Introduction GUIDO BIANCIARDI Teacher of Physical Education, Nature Guide, FASI Instructor, Subject expert of “Preservation of Nature” and “Techniques of environmental monitoring” at the University of Siena.
When in clear winter days you climb up to the Monte Capanne of the Elba island or you walk along the ridges of the Uccellina Mountains, you can scarcely believe to what you see to the West. And those who are less familiar with hiking and mountains, can barely work it out. A neat expanse of snowy peaks stretches in the distance, a vision which has little in common with the warm sea dividing us from those mountains, an alpine-like surge confusing the observer. Then, wonder replaces surprise, scepticism gives way to amazement and Corsica conquers us, forever. A true, severe alpine mountain range in the middle of the Mediterranean sea, the mountain tops of which can be reached from wonderful beaches and jagged cliffs crowded with sea tourists, up along rivers and streams frequented by unstoppable canyoners, and scary rock faces visited by climbers. A paradise for hikers, who perhaps experience a quieter and more reassuring dimension than that of lovers of the extreme, but surely the most complete one, as they can grasp all the contrasts of this rough paradise.
14
