The sensation you feel while admiring the Biotope Marocche in Dro at Lake Garda Trentino is being on the moon. An incredibly fascinating and unique landscape.
Many people don’t know the origin of Marocche in Dro, a marvellous natural and ancient proof.
The protected biotope, one of the few ranked arid and not humid biotopes – Marocche di Dro is a huge amount of melted rocky materials with groups of even bigger stones.
Marocche – a dialectal word of Trentino from the Paleoeuropean word “mar” which means stone, rock – were formed by falls detached from Brento and Monte Casale (right side of the valley) and by landslides from the left side. Quaternary glaciations caused these slides.
This rocky and arid landscape attracts the visitors not only for its history but also for its natural beauty.
The little vegetation is composed of Austrian pines grown in the middle of the rocks like natural bonsai. All the rest are stones and rocks, as if you were literally in the stone age! In fact, you can even observe some traces of dinosaurs, the giant animals living in the Triassic era!
Tracks of dinosaurs at the Biotope of Marocche of Dro
The area around Marocche of Dro has been protected as biotope for years. The only path with some staging points lets you can carefully look at the geomorphological and naturalistic features of this natural oasis.
The biggest curiosity? The traces of dinosaurs – a herbivorous and a carnivorous one, at least – left in some rocks about 190 millions of years ago in the area of the landslide Kas.
If you want to try an amazing staging tour up to the tracks of the dinosaurs, from Riva del Garda take the 45 bis gardesana road to Arco then keep driving northwards to Dro or take the other access along the SP84 provincial road SP84 to Drena, about 4km from Dro. At any access there are road signals with the biotope logo, the route map and the allowed activities.
This hike is perfect and enjoyable for children, too, but they need to pay attention in any case. The traces of dinosaurs and the suggestive landscape of the biotope will fascinate them – they will feel like in a Jurassic Park!
If you love riding a mountain bike, what about riding the Jurassic Marocche? It is a short loop tour (12.4 km) with two short downhill stretches and you can ride it all year round.
If you love walking silently on the paths in the company of nature and wind, this route is perfect for you. Explore one of the most important proofs on the post ice age!
Our suggestion? Proper trekking clothing and boots and a canteen of water (there are no refreshment points), ready to admire unique landscapes. The loop route lasts about 2 hours and a half. Feel the contact with a charming nature and a thousand-year old history.
