Garda Lake

The Garda lake or Benaco, is the largest lake in Italy. It is 65m above sea-level, has an area of 368km sq., a perimetre of 51.6 km, and a maximum width of 17.5 km. It shares its borders with three regions, Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto and Lombardia and the relative provinces of Trento, Verona and Brescia.

From the Veneto bank the Baldo range (Valdritta peak 2.218 m) extends North in Trentino with mount Altissimo of Nago and mount Stivo (2.218 m); at Riva one can find the characteristic Tooth of Brione as well as mount Rocchetta (1.521 m) which is aligned with mounts Palàer (1.078 m), Guìl (1.322) and Carone (1.621 m), followed by mount Tremalzo (1.974 m) and then towards the lower Giudicaries, mount Caplone (1.976 m). South of mount Bestone, which closes the gulf of Limone, lie mounts Cas, Denervo (1.459 m), Castello di Gaino, Pizzocolo (1.582 m).

South of Maderno the morphology becomes more gentle along the Valtenesi range and inland of Desenzano and Sirmione with morainic hills.

The main tributary of the lake is the river Sarca; other waterways are the Brasa, the San Michele (or Tignalga), the Toscolano and the Arìl, considered to be the shortest river in the world. The only distributary is the Mincio which runs from Peschiera to the Po.

The largest island is Garda (once called “dei frati” or “Lechi” or “Borghese), 1,100m long and 60m wide; others are the isle of San Biagio (or “dei Conigli”) opposite Manerba, and the isle of Trimelone at Brenzone.