiatives and activities. Inside the arboretum, there is the Dimora Theatre and a guest house, a privileged place for artists looking for space where they can focus on the creative process, here courses, laboratories, and seminars take place dedicated to the theater, dance, music, and performing arts generally, to contemporary languages and natural therapies.
TOUCH YOUR EXPERIENCE
Vegetable gardens, biodynamic cultivation and educational farms
A unique biodiversity
The territory of the two valleys is rich and fertile for cultivation, and the work of many farmers has permitted the conservation of high biodiversity of fruit and vegetables available for purchase at weekly markets. Over the last few years, many small to medium-size farms have reflected on opportunities to reorganise and diversify their activities proposing new methods ranging from didactic vegetable gardening to social gardening, passing from restaurants at km 0 to arrive at educational farms for children and adults.
