An immense lake, big enough to seem like a sea. In the north, it is caressed by strong winds, framed by green mountains, kissed by the sun for many days a year: it is Lake Garda and here, in Trentino, it is clear and incredibly blue.
We are sure that you know everything or almost about this tourist resort loved by Italians and foreigners, the undisputed home of sailing and climbing sports, mountain biking and trekking excursions. But, if something still eludes you, in this article we will reveal some curiosities about Garda Trentino which you have never dared to ask! Let’s start:
#1 – It is a fjord, but it is not in Norway.
Let’s start immediately with its peculiar shape. Lake Garda, in its northern shore, namely in the province of Trento, has a very particular aspect: that of a fjord! Embraced by high and very green mountains, the Garda Trentino between Monte Baldo and the Ledrensi Alps, encompasses two worlds: the northern one in its fjord shape and the southern one, kissed by the Mediterranean climate.
#2 – Garda: the facts and figures.
A very frequent question is: “but how deep is it?”, “And its length”? Here are the data: it is located 65 meters above sea level, has a length from Riva del Garda to Peschiera of 51.6 km and a width of 17.2 km. The maximum depth is 346 metres.
#3 – Bathing.
Lake Garda is suitable for swimming, safe and clean. It offers kilometres of coasts (also guaranteeing a lot of privacy) that have pebble and lawn beaches which have nothing to envy of the most beautiful marine beaches. Its temperature? Cool! Around 20 degrees in summer making swimming very pleasant in the hottest months.
#4 – Its inhabitants: the fish.
Pike, tench, perch, whitefish but also trout, eels and the undisputed king of the lake, the Carpione. An indigenous species that is born, grows and lives only in this lake (now protected thanks to a repopulation project). You can meet these and other inhabitants of the lake during a nice swim in the waters of Lake Garda and … on the tables of the many restaurants in the area!
#5 – A territory within the territory.
Lake Garda here in Trentino encompasses several worlds in one: the mountains are to be climbed (Arco is the home of climbing), the many family-friendly cycle paths, the sloping paths to be experienced on the saddle of a mountain bike (perhaps electric), the mountain paths for hikers of any level (have a look at the GardaTrek project), the beaches are made to relax or, actively, to spend a day “on the beach”. In Trentino, Lake Garda is transformed, it seems to create a microcosm that encompasses multiple worlds, different realities and where all outdoor sports seem to be tailor-made for each of us.
#6 – The wind and the microclimate.
Garda Trentino is a real jewel not only from a landscape point of view but also and above all in naturalistic terms. The regular and constant winds that caress it have determined a somewhat unusual Mediterranean microclimate for a northern region like Trentino. The temperatures are mild with an average of 30 degrees in summer, the winter is never too harsh and outdoor activities are always possible. It is precisely the Garda wind, the Ora, that pushes from the south, which is the “undisputed master” of this territory, so as to make Torbole and Riva del Garda the home of windsurfing and sailing sports.
#7 – The northernmost oil in the world and other typical delicacies.
It is precisely the winds and the Alto Garda microclimate which have given rise to some, to say the least, mouth-watering specialities, first and foremost the northernmost extra virgin olive oil in the world, beyond the 46th parallel. Although Trentino is a northern and mountainous region, this strip of land bathed by the lake is able, thanks to these Mediterranean characteristics, to produce a very delicate DOP (protected denomination of origin) extra virgin olive oil whose main variety is Casaliva, indigenous to Lake Garda. But there is more: the climate also permits the production of another precious masterpiece of nature, the Broccoli di Torbole, a Slow Food Presidium, renamed “Son of the Wind” precisely because of the winter winds that blow decisively between Arco and Torbole, guaranteeing this vegetable a sweetness and an unmistakable flavour.
Who knows if you now know something more about this Mediterranean territory suspended between the sky and the water, between the earth and the sun.
To get to know it more closely, all you have to do is discover with your own eyes how many wonderful things there are in this corner of paradise in the heart of a Trentino that never ceases to amaze.
