Leave Passo del Brennero, pass by Terme del Brennero, and driving slightly downhill get to Colle Isarco, an important summer and winter resort located at the opening of Val di Fleres, surrounded by pine forests; continue to Vipiteno, an ancient and elegant alpine town that nowadays still maintains its medieval flair. Its Town Hall dates back to the 15th century, the Holy Spirit church to the late 14th century, while St. Peter and Paul church were built starting from 1474. The little town art gallery includes fine masterpieces by Hans Multscher, while Castel Tasso (12th century) is decorated with beautiful Gothic frescoes and the manor Castel Pietra with its St. Erasmus chapel is a true artistic heritage!
Drive by Fortezza, Rio di Pusteria (ancient town, situated between Valle Isarco and Val Pusteria) and get to Brunico, main town in Pusteria. This town is located in a wide valley at the opening of Val di Fleres, towered by the medioeval castle - Bruno, bishop of Bressanone, got it built in the 13th century. The castle took down his name. Continuing among larch forests and green terraces, you reach Perca, then Valdaora at the foot of Plan de Corones, at the opening of the Valle Anterselva valley.
Driving on the provincial road sp 43 of Passo Furcia - an easy, narrow
but pleasant way - you leave Val Pusteria and enter Val di
Marebbe. At Longega the narrow valley widens and after a while you meet
Piccolino, a nice village immersed in the meadows and surrounded by
conifer forests. On the other side of the Gadera brook there is San
Martino in Badia, overlooked by an old castle. You pass by little
villages; the street, past the river, continues in the woods - you meet
two hairpin bends, then enter the nice valley of Alta Val Badia. At
first you reach Pedraces, overlooked by the Croda di S. Croce, later on
San Leonardo and La Villa - here the valley forks.
Turn right
in the direction of Corvara, a splendid resort located between the
Sella and Sassongher ranges.
Driving back for some
hundreds metres towards La Villa and turning left at the first crossing,
you reach Colfosco, where you can enjoy a wonderful view on the Sella range with its peaks interrupted by wide terraces. The road winds among
meadows and pastures punctuated with huts, leading to Passo Gardena. The view on the Val Badia valley is amazing: on the background you can see the
Tofane and in front of you the massive north-east face of the
Sassolungo; our road is flanked by the strangely shaped Pizzes da Cir,
while on the left there is the Sella. The road continues to the
slopes of Val Gardena reaching Plan.
Mentioning the Val Gardena we
cannot forget the local tradition of wood sculpture and carving, source
of true masterpieces. You should not miss these colourful villages:
visit Selva di Val Gardena, Santa Cristina and continue to Ortisei, the
main town in the valley, famous international resort, characterized by
its nice painted houses in liberty or Tyrolean style, guesthouses and
little shops.
Come back to Plan and continue to Passo Sella, following the hairpin
bends. This wide pass separates the two dolomitic massifs Sella
and Sassolungo and is at the same time a "frontier" between Trentino and South Tyrol. Descent to Canazei, the most important resort
in Val di Fassa, located in a sunny position at the foot of the most
famous Dolomites ranges, such as the Sassolungo, Sella and Marmolada.
Past
Vigo di Fassa take the uphill road to Passo di Costalunga - driving
among pastures and woods you can see the Monzoni massif in the
distance, between the S. Pellegrino and S. Nicolo valleys, and over the
peaks you see the Sella range; far away the pass (at an altitude of
1763 m.), where you get a glance on the Val di Fassa. Descending, the
road crosses the wide valley of Carezza, surrounded by the Latemar
strange peaks on the left and the Catinaccio massif and the overlooking
Roda di Vaèl on the right. From the high pastures you reach the
beautiful Carezza Lake that reflects the nice Latemar peaks in its
blue-green waters. The long and panoramic road continues with some
hairpin bends and reaches Nova Levante, located among conifer forests,
then the hamlet Ponte Nova and, past Novale, the Lavazè plateau and
pass, after Cavalese, in Val di Fiemme. The road winds in the
valley, dotted with several colourful little towns, such as Tesero,
Panchià, Ziano and Carano, Varena, Daiano - finally Predazzo, located at the crossing of the ss 48 and ss 50 that, with several
bends, leads to Passo Rolle - overlooked by the sharp peak of the Cimon
della Pala, with an amazing view on the Pale. A panoramic and fast road
leads to San Martino di Castrozza, a famous resort.
Follow in the direction of Fiera di Primiero and reach Imer; continue
over Canal San Bovo - Passo di Brocon. This road full of bends leads to
Passo della Gobbera, 988 m. Descending, you pass Strigno, Borgo
Valsugana and continue driving along the Levico lake, one of the most
renowned nineteenth-century spas, well-known everywhere for its curative
arsenic- ferruginous waters, unique in Italy. We have nearly finished
our ride, and plunge into nature, in the mountains of Trentino, where
clefts and pastures alternate wide beech and fir forests, then we reach
Folgaria (1166 m.), the ideal detination of all nature lovers, a popular
town that offers many attractions. The main road ss 350, with several
harpin bends, leads to Calliano and to Rovereto, an elegant city, rich
of cultural attractions. Rovereto also boasts a new seat of the Mart,
Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art. Cover the last 20 km and get to Riva
del Garda, The most important town on the northern shore of the
Garda lake. It is located in a very nice position and is a famous
resort. Here you can stroll on the promenade from the fortress to the
town centre, or along the old quay, passing by the Apponale tower, the
praetorian palace and the Town Hall. From Riva you can take the two
roads that run along the lake: the east one continues to Peschiera,
the west one to Brescia.
