Our Valleys9DOGL*LXGLFDULH(VWHULRUL

The Giudicarie are not one but a network of several valleys: Exterior, Interior, Valley of Churches DQGWKH9DO5HQGHQD/HWVH[SORUHWKH9DO de Giudicarie Exterior with reference to the centerfold on the next pagH There are several portals to this valley. Coming from the south, up from the Lake of Garda, one passes through the Passo Ballino, passing through the village of Ballino where the great patron of the Tyrol, Andreas Hofer, lived 7 years as a shepherd and conceived of his peasant army, the Schutzen. Coming from Trento, one comes through Limaro`, a deep gorge referred to as the Grand Canyon of the Trentino. One arrives at Ponte Arche and Terme di Comano. Ponte Arche derives its history to Roman times and the Terme are a well known Wellness Center famous for its thermal waters, hot springs of health and wellness . Coming up from the Val D`Adige, just north of the city of Trento, one approaches the valley from Fai della Paganella, Andalo, and Molveno and its magnificent lake, Lago di Molveno. Coming from the North, one descends from the Passo Carlo Magno, named after Charlemagne who came through this pass and the Passo Durone, through which armies of 50,000 soldiers passed through led by the Condottiere, Gattamalata. The Valley straddles the Parco Brenta Adamello, the park or a reserve that boasts of the Brenta Dolomites and the Adamello, the highest mountain in the Trentino. The Brenta Dolomites have the extraordinary designation of the UNESCO World Heritage. There are several immediate accesses to the park and the Dolomites: Val D`Algone, Molveno, and Val D`Ambiez. Each of these accesses led by designated trails to refugi, hostels that are situated in the magnificent Dolomites. Hovering over the valley is the Care Alto, with its towering glacier. part of the Adamello Presanella group of glaciers. Towering over the Bleggio, is a ring of mountain peaks referred to as Val Marcia. Those peaks provide a beautiful setback for the valley but were also the encampments of the Austrian army. The entrenchments are still in evidence on the ridge of these mountains. The valley has several castles: Castel Stenico, Restor, Spina and Campo. They served as fortresses that protected the entrances of the valleys and as seats of governance for the Castellani and the Bishop of Trento whose jurisdiction included the entire valley. Proximate to Fiav, one finds the pre-history remains of paleofitti, wood posts that supported lake houses dating back to the Bronze Age of 4300 BC. Just above it, one finds the ancient and picturesque village of Rango, designated as one of the most beautiful villages in all of Italy. There are many very notable art treasures throughout the valley in their castles and churches. The church of Santa Croce in Bleggio Superiore (right), is one of the most important sanctuaries in the Trentino. It has a crypt dating back to 1303 and its interior is an example of early Renaissance art. Several famous people originate or spent time in the valley from Charlemagne, Cardinal Charles Boromeo, Gattamalata,Andreas Hofer who organized a peasant army to defeat the Napoleonic forces, to Giovanni Prati, a poet , to Fr Guetti who organized farm and food cooperatives.

Val di Guidicarie Esteriori

15