Lake of San Domenico

The Lake of San Domenico, located in the municipality of Villalago, in the province of L’Aquila, is an artificial lake situated near the hermitage of San Domenico. Its main tributary is the Sagittario River, which also flows as an emissary from the dam. Other minor tributaries, such as the small waterfalls of the Sega spring and the Prato Cardoso stream, flow karstically into the lake. The latter is an occasional watercourse that activates with rain or snowmelt. Looking at the lake, you will see that it is part of the Sagittario Gorges and the Guided Nature Reserve, an area of extraordinary natural beauty. The dam that created the lake was completed in 1929 by the State Railways to power the Sagittario hydroelectric plant, which is located downstream of Anversa. The penstock that transfers water to the plant is 6 km long and is mostly carved into the rock. Reading the history, you will discover that the construction of the dam submerged part of the road that ran along the lake, whose path emerges only during periods of low water. In the same periods, the remains of the old bridge, which was replaced by a new one for access to the hermitage of San Domenico, are also visible. In the lake and its surroundings, the flora is typical of the Abruzzo, Lazio, and Molise National Park. Observing the birdlife, you can notice mallards, eagles, and many other birds of the park. In the waters, fish such as perch, trout perch, whitefish, and trout, including the salmon variety, swim. In the surroundings, the terrestrial fauna includes dormice, Apennine wolves, hazel dormice, Marsican brown bears, squirrels, and foxes.