Description of the attraction
Park "Valle del Ticino" - the first regional park in Italy - was founded in 1974 to protect the Ticino River and the ecosystems of the river valley. It spreads over an area of 91 thousand hectares, on which there are also 47 municipalities.
The Ticino River originates in Switzerland - its mouth is located at an altitude of 2480 m on the Novena Pass, and it flows into Lake Lago Maggiore. The Valle del Ticino is characterized by a huge biodiversity - here you can find rivers and streams, coniferous and floodplain forests, swamps and fields cultivated by man. The park is inhabited by 48 species of mammals - pine martens, foxes, badgers, weasels, ferrets, etc. The biological significance of the park has received international recognition - in 2002, "Valle del Ticino" was included in the network of international biosphere reserves.
The territory of the park consists of several parts: a river valley itself, an irrigated plain crossed by artificial canals, a heather-covered plateau with several settlements and pre-alpine hills in the province of Varese, rich in pine groves.
The Ticino River has always represented a natural border between civilizations, nations, peoples and states that built castles and fortifications on its banks. Among them are the castles of Abbiategrasso, Vigevano, Bereguardo, Somma Lombardo, Villa Visconti in Cassindetta di Luganano and Villa Gaia in Robecco sul Naviglio, the Abbey of Morimondo, etc. Only ruins remained from other buildings, such as in Ozzatero, Bezate or Vergiglio. And some of the buildings were rebuilt so many times over the centuries that almost nothing remained of the original buildings - Garlasco, Arsago Seprio, Bernate Ticino. And in Arsago Seprio, in the northern part of the park, some of the most important religious buildings in the region have been preserved - the 12th century baptistery and the beautiful church of San Vittore.
