From Riva onto the Monte Brione

A port, old forts and a mountain on the island
The western slope and the very steep part to the east make the Monte Brione (374 m) look like a half molten ice cream cake. A mountain to the north of the Lake Garda with a small flag (transmitter mast) on its top? Yes, and you can take that literally. At the end of the Ice Age it was completely surrounded by water. The detritus from the Sarca formed this island the way it is today over the millennia. This closeness to the Lake (making the climate extremely mild) is responsible for the unique flora. Around 500 different species are apparent, 20 different kinds of orchids and many species from the south. The western slope and its terraces are filled with olive trees. The hardly accessible slopes on the side of the Sarca are the home of the Sardinian-Warbler, the Blue Rock Trush, Rock Trush and many other birds. Butterflies flutter around the hikers on their way to the peak. The most beautiful time of the year for this biotope around the Monte Brione is the spring. The Monte Brione is not only a (small) natural paradise in the loud places around Riva and Torbole, it is also a fortress-mountain. Its strategically important position near the entrance into the Sarca valley, not far to the border of Italy was not lost to the k.u.k.-monarchy. Therefore, it was fortified very early. The oldest building, the Forte Sant’Allesandro (north) was built in 1860-1862 and later two more forts were added (Mittelbatterie, Garda). The hike to the Monte Brione can easily be connected with a walk through the small city of Riva. In the historic centre you can visit some very impressive buildings, for example the 35 m tall Torre Apponale, mentioned already in 1220 as the highest city tower or the town hall (Palazzo Municipale), which forms, together with the Palazzo Pretorio, a lovely late medieval ensemble. In the ex-fortress of the Scalinger you can today find the Museo Civico and regularly changing exhibitions.