Vanoise National Park

The Vanoise National Park is in the department of Savoir, close to the mountains of the Sierra de la Vanoise, and the Italian border, which collaborates with an Italian natural park, Gran Paradiso. It's the largest protected area in Europe, with over 1,200 square kilometres. It was the first national park to be created in France in the 1960's to protect the "bouquetin", an endangered mountain goat like animal. In Italy, King Vittorio Emmanuele II forbade hunting in the mountains and created the Italian national park in the 1920's. In the mountains, there are more than 100 peaks over 3000 meters tall, separated by high plateaus and lakes.