Gutturu Mannu

A big green lung, the bigger of the south of the island; a natural reserve with ever more rare faunal species; an incomparable beauty of the landscape, from peak that achieved 1000 m, to some of the most beautiful beaches of the island; a big variety of vegetation; a right relation between men and valley habitat (but in Sardinia that is what is defined a mountain habitat); full of rich popular traditions.

That is in one of the most amazing, preserved, uncontaminated areas of Cagliari’s province: Gutturu Mannu-Pantaleo.
Its square extends over less than 540,54 sq, incorporating the territories of Assemini, Capoterra, Domus de Maria, Narcao, Nuxis, Pula, Santadi, Sarroch, Siliqua, Teulada, Uta and Villa San Pietro. The name of the zone derived from one of the most beautiful forests of the entire island.

The geographic boundary of this zone includes:

  • At south, the mountains of Capoterra, until Punta Severa;
  • At west, the Monte Nieddu and the forest of Is Cannoneris;
  • At north, the Monte Arcosu with its natural reserve and the Monte Caravius;
  • At east, the entrance represented by the brook Santa Lucia.

It is an incredibly various territory, with valleys and slopes that follow one another without stops. There are peaks that in the unique morphology of the Sardinian landscape seem very high but are not higher than 35433 or 39370 in.
Schist granite and quartzitic rocks that go back to the Palaeozoic represent the prevalent geological characteristic.
This environmental paradise puts aside for the naturalists big surprises both for fauna and for flora.

At Monte Arcosu, in a big WWF reserve (3.200 hectares), it is possible to admire the specimens of Sardinia deer that just the passion of a group of technicians, politicians and ecologists has saved from the extermination made by poachers.
In the WWF reserve as in the remaining 4/5 of the territory (it is a regional property, managed by the “Azienda delle Foreste Demaniali della Regione Sardegna”) as well as the deer it is possible to see many rare and unique animals.

Just to mention someone: fox, hedgehog, wild-cat, rabbit, wild pig. Among the birds: golden eagle, Sardinian goshawk, peregrine falcon, buzzard, red kite, eagle of the Monelli.
Animals that find their ideal habitat in the woods rich of an incredible variety of plants and trees: holm-oak, cork-oak olive tree, mastic, prickly juniper, spiny broom, bushes of cistus, lavender, curry plant and asphodel. Since the prehistory, this natural heritage, rich of resources, had given hospitality to the man, who has left many traces of his presence (archaeological finds, furriadroxius and medaus- very original shelters that gave hospitality to shepherds and coalminers).

During the centuries, men have respected this area, where they lived, and so they avoided it coming to the same bad end of a lot of others wooded zone, which have been transformed into sleepers or burnt.
The features described until now demonstrate that this zone can stimulate many different interests:

• youth tourism

• “green” tourism that allow fan to choose specialized itineraries between vegetation and fauna;

• trekking and tourism by horse that here find a big number of possible routes: along streams, on the mountains, through the woods;

• environmental tourism that bet to the historical heritage of this area, very rich above all by the archaeological point of view, with testimonies that go from 6.000 B.C. (menhirs, domus de janas, nuraghi…) to the Roman Imperial age.

This wonderful green oasis is very close to well-equipped and still intact beaches, where it is possible to go in for aquatic sports or fishing.
The weather of the Gutturu Mannu complex is ideal. The average temperatures are included between 15° and 17° C; just during 3 or 4 months they exceed 20° C. In the higher ranges, these temperatures drop further until 11°- 15° C.

vallette e pendii

vallette e pendii

vallette e pendii

vallette e pendii

vallette e pendii

vallette e pendii

vette

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vette

vallette e pendii

vallette e pendii

rocce granitiche

rocce granitiche

rocce granitiche

rocce granitiche

rocce granitiche

rocce granitiche

corso d'acqua

corso d'acqua

corso d'acqua

corso d'acqua

corso d'acqua

corso d'acqua

corso d'acqua

corso d'acqua

corso d'acqua

corso d'acqua

Cervo Sardo

Cervo Sardo

cinghiali

cinghiali

cervi

cervi

cervi

cervi

gatto selvatico

gatto selvatico

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