Abruzzo, September 20 2021

Abruzzo is nearly half park land, and most of that is mountains and rolling hills.  We traveled there for some exercise, the breathtaking views and to hopefully catch sight of the wildlife the park works hard to protect. It was a two day trip, spending the night in the small town of Civitella Alfedena which sits along side lake Barrea, not far from the town my grandmother grew up in, Agnone.

Civitella Alfedena sunset

The first day was spent hiking in a familiar setting, a plateau surrounded by rocky elevations where I had traveled on a guided tour about three years ago with my brother Vic.  Like before we found Chamois (a type of mountain goat) and both large red deer and little Capriolo or roe deer wandering along ridges and slopes.  It’s hard to get within sight, these animals are both fearful and very quick.  

Chamois

The next morning we drove to another section that was new to me.  Starting at the trail at 5am we hiked an hour up to a high meadow.  Dawn arrived just before we reached the top, so most of the climb was in the dark with the way lit only by our head torches and a full moon.  It was a difficult and rocky climb and we’d had little sleep the night before but I felt good.  We saw not a single other person until the afternoon.  For most of the day we experienced the mountains in their original state, the only signs of humans being the worn path we followed.  Then we left the trail and climbed across rocky slopes to another section with a little bowl shaped valley that held a natural watering hole.  This is what my friend Gaga was looking for, he’d been there once before and somehow remembered the way.  I’ll admit that as my blisters flared up, and my left knee ached from having strained it as we climbed on and on I was getting worried, but I was in good hands.   

Trekking in the night

The high meadow at dawn

We found a place near the water hole where we hid ourselves in the rocks and waited.  We’d seen the deer along the way but always from a distance, now we hoped they might miss us and approach for a drink.  After about a half hour we heard the bucks announcing themselves and held our breath as they approached.  Did they not see us? or where they just too damn thirsty to care.  Then again, it was mating season and the big stags were feeling their hormones and seemed unafraid of anything.  As we came to see, they were looking to assert themselves, they were looking for a fight. We crouched down, trying to be still and quite and yet manage to film them. It was a real challenge but we were rewarded with the results.  

We made our way back on an alternate path, thankfully my knee held up, and we headed back home as the sun was fading.  Along the drive we made a stop here and there to get some photos of the animals we saw along the way out of the park, foxes, and even a wild boar.  The wolves and bears are much more difficult to find and although we never caught site of them, we felt fortunate to see all that we did in such a short time.  

Two days later, I bought the best hiking shoes I could find.