Mountain panorama

Let’s go back to last October and our Lago Maggiore excursions for a while before the present season takes me over completely. Otherwise you might never hear anything more about this Piedmontese holiday and this place is too gorgeous not to post about. 

We returned to Stresa and Baveno another day planning to take the cable car to Monte Mottarone to see a bird’s-eye view of the lake. It turned out the service was closed because of a statutory inspection of the system. So we thought we might as well drive to the mountain instead.

As it happened to be a Sunday quite a number of people had headed that way, too. There were dozens of cars and motorbikes, even several camper vans parked at the foot of the final rise.

The highest hump of the mountain is not much of an attraction with its trampled sides and antennas at the top but the climb certainly pays off. The summit offers 360 degrees of fantastic views! The Borromean Islands of my recent post (here) lie more than a kilometre below. You could even spot the Hermitage of Santa Caterina del Sasso (post here) in the distance.

As picturesque as the views to Lago Maggiore and beyond might be on a sunny afternoon the panoramas to the mountains and valleys with the snow-peaked Alps in the distance are even more marvellous. It is no wonder many people were spending their day off at Monte Mottarone hiking on the trails or simply admiring the breathtaking views.

In early October, the autumn colours were at their best. We were thrilled to see some hang-gliders, even the take-off of one. I can only imagine how fantastic it must have felt to float over the colourful landscapes of such stunning beauty.

The lake in the valley behind the hills that resembles the head of a cartoon fish with an open mouth is Lago d’Orta. A couple of days earlier, we were walking the path around the tip of the cape forming the bottom of the mouth. (My posts on that day trip here and here.)

Should you ever visit Monte Mottarone it might be a good idea to reserve a whole day for the excursion. There is an alpine garden, Giardino Alpinia ad Alpino, not far from the first stop of the cable car. Should you be driving to the mountain you could stop also at the Umbrella Museum at Gignese. We didn’t have the time to stop at either. A trick to get me going early is yet to be discovered, I’m sad to say.