Landscape form Villa Bellavista

Idro lake, a small lake dug out by glaciers at the beginning of time.

It is just a small lake for the people of Brescia, but a romantic lake for the Ducth who discovered it and now flock to it every summer.

For three whole months, they almost migrate between Idro and Ponte Caffaro, so much so that Dutch becomes the main language.

Generous, with a rough generosity now only to be found in the mountains, it is a hospitable land of high mountains circling the valley, where the sun slots in to warm people’s hearts.

One word above all others speaks to gourments: bagoss, the legendary cheese, alpine treasure and gem of the higt valley. Valsabbia is a landscape rich in gentle slopes, towns of rustic beauty, fortresses and churches brimming with artistic treasures.

Bagoss cheese from Bagolino

Here, the art of woodcutting, the ancient tradition of woodcutters such as the Pialorsi called the Boscaì, has not been lost. Here, gentle slopes turn into mountains, the alpine foothills soar and the snows of the gaver provide winter slopes for the throngs of skiers.

On the banks of the lake invaded by windsurfers stands the Romanesque church of Idro, which is a classical must for tourists. It rises over ancient Roman Stones and, in fact, almost two thousand years ago the legions of Caesar reached here.

But before then other populations lived around the lake on fishing and farming. In fact, the history of settlements in the area is lost in time.

A lovely archaeological museum in Gavardo tells this story. Its rooms dedicated to the Bronze Age host showpieces such as a dugout canoe, the skeleton of a cave bear and a unicum, a leather flask worthy of a king.

The Chiese river also tells the story of this valley, united by its traditions. The border between Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire ran along these mountais above Lake Idro.

Up until the First World War, this is where the opponents met with canons pointing in the direction of the enemy. 

Rocca di Anfo view

The Anfo fortress, a military structure built by Napoleon, is a reminder of those times. It is a unique exemple of its kind in Europe, With its eight camouflaged and interconnected forts dug out of the mountain at various heights dominating the road between Trento and Brescia. Valsabbia is border country where Hungarian soldiers spied on Italians.

This expains many things about the unusual carnival at Bagolino. This is as colourful as it is mysterious, thanks to its gyspy music and variegated costumes, all of which is quite foreign to local traditions an much nearer to the Tyrol world and that beyond the Alps.

The "live" presence of Garibaldi and his red shirts can still be felt on the lake. Here, on the mountains above Anfo, the hero of the two Worlds vanquished the Austrians in 1866 and was himself wounded. However, he still pressed on with his victorious advance. Only when the Italian government ordered him to halt, he sent from Bezzecca one of the shortest telegrams in history: "I obey".