Sacca degli Scardovari

The Sacca degli Scardovari is the largest of the brackish lagoons of the Po Delta -- a wide, shallow basin enclosed from the Adriatic by sandbars, where the river's fresh water and the sea meet.

It is the working heart of the delta. The whole surface is laid out in mussel and clam beds, worked from flat-bottomed boats, with stilted huts and wooden platforms around the edges.

It is also one of the best places in northern Italy for birds: herons, egrets, avocets and, in recent decades, breeding greater flamingos.

This is a protected wetland and a working shellfish farm at the same time. Go out with a local operator rather than taking a boat in yourself -- they know where the beds and the nesting areas are, and the money stays in villages that have been losing people for decades.

Keep away from nesting birds, particularly in spring and early summer, when many species here nest on open ground and sandbars and are easily driven off.

Do not disturb the beds or the poles. They are someone's crop.

Buy the mussels and clams. They are a genuinely local, protected-designation product, and it is the most direct support a visitor can give this place.

Bring repellent and take litter out; facilities are minimal.

The sacca is free to see from the roads and embankments around it -- the Strada Belvedere Sacca along its edge is the obvious viewpoint and has parking.

To get onto the water you need a boat excursion. These run from Scardovari, Porto Tolle and Ca' Tiepolo, mostly from spring to autumn, and cost roughly twenty to thirty-five euros for a shared trip. Book ahead in season.

A car is essential: there is no useful public transport, and the nearest stations are Rovigo and Adria, well over half an hour away.

Allow half a day with a boat trip, an hour or two without.

The embankment roads and viewpoints are flat and drivable, so much of the landscape is accessible without walking; boats vary and are worth asking about.