An enclosed valley between silent mountains, where the Sangro flows freely, collects in Lake Barrea and then starts downstream again. Here, in the heart of the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, three villages make up a perfect cultural and natural mosaic: Barrea, Villetta Barrea and Civitella Alfedena, three faces of the same Apennine soul.
An area that has made the history of Italian environmentalism-here the Park was ideally born in 1922, a year before its official recognition-and that still represents one of the most authentic symbols of the harmonious coexistence of man and nature.
Lake Barrea: a body of water that unites three villages
Lake Barrea, an artificial reservoir created in 1951 by damming the Sangro River, is now one of Italy’s most precious wetlands, recognized since 1976 as a Ramsar site. Its shores welcome Barrea, Villetta Barrea and Civitella Alfedena, each with a different perspective on this landscape suspended between water and mountains.
The changing light on the waters, the Marsica mountains, the pine forests, and the trails that climb toward Camosciara make this lake the centerpiece of slow tourism in the park: you walk, you watch, you listen. And it is often the wildlife that sets the pace.
Land of the deer: the magic that enchants Italy
Among these forests and villages, the noble deer is at home. In Villetta Barrea, recognized as an Authentic Village of Italy in 2017, the relationship between animals and residents is now part of the identity of the place: deer come down at dawn along the river, graze at the edge of the houses, and cross the streets with the naturalness of those who have lived here forever.
In recent months, all of Italy has witnessed an episode that has gone viral: two large male deer challenged each other in the center of town, in Barrea, in a natural duelfilmed by passersby and relaunched in the national media. A moment as unusual as it was authentic, a symbol of a coexistence that continues to surprise.
It is no coincidence that Villetta Barrea and the village of Villalago, near Scanno, good-naturedly vie for the title of “Village of Deer“: here the ungulates are not guests, but residents.
Three villages, one story
Barrea, with its perched stone houses and iconic view of the lake, recounts centuries of Apennine life and a fortified village past. Civitella Alfedena, on the other hand, holds the Wolf Museum and an ancient urban fabric, enclosed by quiet alleys and open views of the Camosciara. Finally, Villetta Barrea, squeezed between black pine forests and the course of the Sangro River, combines history, nature and daily life in a harmonious framework where man does not dominate, but dialogues.
Three different communities, but united by a single vocation: to be guardians of an environment that here is not just scenery, but identity.
An invitation to slow travel
Visiting this area means choosing a slower, more conscious, more respectful way of traveling.
It means understanding that here the Park is not a perimeter, but a principle: that of protection, authenticity, and life that flows according to ancient rhythms.
And thanks to the A25 highway, getting to this area is easy, but leaving it is always difficult: because those who arrive between Barrea, Civitella Alfedena and Villetta Barrea take away with them an image that is impossible to forget-that of a deer running through a village, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Getting there is easy, thanks to the A25 – Strada dei Parchi
For those coming from Pescara/A14, the most convenient exit is Cocullo;
for those coming from Rome, the recommended access is Aielli/Celano to continue on SR83.
