La strada del Ponale

Icon of Garda Trentino
Overlooking Lake Garda, she climbs boldly on the Rocchetta rock face. At every turn a breathtaking glimpse of the blue, a new perspective that opens up on the horizon, framed by the mountains. We are talking about the Ponale road, undoubtedly one of the most beautiful routes in Europe. 
The Ponale road (or simply "la Ponale", as those who know it well call it) was born in the mid-nineteenth century, on the project of Giacomo Cis, a far-sighted and enterprising merchant of the Ledro Valley. Well aware of how inconvenient the traffic of people and goods was between the valley and Riva del Garda, he chose to invest in a dream at a later age: the construction of a new, modern and wide road. 
At the time, in fact, those leaving from the Valle di Ledro had to go down to the port of Ponale, along a steep and narrow path, and then reach Riva via lake: slow, articulated, complicated passages. Now everything is destined to change: the new road opens a new era for the Valle di Ledro. 
The construction of the Ponale road is a true feat, hailed as an engineering prodigy. Started in 1847, the route was completed in 1851 and includes several tunnels that barely mitigate the tortuousness of the route. In 1891 the first machines are heard striding up the hill, which will remain for every driver one of the most spectacular and at the same time most feared routes until 1990, when the Ponale road is definitively closed and replaced by the new tunnel connection. 
However, such a spectacular route could not remain unused and, on the initiative of a local association, it reopened as a path in 2004. Since then, the Ponale road has become one of the most loved and appreciated routes for hikers and bikers in Europe, a real must for every guest who chooses to spend their holiday in Garda Trentino.