Top 16 Natural Monuments in Venezia

Il Guado di San Pietro, located near Bagnarola, is a place where history blends with the nature of the springs. This ancient crossing on the Versiola canal owes its name to the nearby church of San Pietro, a Romanesque jewel mentioned as early as the 12th century. In the past, the ford represented a fundamental transit point for wayfarers and pilgrims heading to the Abbey of Sesto, offering a safe passage in a territory dominated by water. Today, the area retains a suspended and evocative atmosphere, immersed in lush vegetation of alder and willow trees. The small church, with its fifteenth-century frescoes, testifies to the deep rural spirituality of Friuli. It is an essential stop for those who travel along the nature trails connecting the village to the Mulini di Stalis.

The Sanstino territory was characterized in its southern part by large lagoons and marshes until a few decades ago. Until the first half of the 20th century, these environments proved very harmful to humans, in various aspects, as they were a source of diseases, such as malaria, and were not sufficiently productive. Thus, with major land reclamation works, the land was taken from the water to make it cultivable and to obtain products that allowed many families to live. However, the lagoons were also a huge reservoir of biodiversity with many species of animals and plants that were largely destroyed during the land reclamation operations. It is also for this reason that, within the project for the historical reconstruction of the Bandiziol and Prassaccon woods, it was desired to leave a further mark of what the territory and landscape of S. Stino once were, by creating a wetland area, partly similar to the numerous wetlands once present even within the woods, called "bassone". This intervention is not only an operation of "philological" recovery of the pre-reclamation hydraulic system but, above all, presents a significant environmental value as it reconstructs the natural habitat of various bird species. The small lake is located in the eastern part of the Bosco di Bandiziol, covers an area of approximately 10,000 sq m and has a rounded shape with small islands within it. To better reproduce different lake habitats, the small lake has varying depths, from a few centimeters to over 2 meters, thus offering many bird species the opportunity to find a suitable environment to stay. In fact, in the shallower waters and marginal areas, it is possible to see herons, egrets, plovers, mallards, and other surface ducks. In the rest of the lake, there are divers, cormorants, and diving ducks that find food in open water or on deep bottoms. The islands and the winding perimeter shapes were created specifically to allow the avifauna to hide and find refuge, so that it can be disturbed as little as possible by human presence. In fact, the conformation of the banks and the vegetation (reeds, herbaceous and shrubby vegetation) offer all the necessary environments for the rest, feeding, and nesting of birds.

A former port site, lovingly transformed into a park, with historical images. A must-see, and not just for historians.

The Palù del Bandiziol is a wetland formed by a sulfur spring that, at its source, gives off the characteristic smell of rotten eggs. This wetland is of great naturalistic value due to the presence of numerous bird species.

Now, next to the ford, there is a comfortable metal walkway

very well-kept and quiet (at least compared to the always crowded St. Mark's Square next door)

A great garden to relax in. There are also plenty of benches and a fountain.

On the border between Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia there is a very beautiful path immersed in nature, which starts from Gruaro and crosses the Versiola river, until reaching the Stalis mills. A historical and naturalistic path in the countryside full of canals and bodies of water.