Abruzzo is the part of Italy that most Italians forget to brag about, which is probably why it is still so wild. It protects one of the last populations of the Marsican brown bear, a distinct subspecies that survives in the low hundreds at best, as well as wolves, chamois and red deer. You are unlikely to see a bear from the saddle, but the signs on the road warning of animal crossings are not decoration.
The beech forests around Villavallelonga are part of the UNESCO listing for the ancient beech forests of Europe, and in autumn they turn copper and gold in a way that makes riders slow down without being asked. Pescasseroli is also the birthplace of Benedetto Croce, the philosopher, in 1866, and the village is pretty without being polished, with stone houses, wood smoke in cold months and a handful of places selling cheese, cured meats and honey.
The riding is excellent, and mostly uncrowded. The roads climb through thick forest, open onto high meadows, drop beside Lake Barrea's turquoise water and wind over passes, with the Forca d'Acero, at around fifteen hundred metres, the best known. Corners are medium and rhythmic, surfaces generally decent, and traffic light outside August, but cold nights and high altitude mean ice is possible early and late in the season, and fog is common. Take layers, because a sunny valley can be near freezing at the pass.
Pescasseroli has about two thousand people, and you should plan fuel before you arrive, using larger towns on the approach like Avezzano or Sora rather than counting on a village pump being open on a Sunday. Cafes and trattorie exist, serving heavy mountain food, with lamb, pecorino, pasta with wild mushrooms and sometimes polenta. Autumn is the star season, but May and June are green and the road is still empty. Keep your speed down in the forest, because deer and the odd bear matter more than your lap time, and respect the quiet.