LAGO MAGGIORE

DATES

Konstanz - San Bernadino Pass - Cannobio/Ticino

Today we kick off in Constance towards the sunny south. We wind our way through the swiss Canton of Thurgau into the alpinate scenery of the Appenzeller Land with it’s amazing views of the Swiss Prealps. Adding inclines to curves, we arrive at one oft he most famous of the Swiss/Italian passes, the San Bernadino Pass. This is a mountain pass in the Swiss canton of Graubünden with an apex height of 2066 meters. At the top you will find a main european watershed as well as the german/italian language boarder. We detour around the tunnel, popular for trucks and heavy transportation and enjoy instead the many twists and turns of the mountain roads, through picturesque landscapes up to the 2066 meter summit for a rest and a refreshment. After a further 90 kilometers downhill we then arrive at beautiful Lago Maggiore. This covers an amazing 212,5 square meter area of which 80,1% belongs to Italy and the remaining 19,9% to Switzerland. It stretches from the southernmost point of the chain of the Alps to the western edge of the basin of italy's Po River. As with all italian mountain lakes Lage Maggiore originates from snow melt run off glaciers in the Ice Age. Espescially the northern ridge is surrounded by steep mountains. A small stretch along the lake finds us in the picturesque village of Cannobbio where our hosts Federika and Francesco are awaiting our arrival with cold beer (or of course an exellent wine from this famous wine region!) and a warm welcome. After everyone has settled in their rooms and have rested we have a relaxed evening get-together to enjoy local delicacies sitting dirctly lakeside, open end of course! Our Sunday route is many-facetted and offers a number of options. The early-risers can enjoy the traditional sunday open-market only 200 meters from our villa, a well-known attraction where you can certainly pick up some great souveniers. After an open-air breakfast we start off to a relaxed day-long tour on the banks of the lake as well as the surrounding landscape, through small mountain villages which afford awesome views of the lake. Back at the villa, a refreshing dip in the pool and one of Francescos cool cocktails round off our outing. After free time for shopping or resting we meet at an original Trattoria next door to our villa for some delicious traditional food and a chance to chew the fat!
After breakfast the following morning we head north. With a variety of impressions and storys on board, we travel upwards on main roads to make good time to our final home destination, the Alps of course offering beautiful views along the way as well as a breathtaking panorama of Lake Constance and it's surroundings, we then arrive back at home-base in Roaders Hall late in the afternoon for a farewell 'til next time. See you at Roaders again!

Another date?