In collaboration with Garda Trentino S.p.A. Tourism Board.
Lake Garda is the largest lake in Italy. Located in Northern Italy it is just an hour’s train journey from Milan Central Station. Garda Trentino covers the region at the top of the 51.6 km long lake; a collection of small towns and villages within a 15 km radius. It is an outdoor enthusiast’s paradise with over 1000 km of cycle trails and over 500 climbing routes varying in level of difficulty, not to mention the 600 km of trekking routes and the wide variety of watersports. A unique blend of rock, mountain and water, all tied together with the most fantastic, mouthwatering locally produced food and drink. I recently had the pleasure of visiting this area thanks to the Garda Trentino S.p.A. Tourism Board.Â
Towering above Riva del Garda, a picturesque town on the lake waterfront, like something out of a fantasy novel, are the white cliffs of Cima Capi (907 metres), Cima Roca (1090 metres) and Bochet dei Concoli (1207 metres). My first thought when I saw these awe-inspiring hills? I have to climb up there!
Now, I would not consider myself an experienced climber by any means. In fact, it has been over 18 years since I last donned climbing gear and took to the cliffs, so instead of having a go at these hills alone, I joined a small group led by an experienced mountain guide from Mmove – into nature. I was collected from the waterfront at precisely 8:15 am and driven to the nearby village of Biacesa, where our six hour trek began.
Our aim: to climb the Via Ferrata to the summit of Cima Capi. A Via Ferrata is a bit like the UK tree-top Go Ape facilities but on rocky mountains, developed to equal out the grade of popular alpine ascents. They consist of continuous thick metal cables fixed to the mountainside as well as metal rungs and footplates.
In the car park, we were given our climbing gear: a helmet, a sit harness and a purpose-built energy absorbing lanyard. This last piece is a clever bit of equipment – two arms with karabiners clip to the metal cable, and, in the case of a fall, the centre piece acts like a shock absorber, preventing (if all goes well) serious injury.
The trail took us up into the forest, along a well-maintained pathway zig-zagging up the side of the hill. Â Lake Garda was one of the main access routes to the South Tyrol during the First World War, so this area was fortified by the Austro-Hungarian command. Bomb proof shelters and trenches were dug right out of the mountain, and many of these still remain, as pictured above.
From up here, the views across Lake Garda and over to Riva del Garda and the towns of Arco, Torbole and Nago were absolutely stunning. I felt so alive and exhilarated and… to be honest, I have never perspired as much in my life as I did that day! The temperature was a whopping 36 C. Given that I’d left my home in Shetland at 11 C it took some getting used to the heat, and to remember to regularly apply SPF 50 suncream! The life of a red head …
Then, the really fun bits where we get to affix ourselves to the mountainside with the Via Ferrata. The thick metal cable is regularly pinned into the mountainside every few feet/metres, depending on the terrain, so you need to stop, unclip one karabiner, fix it to the next section of cable and repeat with the other karabiner. Some sections involve quite a thrilling and steep climb up the cliffs or traversing across a peak. There was only one area where I got the heebie-jeebies, the peak pictured below, bottom left. It was there our guide was stopping and taking photos of folk with their cameras – they’d lean back over the edge to the right with no hands, and he’d snap a photo. I get sweaty palms just thinking about it! I couldn’t even look down at this point, I just kept going. No selfies for me!
We stopped for a well-deserved rest at the summit, eating our picnic lunch and enjoying the fantastic panoramic views below with a sense of achievement.
Going back down from the summit presented just as many challenges as ascending it, with some rather steep declines, a traverse across a wall in the scorching heat (even the cable was almost too hot to touch!) and some unsteady rocky paths.
We stopped for a much appreciated cold drink in a mountain hut manned by volunteers and carried on back down the track back to the car park, smiles beaming brightly.
Instead of dropping me back off where I was collected in the morning, our mountain guide dropped me off at the start of the second part of my day’s trek: The Ponale Trail.
In the past, the old Ponale road was the only connection between Riva del Garda and the Ledro Valley. My trek began at the end of the trail, where a large statue of the Virgin Mary overlooks the lake. The view here (pictured above) is absolutely stunning, and you can see the pedestrian road carved into the side of the mountain, weaving in and out of tunnels.
This 1.5-hour walk was an absolutely pleasant one with The Ora, the daily wind the travels up the lake from the South, providing a cooling breeze in the sunshine. I could see all the windsurfers below taking advantage of the welcome breeze.
Here too you could see evidence of fortifications built during the Great War. Caves, rooms, tunnels, corridors and trenches carved out of the mountainside itself. If this mountain could speak, what stories would it tell?
My journey down the trail was regularly interrupted by the sound of bicycle tyres on gravel behind me, and I sidestepped out of the way allowing the regular stream of mountain bikers to pass by. It was a perfect day for it, but I felt for all the bikers heading the other way up the trail as it’s all uphill!
I spent three full days in Garda Trentino, and this trek was definitely one of the highlights of the experience. The calorie burn meant I could enjoy that night’s three-course Italian evening meal with a hearty appetite too!
The Via Ferrata wasn’t as physically demanding as I had expected it to be. You don’t need any experience with rock climbing to be able to do it, just a decent level of fitness and no vertigo. It’s definitely worth doing if you’re in the area, and at only €80 per person for the six-hour guided trek it’s worth every penny.
There will be more blog posts over the coming months about my fantastic trip to Lake Garda, so be sure to subscribe to my blog so you don’t miss any!
FURTHER INFORMATION
The Ponale Trail – Riva del Garda
Mmove into Nature
WHERE TO EAT IN GARDA TRENTINO
Ristorante Nuovo 900 Da Lucio (fresh & modern)
Ristorante al Fortino (in an 1863 Austrian military fort)
Ristorante Il Ritratto Carpe Diem (creative food)
Ristorante Villetta Annessa (fine dining at its finest!)
Ristorante Antica Croce (home of carne salada)
Osteria le Servite (al fresco dining under grapevines!)
OTHER PLACES TO VISIT
Olio Cru (olive oil tasting experience)
Omkafe Coffee House (best espresso, ever!)
Varone Waterfall (100 foot falls in a cave!)
Tenno Lake (an alpine lake with turquoise waters)
Canale di Tenno (Mediaeval village!)
WHERE TO STAY
Hotel Luise (fresh, modern, stylish, 4 stars)
Elizabeth was a guest of Garda Trentino S.p.A. Tourism, but all thoughts and opinions expressed are hers alone.
Strawberry Shortcakes with Balsamic & Black Pepper Syrup
This lake amazing
Wow, what a great adventure to have had the privilage to go on. Those views are stunning.
What an amazing experience and what a beautiful place! x
Amazing experience! The views are breathtaking! Nothing beats a walk with a view, that’s for sure!
What a fantastic experience! You must have enjoyed every minute of it, beautiful scenery and lovely food.
Love
Can I tell you how jealous I am of this experience? This looks like so much fun! Thank you so much for sharing!
I’ve always wanted to see Lake Garda! The pictures are breathtaking!
Such a beautiful and amazing experience! Completing the trek must have felt like such an accomplishment!
I’m not nearly as adventurous as you, and probably wouldn’t be trekking anytime soon, but I do love living vicariously through posts like this. What a stunning view that is!
Wow, the views are incredible!
I haven’t climbed a mountain in a while, and this has reminded me that I need to soon 🙂
Dani x
What an amazing place, I’ve never heard of it. Great pictures too. I love it.
Wow! This place is so beautiful! & You are so brave to climb those rocks! My legs feel like jelly just looking at it. lol! Breathtaking views! Stunning!
These photos are absolutely stunning! We’re hoping to visit the Lakes for the first time next year – can’t wait x
Those views. This isn’t something I’d do myself but the photos are stunning and what a great experience
Oh my god! What amazing sights and heights!!! This looks incredible well done for trekking!
I’ve been trying to convince my husband to start rock climbing with me. I’m going to have to show this to him to give him a little bit of inspiration!
OH my goodness it is so beautiful there! I’d love to go there some day–the trek down old Ponale road looks amazing!
The place is amazing. Adventureous people would love this place. But not me, am afraid of heights.
this just looks like such a wow experience – one for the bucket list!
Wow, looks so stunning. I would love to do this. I visited Italy last year but went to Rome and Sorrento! But Italy is somewhere you can revisit a different part and always find something amazing to explore
Really nice read. Thank you for sharing.
This is amazing, even though it looks challenging but it worth it.
I’m super jealous right now. I want to go on an adventure like this!
Oh my gosh that scenery. I’m telling you I wouldn’t leave until the camera battery was dead.
I can’t say I have truly trekked anyone but this looks absolutely amazing and apart from cyclists interrupting your trekke every looks super lovely and a wonderful experience
Okay, those views are absolutely spectacular! What an amazing experience!
I would love to visit here! Italy is my dream vacation. That looked like quite a climb too – good for you lady! I don’t know if I could do this because I am terrified of heights hahah
Wow what an experience. The Italian Lakes are definitely on my to-do list and even more so seeing the beautiful scenery in your pictures.
Wow! I would be a wimp to do this! Actually, I am a wimp 😀 but all the photos looks amazing 🙂 and btw I love Italy, it ‘s just so pretty… great review!
Not been to Italy yet, but I would love to go…you have deffo got me wanting to book 🙂 x
Stunning scenery and surroundings. I would love to got to Italy one day as that is where my dad’s family come from but I’m not sure I will do anything so energetic!
My other half has wanted to do the via ferrata forever- I’m such a wimp though but it does sound really exciting!
What amazing view! It looks like you had great times there. I’m not a good climber and haven’t been to Italy but I would like to visit someday. The beautiful view is drawing me to it.
I’ve never been climbing or been to Italy. I would love to do both! I love the tunnels carved into the rockface. Sounds like they would have some fascinating stories to tell, doesn’t it?
I’ve never been to Italy before but what an amazing experience! I’d love to do something like this x
I just love Lake Garda, it is spectacular. There are lots to do and the scenery and gelato is to die for! My parents went Riva, but I visited Bardolino and must say it is the best place to go! Glad you had fun and the pics look good. Very adventurous, I want to go again now!
I am not adventurous like you but I can see I’m missing out on so many great views.
Looks challenging but also very much worth it! The places that you’ve seen and been through are just amazing, everything’s so beautiful! I don’t think I can handle the climb up but I’d still try!
Looks like such a beautiful part of the world to go trekking in – I am so jealous!
I have never done anything like this before but it looks absolutely amazing. Your pictures really capture the moments x
WOW! What an amazing experience. We are heading to Lake Garda for a fortnight on Saturday, although I’m hoping our stay will be slightly more relaxing than yours.
Wow, what stunning views! Climbing is my favourite way to stay fit and the views are always worth the climb.
I have never climbed any hill or mountain before. Sounds like fun. Love the photos here.
Trekking isn’t really my thing, but it looks like a beautiful part of the world for it. Stunning landscape.
What absolutely stunning views! We are going to Lake Garda next year and I am beside myself with excitement, it’s one of my ‘bucket list’ locations! Great post.
I’ve always wanted to go to Lake Garda, it looks absolutely stunning.
Trekking might be not my cup of tea, but I would love to visit Lake Garda. Hopefully next summer with my amore.
I had no idea that Lake Garda was the largest lake in Italy. I would love to go hiking along those cliffs though.
This is such a beautiful place! I usually associate Italy with the amazing food but I will have to check out the gorgeous nature that it comes with it.
These photos are fantastic. I would love to climb the Via Ferrata. I will have to add this to my travel wish list.
Looks like fun and some beautiful sites!
I’ve never heard of this place but it looks absolutely gorgeous! Would love to visit and hike myself!
I don’t think I’m the trekking type but your pictures make me rethink it!
the view is absolutely stunning. ive never properly climbed before but its on my bucket list!
It looks so good. The pictures are amazing and hiking sure looks a lot of fun. Even though I may not a hiking person lol
I think it’s beautiful. I think I would be afraid to climb it, but I’d definitely spend time at that lake. What a beautiful place.
I love to hike but this is so much more than I can do now. Oh, but the end of the trek was so worth those views!
Such a gorgeous array of photos! This sounds like it was an amazing adventure!
Wow what incredible views! It’s a long time since I went climbing but you have really inspired me with this post!
I love Italy !! I have always wanted to do this but didnt even know how to go about it !! Youre giving me major FOMO 🙂
These pictures look amazing! I am not the hiking type but these stunning pictures may just change my mind and make me try it! Thanks for sharing
What an absolutely beautiful place, your photos are stunning. Always wanted to go to Lake Garda, I need to crack on and book a trip.
It looks absolutely magnificent. What an amazing adventure. I’d love to go to Lake Garda, but rather you than me when it comes to climbing. CT’s brother lives in Milan and we really ought to go and visit – we’ve been saying that for the last 20+ years 😉
Your photos are gorgeous! I have never been to the that part of Italy and seeing it as you did makes me want to schedule a trip.
Oh wow this just looks like such a stunning adventure!! I would just love to do it!
What a gorgeous area! I’d love to check it out. Your photos are beautiful.
I wish I could’ve gone with you on this trip. It looks like it was beautiful and a lot of fun. If I ever get out that way I am totally doing what you just did.
Wow those views are stunning! I have never done anything like this, and probably never will (fear of heights)! So jealous!
It looks so beautiful, it is hard to tell from the photos that it was so hot! I love the mountains but live in the flat midwest. This is my kind of adventure.
OH WOW! You have some balls!!!! This is incredible. Heights + me = not really a good time LOL!
I hadn’t realised the scenery around Lake Garda was so spectacular – it’s very much been added to my to visit list now.
What breathtaking scenery! I’ve never done this adventure-style trip but I’d love to go on one….in Italy nonetheless.
That blue sky though… I’ve never been to the lakes, I’d so love to go, you’re pictures are amazing and really sell it as a holiday destination!
I am so pleased you did this – really living vicariously, as you know I love the area. I wish I was a lot fitter and perhaps a bit younger and could have tried myself!