Verdant and lush, characterized by pleasant sights, fresh and balmy summers and abundant snow in winter, the valley is flanked by forested mountains, culminating at the elevation of 1799 meters with Monte Maggiorasca.
In Roman times, the local inhabitants, the Iluates and Veleiates Ligures, gave more than a headache to the Latin powerhouse: Titus Livy and consul Gneus Fabricius had words of appraisal for their fighting qualities.
During the High Middle Ages, the valley welcomed a community of friars, who went on to build an important monastery located at Villa Cella and quoted in written documents of the Lombard epoch.
It was the monks of Villa Cella that, working hard, opened the natural dam that kept the water into the lake and made it run down the valley through the Masappello gorge.
For these reasons, plus the noteworthy altitudinal gradient (from about 350 metres asl at the confluence with the Trebbia up to the about 1800 of Monte Maggiorasca) different plant species from diverse environments thrive here.
As for animal life, the Val d'Aveto is still home to several wild species as: badgers, porcupines, foxes, boars, stone martens, wildcats and even wolves.