Paradiso panoramico

The Gran Paradiso National Park lies in the Aosta Valley to the North West of Italy and a stone's throw from the Mont Blanc (in Giant's terms). Famous for its flora and fauna, it was the first national park to be established in Italy and hosts the only 4000m peak which stands alone wholly within Italy - the Gran Paradiso mountain at 4061m, which can be seen in the centre of this shot. Interestingly the peak which lies furthest right is only 4m short of making it on the alpinists' 4000m peak list and yet deserves any true alpinist's respect, both for its beauty and its hostility - la Grivola.