The lake has three islands: the Polvese, ownership of the province of Perugia; the Major, which stretches for about 23.2 hectares and is inhabited on a permanent basis; the Minor, completely uninhabited and preserved intact over the centuries.

Minor Island

The vegetation on the lake, both floating and submerged, is very rich and typically marshy. Along the coastline is significant the presence of holm oaks, oaks and water lily. On islands, in addition to typical vegetation, there are olive and pine trees.

In the waters of the lake you can find typical fishes such as the sun perch. Even for the wild birds there is a wide variety of species, among which we remind heron, stork, egret,  wild swan, cormorant, bittern, mallard, wild goose, Knight of Italy, crested grebe. In the last years, however, the presence of the cormorant has become so massive  to create several problems to the lake ecosystem. The same problem regards the wild boar, a mammal spread so musch that is necessary its containment.

How to arrive there

By car : highway A1 (Autostrada del Sole) Rome – Florence: Valdichiana exit, follow the signs for Perugia and exit at Passignano east.

By train:  Line Ancona-Foligno-Terontola

By plane: airport S. -Egidio Perugia

]]> http://www.goingthroughitaly.com/526/lake-trasimeno/feed/ 0 http://www.goingthroughitaly.com/449/lake-como/ http://www.goingthroughitaly.com/449/lake-como/#comments Mon, 15 Jun 2009 17:09:24 +0000 Veronica http://www.goingthroughitaly.com/?p=449 Lake Como, the third largest Italian lake after Garda and Verbano, is a basin of glacial origin, with an area of 4570 square km. It is located 199 meters above sea level, the average depth is 153 meters and the replacement of water is of 4.5 years.  It is famous for its form, a  “Y” on reverse, and it is one of the most beautiful landscapes in Italy, praised in the XIX century by major poets of Romanticism, as Alessandro Manzoni, Stendhal, George Gordon Byron and Franz Liszt.

Alessandro Manzoni wrote in the first paragraph of his masterpiece “I promessi Sposi“:

One arm of Lake Como turns off to the south between two unbroken chains of mountains, which cut it up into a series of bays and inlets as the hills advance into the water and retreat again, until it quite suddenly grows much narrower and takes on the apearance and the motion of a river between a headland on one side and a wide stretch of shore on the other.

Lake Como

Lake Como is, or at least it was a time, a huge fishing reserve for the adjacent watercourses, as the reproductive needs push several species of fish, during regular migrations,  from the lake to rivers in search of fresh waters, gritty and clean funds. Among the species that make these trips there are mainly the Salmonids such as trout, char, and grayling, which from Lake Como back in droves to the Adda and Mera. Other fishes present in the waters of the basin are: carps, tenches, eels. But the most threatened species, especially by sportif fishermen, are: real perch, chub, pike and trout. These fishes are caught, according to the characteristics of each species, with natural or artificial baits.

The climate generally mild and humid promotes the growth of a rich vegetation. The flora is of Mediterranean type; on the shores of Lake grow cypresses, laurel plants, camellias, azaleas, rhododendrons, magnolias and palms. In some areas more sheltered and humid you find also a tropical and subtropical vegetation. On the slopes of the mountains around the lake are abundant forests of chestnut trees, and in the most high areas there are pastures, where daffodils and thrushes bloom in spring.

The Center Lake, where the three branches meet, is the mildest point of the climate and with a broader landscape; reached by boat you can enjoy a beautiful view over the promontory of Bellagio, on the northern Grigna dominating the Valsassina and, in terse days, the high basin with Alps in the background. Along the shores of the lake, in particular from Cernobbio to Gravedona, and Bellagio, you can admire the beautiful villas with parks full of flowers and exotic and rare plants. The branch of Lecco is a more rugged and charming landscape, with the southern  Grigna (2184 m) of dolomitic origin, and the Horns of Canzo (1373 m) which down to the lake forming  picturesque bays and inlets.

How to arrive there

By car: along the motorways linking Milan to Como and the Canton Ticino (A8 and A9), or through the state highway  342 from Varese, and  369 from Como.

By train: you arrive there via Milan with the Italian State Railways, or with the North Milan Railways, while from the north the trains arrive from Central Europe via Gotthard. Menaggio on the western bank, is connected to Lugano from the state highway 340, while Colico, at the northern end of the lake, is in communication with Switzerland by road and rail along two paths: Chiavenna and the pace of Spluga by one hand and Pass Maloja on the other. Lecco is linked both by road and train with Milan and Bergamo, and a fast highway allows to reach quickly Colico and the northern end of the lake.

By air: the nearest airports are Milan Linate, Milan Malpensa and Orio al Serio (Bergamo).

Lake Maggiore

Between Stresa and Verbania you find the archipelago of the Borromean Islands:  Isola Bella (The Beautiful Island), Isola Madre (Mother Island) and Isola dei Pescatori (Island of the Fishermen) also known as the Upper Island. Opposite to the Swiss town of Brissago there are the two Islands of Brissago.
In front of the coast of Riviera Cannero you find instead the three rocks called Castles of Cannero: the greatest rock, totally occupied by the war building of Vitaliana, a fortress wanted by Count Ludovico Borromeo in 1518;  the smaller rock, where are erected the ruins of the so-called “prisons“, and finally the Scoglietto of “Melgonaro”, where grows only a tough plant that has fascinated poets and engravers such as Piero Chiara, Marco Costantini, Charles Rapp. You should also cite the Isolino di San Giovanni (Little Island of St. John) in front of Verbania, famous because it was for many years the residence of composer Arturo Toscanini, in the Borromeo Palace of the the seventeenth century; the islet Malghera between the Beautiful Island anf the Island of the Fishermen and then Isolino Partegora (Little Island Partegora) in the small bay of Angera.

Like all prealpine lakes, Lake Maggiore is marked, especially in summer, by two types of prevailing winds, one in the morning that blows from the mountains to the plains (known sometimes as moscendrino wind, sometimes as tramontana) and a wind that blows from the plains to the mountains especially during the afternoon (called inverna). These constants winds make the prealpine lakes a very good field for sports such as sailing and windsurfing. Lake Maggiore has some points, especially at the top, where the mountains draw close to form a narrow valley in which these winds blow very strong. Then there are other typical winds of this lake as the invernone, which blows from the south-west and brings in general the storm; the maggiore that comes from the north-east and is very dangerous because it shakes a lot the lake; the valmaggino that blows slightly from the valleys behind Locarno and the mergozzo, which blows mainly at night, from north-west.

The lake is unique for its flora, often defined with the wrong term of insubrica flora. The flora is strongly influenced by the lake basin that allowed the proliferation of typical Mediterranean plants and plants originating in the Atlantic zone favored by the soil composition and abundance of siliceous rocks. Lemons, olives and bay leaves grow easily. Camellias, azaleas, rhododendrons and magnolias can be admired in the many beautiful gardens follow one after the other along the coast of Piedmont. The natural vegetation is composed of rates, holly and chestnut trees on the surrounding hills.  In the Lake you find particular animal species: the lake whitefish also blue that live in deep waters and come to shore only during the spawning in early December. There are also perches, pikes, chubs, monkfishes and eels.

How to arrive there

By car: from Milan you can tahe the motorway A8 Milano-Laghi, that then joins with the A26 in the direction Gravellona Toce. From Turin with A4 and then A26 towards Gravellona Toce.

By train: from Milan there are frequent connections on the line Milano Domodossola (Geneva – Berne).

By air: the nearest airports are Milan Linate, Milan Malpensa, Orio al Serio (Bergamo) and Turin Airport.

Lake Garda

In the middle of two extremes the slopes of the mountains are covered with thick natural vegetation consists of beech, birch, hornbeam and chestnut.
On the contrary the peaks of Mount Baldo are stripped of vegetation, panoramic and sunny.
From an artistic point of view there are numerous churches, museums, castles and villas, desired by noblemen of the plains and merchants who settled in their summer homes.
Among the churches, the Sanctuary of Madonna della Corona dominates the scene: it is considered the most hardy of Italy, planted like an eagle nest at 800 meters of height on the western slope of Mount Baldo. It has been a worship place since the Middle Ages. Later it passed to the Knights of Malta (1434) and perhaps for this reason it is said that the statue, subject of veneration, is flown here from the island of Rhodes, fall into the hands of the Turks in 1522.
The Lake offers a variety of amusements that satisfy all needs: disco pubs, discos, walks, cinema …
But the main attraction are the villages of fun: a few steps from the lake there are water parks and amusement parks famous in Italy and throughout the world where there are thousands of people daily.
Lake Garda is loved by fans of many sports: first of all, the Lake, with its characteristic winds, is ideal for windsurfing and sailing.
The villages are also equipped with tennis courts, golf, basketball, football …
The slopes of Monte Baldo are much loved by bikers who know the grat number of paths to be discovered.

How to arrive there

By train: the nearest railway stations to Lake Garda are Peschiera del Garda (Vr), Desenzano del Garda (Bs), Rovereto (Tn), Verona and Brescia. Once in one of these you can reach the destination with the bus available from several local transport companies, such as the A.P.T. (Vr), the S.I.A. (Bs), the ATESINA (Tn), the C.A.V. (Bs) and the A. P.A.M. (Mn).

By Air: the nearest airports to Lake Garda are the Gabriele D’Annunzio Airport of Brescia, the Valerio Catullo Airport of Verona and the Linate and Malpensa 2000 Airports of Milan. From these take the rail lines Milan-Verona-Venice or Brennero-Bolzano-Verona.