Col Margherita Park

From the panoramic porphyry balcony of Col Margherita, an easy path takes you on a journey through time, among ancient volcanoes, imposing glaciers, fossil seabeds and geological eras that have carved this unique landscape.

The three stages of the journey through time

• Islands or mountains? A kind of treasure hunt among fossils and artefacts to discover the past of the Dolomites. By rotating the three hexagons and observing the icons, it is possible to identify the nine "islands" that represent the main UNESCO Dolomite groups: Pelmo-Croda da Lago, Marmolada, Pale di San Martino, Friulian Dolomites, Northern Dolomites, Puez-Odle, Sciliar-Catinaccio-Latemar, Bletterbach and Brenta Dolomites.
• Suspended in time. A 30-metre-long path where each metre corresponds to 10 million years. Walking suspended in time, you cross the main geological eras, retracing the birth of the Dolomites, from 300 million years ago to the present day.
• The helm of the Dolomites. A large interactive wheel that tests knowledge of the Dolomite profiles. By turning it, you can challenge yourself to recognise and guess the names of the mountains, a game that involves adults and children in the discovery of these wonderful peaks.

A journey through time among the rocks of Col Margherita
Between 290 and 276 million years ago, this area was the scene of massive explosive volcanic eruptions, which gave rise to the rocks of Col Margherita. The ground you are walking on is a platform of reddish-brown rocks called Ignimbrites (from the Latin ignis = fire and imber = rain) or Quartzite Porphyry. These rocks were formed by the solidification of magma that escaped from large volcanic fissures. The magma expanded rapidly for kilometres, forming fiery flows and giving rise to the Atesina Porphyry Platform, a gigantic blanket of porphyry over 2 km thick and covering an area of almost 4,000 km², extending as far as Bolzano and Trento.