Centro visitatori del Parco Nazionale Gran Paradiso – Le forme del paesaggio (Noasca)

Noasca's interpretive theme is the surrounding landscape. The Forms of the Landscape, on the main street of this Orco valley commune, interprets the glacially shaped terrain of Gran Paradiso.

Why it matters

Gran Paradiso is a park of rock as much as of wildlife. The Noasca centre presents geomorphology, the study of how the landscape took shape. The protected area's terrain ranges from valley floors near a thousand metres to the 4,061-metre summit of Gran Paradiso; glacial carving, rock types and erosion have shaped this landscape. The centre also houses an environmental education centre for the area.

What to notice

The permanent exhibition presents the geomorphology of the protected area, including glacial valleys, moraines and the high plateaux of the Orco headwaters. Its mineralogical and petrographic focus complements the landscape interpretation. Noasca's territory includes the Gran Piano high ground and the historic royal hunting lodge, linking the centre's interpretation to the surrounding landscape.

Context and history

Noasca lies in the upper Orco valley on the Piedmontese slope of the Gran Paradiso massif, at just over a thousand metres of altitude. The park's network of visitor centres assigns each valley community a distinct interpretive theme; Noasca's is the landscape. The centre's focus spans geology, mineralogy and petrography.