Discover Pretoro: Beech Forest, Wolf and Local History

Pretoro between the historic centre and the beech forest

When you discover Pretoro, narrow historic lanes meet natural and cultural history. The interconnected lanes climb uphill to a viewpoint with a sweeping panorama over the area surrounding the town. In the historic centre is the Centro Museale San Domenico, housed in the deconsecrated del Purgatorio church. The museum presents the history of Pretoro, recent archaeological excavations, and exhibitions on jewellery, reptiles and wolves.

Natural environment and wolf

The central part of Pretoro's woodland, especially its beech forest, now lies within the “Riserva Naturale Guidata Valle del Foro” nature reserve. A hike to the Cascata dell'Asinara leads through an impressive forest with large trees and then reaches the waterfall. At the Area Faunistica del Lupo Appenninico, Pretoro is home to several wolves, the symbolic predators of Maiella National Park. This facility can only be visited with a guide; the guided tour is therefore part of the visit format.

Hiking trails with clear details

The E4 hiking trail leads from Località Calvario in Pretoro to the Madonna della Mazza church. It is approximately 3.1 kilometres long, has around 260 metres of ascent and 30 metres of descent, takes approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes, and is marked “SENTIERO IN MANUTENZIONE”. Just beyond Pretoro, the E2 trail passes the remains of old houses, mills and water-powered turning lathes. A hike along the E2 cave trail leads to the Grotta dell'Eremita, which is associated with the cult of water and the Archangel Michael.

Archaeology, crafts and local customs

In Località Crocifisso, not far from the present-day centre of Pretoro, a Neolithic hut dating from 7000 to 4000 BC and several Italic graves from the Hellenistic period, from the 4th to the 1st century BC, were discovered. In the Pretoro area, the remains of a Roman villa and a thermal building indicate settlement from the 1st century AD onwards. The Roman villa also included a room with a geometric mosaic floor, a room with a cocciopesto floor, and remains of storage rooms and rural residential buildings. The traditional history of the town also includes spindle production: Pretoro is known as “Il paese dei fusari” because spindles for spinning wool were made there. Mezza Fava, also known as “Fava nostra”, continues to be cultivated as an indigenous agricultural variety of the Maiella. On the first Sunday of every May, the sacred performance “Lu Lope”, the “Miracle of Saint Dominic and the Wolf”, is staged.

More destinations to choose for your trip

If you would like to explore destinations in addition to Pretoro, you can find Mezzano, San Lorenzo, Carunchio, Rocca San Giovanni, Casalbordino, Sant'Eusanio del Sangro, Guardiagrele and Lentella here.

Winter sports as an additional travel aspect

The Passolanciano ski area ranges from 1,305 to 1,620 metres in altitude and has 8 kilometres of downhill runs and 7 kilometres of cross-country skiing trails.

For the higher-level travel overview: Chieti.