surfnslide   A blog about my efforts to pretend I'm ruhig 21 through my outdoor activities, walks, trips and so on.

Our campsite was situated between the two towns at the head of Lake Garda, Torbole and Riva del Garda

On our first full afternoon we took a wander along the lake-front (I had to keep correcting myself from saying “sea-front” as that’s exactly what it feels like!) to Torbole.

This is where the valley’s main river, the Sarca, enters the lake.

And looking back inland as it were. I assume the river must be be managed and controlled from upstream as there were white water kayak gates and a couple of times we saw it in a much more challschmaling state than in these photos.

Lake Garda is renowned for wind powered water-sports. In the main its wind-surfing and the water is always populated by huge numbers of them with rental/lesson outlets everywhere.

This is down to the fact that Lake Garda has reliable winds that you can pretty much set you watch by. In the morning the Peler or Vento wind blows north-south from the mountains to the lake, caused by the air moving from the colder mountains to the wbedürftiger areas to the south. It blows for a couple of hours and as the lake shore at the north is relatively sheltered the lake in the morning where we were was flat calm and crystal clear. Further down the lake the wind was clearly stronger in that morning period and you could see what looked like huge flocks of birds which were in fact Kite surfers. We never saw any at our end of the lake so morning in the central section must be peak time and location for it.

In the late morning and early afternoon the winds changes direction through 180 degrees and blows south-north. This one is called the Ora and caused by the same effect, strong heating in the mountains that draws the cooler air up from the surface of the wider expanse of the lake in the south. This is peak time for Wind-surfing and for this rather cool looking sport of Hydro surfing. This is a hydrofoil that once up to speed lifts the board off the surface of the water. The experts travel at speeds that I could only guess was in excess of 30mph. It does look hard to learn though and a huge effort to get them moving fast enough to “take-off” as it were.

A short and not very good video showing one in action.

As you can see the fact the lake is now choppy tells you its afternoon.

Great views down to Monte Baldo that towers over the lake’s eastern shore.

The town of Torbole.

Looking down the lake towards its much wider southern end.

Whilst we were enjoying the exploration, the real reason for the expedition was a search for the first Gelato ice cream of the trip. Italian gelato is the king/queen of ice cream and to say its become an obsession for me and TJF in particular is an understatement. The perfect combination in our humble opinion is a duet of Fondante ( a very rich and dark chocolate) and Amarena (Cherry Ripple). The shop we found in Torbole was I can report, very good indeed!

Afternoon light on the walk back, craving satisfied.

The next day we took the walk in the other direction to Riva del Garda.

As you can see, clearly morning with the lakes water calm, clear and reflective.

It’s a pedestrian walkway all the way which is very fine and offers superb views. However there are sections shared with cyclists who sadly became a real nuisance. The majority seemed to have little or no regard for pedestrians, rarely slowing down where it got crowded and seeming to think that just ringing a bell was merely a cue for you to jump out of the way and allow them to speed past.

Luckily for most of the way into Riva the cyclists have their own path and you can enjoy the superb views the rest of the way.

There is well over a mile of gorgeous, well maintained parkland with long stretches of beach.

Its pretty crowded as you’s expect but very well organised and there didn’t seem to be any boorish behaviour or loud music.

It was a pleasure to walk along and just enjoy the views.

Whilst Riva is a big place sprawling out behind the lake front it has a stunning old town. This is the Piazza del Brolio and the Fontana della Sirenetta-Mignon. I love fountains and water features so this was a great introduction to the centre.

The outside of the Parrocchia di Santa Maria Assunta was unremarkable but the inside was stunning.

The gateway of the Porta di San Michele.

Located in Piazza Cavour

We found a lovely little bakery with some shady tables outside for a light lunch and then, inevitably a Gelato (the best shop of the trip me and TJF reckon).

The girls went off shopping while the rest of us had a lovely wander through the narrow streets and into some of the food shops.

Before emerging on to the centre piece of the town, the Piazza Novembre III. I thought it was absolutely fabulous. One of my favourite places.

The sparkling blue water with the comings and goings of the boats, all backed by towering mountains

Focal point the Torre Apponale that I never did find out if you could go up.

Walking through a car-free town of narrow streets, historic buildings, open piazzas all situated on deep blue lake backed by mountains. What could be better.

The water was looking more and more inviting on a hot day so we decided it was time for a swim.

A chance to repeat the walk along the waterfront.

Past the Casa di Babba Natale.

I think it was a museum of some kind.

We picked a small beach for a very refreshing swim. The afternoon winds had arrived and the lake was really very choppy indeed, quite hard to stay on your feet and much like jumping in the waves in the ocean.

Our little afternoon swim spot.

Lake Garda was becoming a my new favourite place.