An Island park to be explored
Unspoilt landscapes in an environmental oasis: evocative itineraries in five marine protected areas, almost eighty thousand hectares of coastal and marine territory, including breathtaking seabeds
An unusual and `unobtrusive' approach to Sardinia. A journey, or several journeys, through parks and marine protected areas, inside which, in any period of the year, you can do some trekking, cycling and horse-riding along the beach, take kayak or boat trips in the emerald green waters or dive down to see the breathtaking seabeds. Sardinia is an island - park: five marine areas over nearly 80 thousand hectares of unspoilt and 'protected' territory, where you will experience the strong emotions of itineraries on which you will discover nature, culture, food and wine.
You will come across crevices in rocks that resemble monuments and long underground tunnels, often covered by beds of seagrass and rare plant species and the habitat of trusting fish. In the depths of Capo Carbonara pinnacles and bastions of granite rock are coloured by the yellow cluster anemones and red gorgonians: you may find yourself face to face with shoals of barracuda fish or enormous grouper fish. Less than a mile from the island of Mal di Ventre, you will make rather intriguing discoveries, like a shipwreck from the 1st century BC. In the Maddalena Archipelago you can dive into the shallow waters of Spargiotto, Punta Coticcio and at the Grottino di San Francisco: close encounters with dolphins and turtles is normal here.
What about out of the water? There are sheer cliffs and white beaches. Like in Capo Caccia, where enormous massifs plunge into the sea, their walls dotted with caves high up in the air and under the sea, like those of Nereo, the largest in Europe, and Nettuno, where 636 steps and a half- kilometre walk will take you to an underwater lake with enormous stalactites. In Tavolara and Capo Coda Cavallo, you will explore one of the most spellbinding stretches of sea in the Mediterranean. Meanwhile, in the natural heritage of the Asinara National Park, you will experience the mysterious charm of a century of isolation, during which the island was first a ‘quarantine station’, then a prisoner-of-war camp and lastly a maximum security prison, up until the time when the park was established.
Not only sea, but also a hinterland with wetlands. The Lagoon of Calich, for example, is a vital lung for wildlife in the Park of Porto Conte - Capo Caccia. In Villasimius, the Stagno di Notteri is a home to various rare birds, among which the Peregrine falcon. The Stagno di San Teodoro is the permanent residence of the black-winged stilt. It is also a home to flamingos, which are also abundant in the Stagno di Molentargius. Then there is a strip of Sardinia that produces a distinct feeling of continuity between land and sea: it is the Sinis Peninsula. From sea and sand dunes, ideal for navigating in a sailing boat and for having fun with kite and wind surf, you can move on to the Stagni di Cabras, where you cannot miss a day of fishing tourism on the fassois, typical wooden boats.
