m.2130 L’Aquila Km 46

Connections:
Train station of L’Aquila at km 45.
Buses: from L’Aquila and Roma.
Road: from L’Aquila A24, exit at Assergi.

Information:
Tourist Center of Gran Sasso d’Italia, tel. 0862-22147

Ski Facilities:
1 funivia, 3 ski lifts.

Description
A wide basin sculpted from the glacier, 27 km long and 8 km (on average) in width, located in the Gran Sasso mountain mass, within the crest made up of the Aquila, Prena and Camicia Mountains to the north and Scindarella, Mesola and Bolza Mountains to the south. In 1943 Benito Mussolini was interned here and was then helped to escape by German parachuters. In 1951, in a dominant position of the valley at 2280 meters in elevation, an astronomical center was built in the high mountains as an astrophysics branch for the Roman observatory.

But Campo Imperatore is also a famous site of winter sports and a base for ascents of Gran Sasso. The ski area is located in the western sector of the vast high plain and includes 1 funicular, that goes from Fonte Cerreto to the saddle of Pratoriscio, and 3 ski-lifts. From a height of 2194 meters a good number of slopes of varying difficulty take off, among which we note the two black ones of the Fredda Valley. Optimum possibilities exist for alpine skiers, who find here an atmosphere particularly adapted to their sport. The classic destination is the crossing of Gran Sasso with a descent into the meadows of Tivo and the ascent of the slopes of Mount Camicia.
To see, the astronomical observatory and the alpine garden, created by Rome’s National Council of Research.