countryside
in the national stelvio park
The Stelvio National Park is one of the largest protected areas in the Alps. The alpine ecosystem includes all the typical geological, botanical and cultural elements. The image of the National Park is characterized by glaciated peaks, valley bottoms and hanging terraces, large areas that have been cultivated and tended by man for centuries, and unspoiled natural landscapes.
geography
Geographically, the Stelvio National Park extends over an area of 135,000 ha, embracing the entire Ortler-Cevedale mountain-massif with its neighboring valleys. To the North, it touches the Swiss National Park, to the South, the Adamello-Brenta Nature Park in Trentino as well as the Adamello Regional Park in Lombardy; the Texel Group Nature Park lies to the East.
fauna & flora
glacier
Roughly 1.5 million years ago, the earth experienced five successive ice age, which contributed substantially to shaping the landscape. The resulting giant glacial ice fields expanded in the form of large valley tongues, and formed u-shaped valleys. As they retreated, they left behind moraines and talus that, among other things, created the Garda and Como lakes. The most spectacular glacial regions in the national park are found on the Stelvio in the immediate vicinity of Berghotel Franzenshöhe.
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The enormous quantities of snow and ice represent valuable reserves of water that feed the hundreds of springs, babbling brooks, tranquil lakes, and churning waterfalls.
mountains & rocks
Mountain peaks, cliffs, glaciers, and water are the characteristic geological features of the Park.
The Alps formed out of the African and European tectonic plates, which folded over each other in primeval times. Metamorphic rock formations of the most diverse origin, created by enormous heat and pressure and brought to the surface, can be found throughout the park.
These are, to name only a few, the skis in Vinschgau, the gneiss phyllites of Bormio and the marble of Lasa.
In addition, we find cliffs that are overwhelmingly composed of lime and dolomite; they lie atop the schist layers, and form the summit structure of the Ortler, for example.
