A large natural heritage has been enriched and preserved through the creation of the Foreste Casentinesi, Monte Falterona and Campigna National Park. The Park covers an area of about 36,400 ha. between Romagna and Tuscany. It is an extraordinary world of woods, prairies, brooks, waterfalls, mountains up to 1,600 mt. high, nature reserves, remarkably intact biotopes, places of great historical, cultural and religious interest, an invaluable wealth of plants and animals. These lands have always provided visitors with strong emotions. Hermits like Saint Romualdo and Saint Francis looked here for secluded places to pray; and poets like Dante and Ariosto (1474-1533) described the landscape with inspired verses. The project was conceived 30 years ago: during the Sixties, a famous naturalist from Forlì, Pietro Zangheri had already promoted the project for a Crinale Appenninico Park and, after a long preparation, in 1988, the Crinale Romagnolo Regional Park was created; the National Park was defined in 1990 by a decree of the Italian Ministry of the Environment. The Park Board was created by a Presidential decree on 12 July 1993. The Foreste Casentinesi, Monte Falterona and Campigna National Park opened on 30th October 1993.
The Montone, Rabbi and Bidente valleys form the Romagna side of the Park. The Tuscany part of the Park includes a small portion of the Mugello, the Casentino, that is the area of the upper Arno valley, the valleys of the Staggia, Fiumicello and Archiano tributaries, on the left bank of the Arno. The protected area stretches as far eastwards as the impressive limestone mass of Mount Penna, including the site of the renown Franciscan sanctuary at La Verna. The Park includes 12 communes: five belonging to the province of Forlì-Cesena (Bagno di Romagna, Portico di Romagna, San Benedetto, Premilcuore, S. Sofia, Tredozio), five of the Arezzo district and two from the Florence district. The Park can be easily reached from any communes of the valleys.
      The region was first inhabited by descendants of the Umbrians, the Etruscans and the Celts. These populations were subsequently joined by the Romans.
During the Middle Ages, important sanctuaries were erected (St.Ellero, St.Benedetto, La Verna, Camaldoli), whereas the Romagna valleys were ruled by local feudatories (the Guidis) until the 16th century, when the Republic of Florence shifted its domination to these lands. That was the beginning of the Medici's long-lasting domination, during which the impassable and wild character of this land was carefully preserved, also for defensive reasons. After Tuscany was given to the Lorena, during the first half of the 18th century, Leopold I and Leopold II tried to reorganise their territories by abolishing the ecclesiastical possessions and both by planning new lines of communication and by boosting the trades. The present structure was reached only after the Unity of Italy: in 1923, the land occupied by the Park was divided into provinces, the same as we have today.
Residents in the area of the park are less than two thousand: the inhabitation of the vast territory of the park is of a very low density. The majority of the population is concentrated on the Tuscan side of the Apennines, whereas, in Romagna there are only 60 residents. Nevertheless, it has not always been like that, since, between 1951 and 1991, the population in the 12 communes of the park decreased by 37% with peaks at 69% in those communes furthest from the new development centres. Defenceless in the face of hard conditions of life in this area, residents have progressively abandoned homes and fields.
      Situated inside the Park, within the borders of the commune of Bagno di Romagna, Sasso Fratino is the first integral nature reserve that has been created in Italy, since it dates back to 1959. Today, it covers an area of 764 hectares. Due to the considerable slopes of the Romagna side of the Apennines, the mixed wood of silver fir and beech has been scarcely exploited over the centuries, thus preserving its original integrity. It can only be accessed for research purposes. In 1985 and 1990 the nature reserve was awarded the European certificate for the environment preservation by the European Council.
The park has a well-structured network (300 km, about 190 miles) of forester roads and sign-posted paths, that allow short excursions and more complex itineraries: ridge trails are part of some well-know Apennine trekking. The park can be visited on foot, on horse, on mountain bike or, in winter, with ski poles and cross-country skis. Visitors can also go down-hill skiing, go on a relaxing boat tour on Ridracoli lake, or canoe on a river. They will get all the information concerning their holidays or excursions at the Visitor Centres, to be found in the villages within the borders of the park.