Sardinia’s territory is mainly composed of hills and mountains, and only a small part of it is on level ground.
The highest peak is Punta La Marmora (6,017 ft), and it’s part of the Gennargentu Ranges in the East-Central part of the island (Barbagia). Proceeding North, we find the chalky massif of Supramonte which, facing the sea of Golfo di Orosei (Orosei gulf), is considered one of the most glorious coastal views of the whole island. The island sweet and round hills, ranges and plateaux, are separated by wide alluvial valleys and flatlands, the main one being the Campidano (110 km) in the southwest between Oristano and Cagliari. The only natural freshwater lake is the lake of Baratz, close to Alghero. All the other lakes are artificial, set in the vicinity of rivers, and guarantee a water supply during drought periods. The coasts of Sardinia are generally high and rocky, especially in the Northeast, characterised by rias and inlets in Gallura. The Southwest coast is, instead, mainly sandy.
National Park of Asinara.
Established in 1997 on the namesake island after the high security prison closure, is characterised by a huge variety of flora (over 600 species of flowering plants) and fauna (80 animal species ca.). Rare birds, wild boars, mouflons, and horses chose this place as their own habitat, together with the well-known white donkey, that gives the name to the island.
National Park of Gennargentu and Golfo di Orosei
It’s the largest park of Sardinia and holds natural treasures of incomparable beauty: Gennargentu, Supramonte, and Orosei gulf, with the astonishing cliffs facing the sea.
La Maddalena Archipelago National Park.
This is a geomarine national park on the Northeast coast of Sardinia, one of the best beaches in the world. The region includes lots of islands and islets between Sardinia (Gallura) and Corsica (Bocche di Bonifacio). The only inhabited island is La Maddalena, where La Maddalena town – with its 11.000 inhabitants – rises. Other two islands are inhabited, namely Caprera (where Garibaldi’s house is now a museum) and Santa Maria, while all the others are uninhabited.
The archipelago is characterised by thin sand beaches, crystal clear waters, and granitic rocks, whose bizarre shapes derive from the winds blowing from Bocche di Bonifacio, gulfs and bays.
Flora and Fauna.
The island is marked by the typical Mediterranean vegetation. The so-called “Mediterranean scrub” is composed by high shrubs – that can reach a height of 16.5 feet, as myrtle, juniper, wild-olive tree, laurel, and cistus – and low shrubs (or garrigue), that can reach a height of 2 feet, as sagebrush, rosemary, thyme, broom, and the odorous elicriso.
Sardinian fauna is quite rich and peculiar
Among the species living in Sardinia we can find some rare animals, died out in the rest of Europe, as the Sardinian wild boar, the white donkey and the Giara horse. Likewise, it’s impossible to find some other animals – which still live in the rest of Italy – as vipers, badgers and squirrels. A curious characteristic of Sardinian fauna is that some animals (wild boars, horses, and hares) are smaller in size than those that live elsewhere.
