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This walk starts at Menaggio, leads through its historical centre and the lovely hamlet ofLoveno and then continues through the Val Sanagra Park to the splendid village of Cardano.From here you follow the cycle foot path which follows the traces of the ex- former railwayline that ran between Menaggio and Porlezza. Part of it runs through the Nature ReserveLake Piano. The stretch between La Santa and Castel S. Pietro is suited for children.

ITINERARY: Menaggio, Loveno, Cardano, Lago di Piano, Castel S.Pietro, Porlezza

TOTAL WALKING TIME: 4hrs

ASCENT: 200 m

DIFFICULTY: some brief steep ascents

TRAIL SIGNS: see the description

CONNECTIONS: to Menaggio: by bus - C10, by boat or hydrofoil

from Porlezza: by bus - C12

ROUTE: At Menaggio from Piazza Garibaldi you pick up via Calvi. At the end of it you cross themain road and turn into via Caronti, along the left side of the Parish church St. Stefano. At theend of the street turn right and after 30 m turn left into via Castellino da Castello. This cobble stonealley leads to the upper part of the town called Castello. The Castello of today gives only afaint idea of how it was in the Middle Ages. In fact it was completely destroyed in 1523 by thecommunities from the Swiss canton Graubnden. Left intact are parts of its enormous perimeterwalls which you can admire at various points. Just past the church S.Carlo (1614) the alley endsinto via N.Sauro, which you follow to the right along the side walk. Go up the steps on the rightside of the Hotel Lovenoand, back on the road,follow it to the left. Atthe next bend, pick upthe continuation of viaN. Sauro to the left. Youare now in the hamletLoveno with itssplendid villas. To beginwith, on the left at thebeginning of the street,there is the Villa BelFaggio and after 200 myou pass Villa Garo-vaglio Ricci and VillaVigoni now owned bythe German FederalRepublic which hosts an

From Parco Val Sanagrato the Nature Reserve Lago di Piano

Piamuro ( J. Bents)

Italian-German cultural centre. The villaand its park can be visited on Thursdayafternoon at 14.30 (tel. 0344 361232).You pass the church San Lorenzo withits baroque faade and the sport centreand then, after a brief ascent, you reachPiamuro, a big pasture (40 min. fromMenaggio). From here go straight onfollowing trail n4 of the Parco ValSanagra. After a few hundred metersyou skirt a small pine wood on your leftwhere you ignore the deviation for Tobi/ Torre Galbiati and proceed another100 meters. At the limit of the pine

wood, near a gate, take left following the indication for Tobi / Cardano / Belvedere. You enter aclearing with big chestnut trees and before continuing to Tobi, we suggest a small deviation (10minutes) to the Belvedere from where you have a splendid view of the gorge of the Sanagra river,the garden of Villa Bagatti Valsecchi, and of the town of Cardano with Monte Crocione in thebackground.Back on the clearing follow the indications for Tobi. The path leads down in bends in the valleyof the Sanagra river past a picturesque bench that offers a nice view of the Villa Bagatti. At thefork continue straight on and after a brief descent you reach the beautiful stone bridge of Tobi.You can notice the remains of the antique water captivation that used to conduct water to the

Villa Bagatti Valsecchi

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brick and iron ovens. The vegetation in this area is typical of the river gorges. You ascend themule track on the other side of the bridge that leads up to Cardano. It finishes on a field with arow of linden trees. Turn right in order to reach the historic centre of Cardano built around theVilla Bagatti Valsecchi. The origins of the Villa Bagatti Valsecchi go back to the 16th century; itwas enlarged between the 17th and 19th century. The villa is built around two court yards on twodifferent levels. One faces the gorge of the river Sanagra that flows 90 m below; the other courtyard faces the historical centre of Cardano.Continue along via Galbiati, past the church till you end up on the road SP Grandola. Cross it andpick up via Milano in the direction of Gonte. After approx. 400m turn left onto theVia Cascinello Rosso that finishes afteranother 400 m on the state road 340.Cross it with caution and follow thesigns for Bene Lario / Grona and after200 m pick up the cycle footpath on theright. You are now on the traces of theformer rail way line between Menaggioand Porlezza that was opened in 1884in order to attract more tourists fromnorthern Europe to the area. Arriving bytrain to Lugano the tourists were thentransported by steam boat to Porlezzafrom where the train brought them to Tobi waterfalls ( T. Tassoni)

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Menaggio. After the first World War it became a simple working class transit system that lastedtill 1939.You skirt a plain called Binadone flanked by the woody slopes of Monte Crocione and MonteGalbiga. Near the village of Grona the track stops. Continue to the right along via Cascine which,after a few hundred meters, ends up in Artigianato e Industrie. When you get to an intersection,take the pedestrian and cycle track right in front of you (sign for Lago di Piano). After a relaxingstretch through the woods you enter the Nature Reserve Lago di Piano. You pass behind the cam-psite Ranocchio and just past its entrance you continue along the little lake Piano. Soon you reachthe visitor centre La Casa della Riserva with an information office and a small eco-museum(for information tel. 0344 74961). In front of the office there are some picnic tables with view ofthe lake.Next comes a short unattractive stretch among some small industrial buildings. The track beco-mes un-tarred and on the left you notice the hillock called Brione with the Castel S. Pietro atits top. We recommend a small detour in order to visit this old settlement with its houses cluste-red close to each other. The stone wall and the narrow passages give the idea of a fortress, whichis what it used to be in the Middle Ages. Continuing on the track you will cross a beautiful woo-den bridge over the river Cuccio. Follow the course of the river until you reach the main roadSP14. Continue to the right for approximately 100 m and then cross the main road and turn intoVia Prati that leads to the residential complex called "Porto Letizia. On the left side of the mainbuilding which hosts the reception take the path that skirts Lake Lugano. After crossing the bridgeover the River Val Rezzo, go down some steps to resume the continuation of the lake side pro-menade that leads to the center of Porlezza where there is a bus stop.

Lake Piano ( J. Bents)