Sasso di Castalda
Sasso di Castalda is small but tall with less than 1000 residents it is a blink and you might miss it kind of place but that would be a real shame if you did, it sits at an elevation of 939m above sea level and is a maze of narrow up and down streets that keep the locals fit. This village personifies living amongst nature, enclosed by woods intersected by streams and overlooking the rock peaks of the mountains greenery is in every corner and will stay this way as they are encapsulated by the Lucano Val D'Agri Lagonegrese National Park, the youngest of the Italian national parks.
So what do you do to attract tourism when you are a small obscure village surrounded by the some of the best natural wonders in Italy apparently you build a bridge to the moon or locally known as Ponte alla Luna. Captured in this shot is the bridge in all its splendor, at 1000 feet long and 400 feet high it is suspended between two peaks of the Apennines, it take roughly 30 minutes to traverse the bridge but be warned this is not for the faint of heart.
So why did the locals name the bridge “to the Moon” because the villages second most famous son is Rocco Petrone his parents immigrating from the village, he was a mechanical engineer and director of NASA’s Apollo program during the 60’s helping to put the first men on the Moon. The villages most famous son is the priest, historian and writer Don Giuseppe De Luca (1898-1962) who was a leading figure within the Vatican and a prolific essayist, the village has enshrined his works in the family home and made it into a literary park that sees use for most cultural events.
I took this on Sept 25, 2018 with my D750 and Nikon 28-300mm f3.5-5.6 Lens at 56mm 1/40s f`11 ISO 100 processed in LR, PS +Lumenzia, Topaz , and DXO
Disclaimer: My style is a study of romantic realism as well as a work in progress
Sasso di Castalda
Sasso di Castalda is small but tall with less than 1000 residents it is a blink and you might miss it kind of place but that would be a real shame if you did, it sits at an elevation of 939m above sea level and is a maze of narrow up and down streets that keep the locals fit. This village personifies living amongst nature, enclosed by woods intersected by streams and overlooking the rock peaks of the mountains greenery is in every corner and will stay this way as they are encapsulated by the Lucano Val D'Agri Lagonegrese National Park, the youngest of the Italian national parks.
So what do you do to attract tourism when you are a small obscure village surrounded by the some of the best natural wonders in Italy apparently you build a bridge to the moon or locally known as Ponte alla Luna. Captured in this shot is the bridge in all its splendor, at 1000 feet long and 400 feet high it is suspended between two peaks of the Apennines, it take roughly 30 minutes to traverse the bridge but be warned this is not for the faint of heart.
So why did the locals name the bridge “to the Moon” because the villages second most famous son is Rocco Petrone his parents immigrating from the village, he was a mechanical engineer and director of NASA’s Apollo program during the 60’s helping to put the first men on the Moon. The villages most famous son is the priest, historian and writer Don Giuseppe De Luca (1898-1962) who was a leading figure within the Vatican and a prolific essayist, the village has enshrined his works in the family home and made it into a literary park that sees use for most cultural events.
I took this on Sept 25, 2018 with my D750 and Nikon 28-300mm f3.5-5.6 Lens at 56mm 1/40s f`11 ISO 100 processed in LR, PS +Lumenzia, Topaz , and DXO
Disclaimer: My style is a study of romantic realism as well as a work in progress