Guide to Lake Iseo, Lombardy, Italy

IntroductionMaria dates from the
Lake Iseo, also called Lake Sebina, is the fourth15th century and houses a 16th century organ case
largestlake in the Lombardy region of Italy. The lakeandfrescoes. The lakeside Palazzo Tadini contains the
was formed bythe Valcamonica Glacier, and is 24Schoolof Fine Arts, a gallery with paintings, sculptures
kilometres long and upto 5 kilometres wide. Thisandceramics. Count Luigi Tadini began this collection in
width is not always obvious asthe largest lake islandhistown house in Crema. The Tadini familys only son
in Europe, Monte Isola, sits in thecentre of the lake.died in
The lake is situated just north of BresciaandLovere in 1799 where they often took holidays.
Bergamo, this being reflected in the fact that itCount Tadiniprovided the funds to built the Palazzo, in
isadministered on the western bank by the Bergamomemory of hisson.
districtcouncil, and on the east bank by the BresciaThe English writer and poet Lady Mary Wortley
district council.Montagulived in a villa on the outskirts of Lovere in
The River Oglio, flowing down from the Val Camonicathe 1740s. Lady
andentering between Lovere and Pisogne, mainlyMary is said to have written many letters to her
feeds thedaughter inthe villa garden, and been inspired to write
Lake from the north. The Val Camonica has thermalpoetry by thebeauty of her surroundings. In fact she
spasand prehistoric rock carvings. At the southerndeclined an invitationto the Venice carnival saying,
end of thelake lies the Torbiere, a peat bog and nowthere are plenty things to do inthis village which, by
a nature reserve.the way, is one of the most beautifulthat exists.
South of this lies the Franciacorta valley, producingLady Mary came to live in Italy in 1741,supposedly for
the bestsparkling wine in Italy.health reasons, although it is thought thatshe no
On the eastern bank, a few kilometres up from thelonger wanted to live with her husband. Lady
lake, isthe Natural Reserve of the Pyramids of Zone,Maryhad travelled to Turkey as wife of the British
a uniqueformation of pillars created by uneven glacialAmbassadorand there she came across the practice
erosion. Thesixty-kilometre perimeter lakeside isof inoculationagainst smallpox. She had her own
dotted with villagesand towns, the main ones beingchildren inoculated butwas never given proper credit
Iseo, Sarnico, Lovere,for introducing the practice in
Pisogne and Marone. These towns are full of historicalBritain. Lady Marys daughter married Lord Bute,
andcultural interest, yet it is pleasant to stroll alongwhobecame prime minister of Britain in 1762, a year
thepromenade or linger over a drink in a café.after Lady
There are avariety of water sports available on theMarys death.
Lake and fishing ispopular with the locals, tench beingLovere has another literary connection in Georges
the prized catch. Thereis a good selection of walkingSand, the
and cycling trails, and inFrench novelist, who wrote of Lake Iseo to a friend
Winter there is skiing north of Lake Iseo in thein
Presolanoarea.London, Come, I have found a lovely place to live.
Unique pointsGeorges
The fact that Lake Iseo is not well known outsideSands real name was Aurore Dupin, but she had
Italy andtherefore less touristy makes it moretaken amans name as it was not deemed suitable for
appealing. One of itsbiggest attractions is Monte Isola,ladies to benovelists in the 19th century, and she
the largest inland lakeisland in Europe, which is easilyoften dressed as aman. She had a long-standing affair
reached by ferry and withno cars on the island it iswith Chopin. After theirbreak up in 1847 she wrote
very peaceful, making it ideal forwalking or cycling.the novel Lucrezia Floriana. Theromance between a
There are also the Pyramids of Zone,where theyoung Italian noble and an older lady isset on Monte
erosion of glacial deposits has left pinnacles ofearthIsola. It is said that this novel inspired manyvisits by
up to ten metres high. On the western lakeshoreladies seeking romance to the area!
arethe bogns of Castro and Zorzino, sheets ofIn 1854 Lovere joined the industrial revolution, with
limestone thatplunge into the lake. North of the lakethedevelopment of the first large steel complex in
in Val Camino youcan see hundreds of prehistoricthe region.
rock carvings at theLovere prospered as an industrial centre until the
National Park of Rock Engravings and to the south of1980s,but this has left a scar on the landscape.
thelake is the Torbiere peat bog and Franciacorta,Valle Camonica
the areawhere the renowned sparkling wine isAs you head round the north of the lake, you may
produced.wish tohave a slight detour to visit the Valle
Getting thereCamonica. This valleyis 90km long and contains 41
Nearest airportstowns and villages, making itthe longest valley in Italy.
Bergamo (Orio Serio)The healing powers of the watersof the spa town of
BresciaBoario Terme were written about as earlyas 1497 by
Veronathe naturalist Paracelsus. The Italian writer
Milan (Malpensa)Manzoni was a regular visitor, living to the age of 88.
Milan (Linate)Nearbyat the Capo di Ponte is the National Rock
All of these airports are within reasonableEngraving Park,with prehistoric rock carvings, dating
travellingdistance to Lake Iseo. Most internationalfrom Neolithic timesthrough to the Iron Age. The
flights come intocarvings relate to the history ofthe Camuni tribe
Milan Malpensa, although the low cost carrier Ryanairthroughout this period. It is an amazingsite, containing
usesthousands of figures: an enormous stonehistory book.
Bergamo and Brescia.One of the most common carvings is that ofthe
Car: travelling on the Milan Venice motorway (A4) toCamonic rose, which is now the emblem of the
go tothe West bank Of Lake Iseo you would comeLombardy region. On this site is the Archeopark, an
off at Sarnicojunction and on to the SS649. To reachopen-air interactive park where you can try out
Iseo town, travellingeast on the A4, you would alsovarious dailyprehistoric activities e.g. lighting a fire,
come off at Sarnico exit, andtravelling west on theshooting with a bowand arrow and grinding corn and
A4 you would turn off at Brescia up thebaking bread. The
SS510.Archeodromo is a realistic construction of a Neolithic
Public transport: There are regular connections by busvillagewith six huts perched on a rocky hill. Some
andtrain to Brescia from all the nearby airports,school groupsstay in the village for a few days to
thenconnections from Brescia by bus and train toget an authentic taste ofprehistoric life. Personally
Iseo. The traincontinues up the east bank to Pisogne.speaking I think Id rather go backto my hotel bed
Once you have reached Iseo the most relaxingand shower. The traditional art ofwoodcarving
andpicturesque option for getting around the lake iscontinues in this area. The Cammunian Wood
the ferry.Handicraft Workshops in Boaria Terme, where all
Guide to Lake Iseo, clockwise from Iseo town ontypes ofobjects from religious ornaments to babies
thesouthern shores.cribs areproduced, can be found in the area. A fusion
ISEO TOWNof modern and
I am really fond of Iseo town; it has a relaxed16th century techniques are used to craft the goods.
ambience,wide squares and a lovely promenade withPISOGNE
a fantastic viewof the lake and Monte Isola. It isPisogne was an important centre in medieval times
quite lively, mainly withforcommerce - a large weekly market was held
Italian families and couples.there. Thetown had a ring of walls and a system of
Iseo was a business centre in Roman times, and itgates but not muchis left standing now. In the
was animportant port until the end of the 19thMarket Square you would behung in a cage
century. The hero ofsuspended from the tower for non-paymentof taxes
Italian unification, Garibaldi, is celebrated with a statuedue to the bishop. Tax was due on almosteverything
andfountain in the main square. Also on this square is- fishing, hunting, milling, salt and iron. Thebishops
thewere forbidden to inflict any punishment that
Palazzo Vantini, built in the 1833s and now used aswouldcause loss of blood, so humiliation was the next
thetown hall. The Pieve di S. Andrea dates back tobest optionto extract their dues. In 1518 eight
the 12thcentury, and is distinctive because of itswomen accused ofwitchcraft were imprisoned in the
cuspedWidow Tower beforebeing burned.
Romanesque bell tower. The 11th century CastelloJust off Market Square is Santa Maria Assunta
Oldofredi was recently restored and now houses thechurch,which contains a 150-year-old pipe organ. The
publiclibrary.facade of the
Just south of the town are the peat bogs; TorbierePalazzo Fanzango is adorned with medallions depicting
delthecharacters from the book I Promessi Sposi (The
Sebino is now a nature reserve. Lake Iseo wasBetrothed)written by Manzoni. This is an important
around 10metres deeper in the past, but erosion ofpiece of Italianliterature, telling the tale of how love
the bed of thetriumphed for twopeasants despite the efforts of a
River Oglio at the southern outflow meant that thelocal tyrant. The book alsohas a vivid description of
lake levelbegan to drop, cutting off a shallow basin,the spread of the Plague in 17thcentury Milan.
which graduallybecame a large marsh with peatyAt the end of the 17th century, Pisogne was home
deposits. During theindustrialisation of the 19thto thenotorious bandit Giorgi Vicario. There was not
century local factories beganusing the peat as amuchbrotherly loyalty between the bandits as Vicario
source of energy, eventually excavatingmost of thetrackeddown and killed Giuseppe Techi for a reward.
peat deposits. Imagine digging up the peatusing aTechis headwas delivered on a tray decorated with
caged spade with a five-metre handle!bay leaves to theauthorities. A double whammy, a
Evidence of prehistoric settlement was found duringreward and lesscompetition locally!
peatcutting: stone arrowheads, blades and daggersPisogne hosts the local festival of mushrooms
dating fromandchestnuts on the last Sunday in September.
5000 BC. Now the area is of great scientific interestMARONE
andhome to many species of bird and fish.Marone is situated in a beautiful spot in a green valley
The Franciacorta region, south of Iseo, has becomeatthe foot of Monte Guglielmo. There are ruins of a
wellknown for its sparkling wine. In the mid 1950s afirstcentury Roman villa, Co del Hela as you enter the
youngentrepreneur started to make sparkling winetown. Onthe lakeside is the Parrocchiale di tours, an
emulating themethod using in the Champagne region18th Century
of France. Thismeans that the secondaryBaroque style church with a marble altar. Marone was
fermentation of the wine occursin the bottle, awellknown for production of woollen cloth and felt
process which takes around two years. Nowthisand thequarrying of dolomite. Nowadays tourism is
valley produces the legally protected Franciacortathe mainindustry.
wine,assuring it has been hand made using theA few kilometres uphill from Marone on the road to
traditionalchampagne methods in one of the thirtyZone liethe Earth Pyramids. They are an amazing
wineries in thearea. Visits to the wineries and tastingsight: thin spiresof earth up to 30 metres high, with
sessions can bearranged. Wine lovers may wish tolarge granite massesperched on top almost like hats.
visit for the three days inThe Pyramids are notstatic as they can erode,
September for the Wine Festival, with tasting, specialcausing the boulder to fall andgradually new pyramids
mealsand visits to cellars.are created.
Villa Lechi, a Palladian style villa built in the 16thOn the way to the Pyramids is the church of San
century,can be visited by appointment (phone 392Giorgio andon the outer sidewall are frescoes painted
706 30087 toarrange) Just west of Erbusco is thein the 15thcentury, including one of San Giorgio slaying
Oglio North Park, onthe eastern banks of the river.the dragon.
SARNICOFurther up the hill is the village of Zone. As you
Sarnico is the first resort heading west from Iseo. Itascend youcan see what I initially thought was a ski
wasoriginally a prehistoric stilt village, as it standslift, above the road.
where thelakes narrows and once again becomes theIt is in fact suspended containers, which carry the
River Oglio.dolomitedown from the Calarusso quarry. In some
There are frescoes dating from 1200 AD in therespects itreminded me of a Swiss alpine village; the
church Sanair was so freshand crisp. There are two interesting
Nazario e Rocca di Castione. You can still seechurches on the Piazza
ruinedmedieval ramparts.Almici: The octagonal 18th century Beata Veringe di
For some Sarnico is best known as the home ofLourdes and the 17th century Parrocchiale S Giovanii
thepremier speedboat company Riva. One of theBallista, containing wooden works of art by Andrea
mostfascinating aspects of the companys story toFalconi.
me is thejourney of Pietro Riva from his hometownThe festival of honey is held in the town square at
of Lagio on thethebeginning of August. From Zone there are several
Lake Como to Sarnico in 1842. The young Pietrowalkingpaths and, if you're feeling energetic, one to
wastravelling to start a new job repairing boats inthe summit of
Sarnico; hisMonte Guglielmo.
70-mile journey took him two days, travelling byMONTE ISOLA
boat, trainand coach.The largest lake island in Europe is 3km long, rising to
His repairs were so successful that he was soonanelevation of 600m, and is sometimes referred to
beingcommissioned to build boats. The boat buildingas thepearl of Iseo. Only public service four wheeled
businessgrew under Pietros son, Ernesto, who beganvehicles areallowed on the island. If you want to see
producedboats powered by piston engines.more of the islandyou can rent a bicycle or use the
In 1912 Ernestos son Serafino achieved a speed oflocal bus. There is also theoption to take the gentle
24kilometres an hour in a speedboat. Riva becamelevel walk along the southern coastfrom the village of
aprestigious brand, sought by the rich and famous asPeschiera Maraglio to Sensole and returnon the ferry
astatus symbol. However you no longer seefrom Sensole. If you are feeling energetic youcan
speedboats onvisit the 13th century Il Santuario della Madonna della
Lake Iseo because they were banned forCerinole, which is situated at the highest point of the
environmentalreasons in 1976!island.
Sarnico is home to the Bellini Gallery, a pictureThe 14th Century Fortress Martinango is the
galleryexhibiting around 150 pieces, mainly from theancestralhome of the Olofredi family. It is one of the
periodbetween the 16th and 18th centuries. Thebest-preservedforts in the region. It is unusual in that
Gallery is in theold part of the city and was formerlyits highest tower is inthe centre.
a nunnery. Also ondisplay are some sculptures andThe population of the island is around 1700, with
furniture.those notemployed in tourism working as fishermen,
The Palazzo to Sarnico rail line winds along Oglio River.in boatyards ormaking nets. In fact, the nets for the
Volunteers reopened this line recently. TrenoBlu as itgoal posts of the 1982
isknown is often steam hauled. The trains run duringFootball World Cup were made locally. Guess what -
theItalywon the Cup that year! There are still numerous
Summer. There are rail connections from Bergamonaets, thetypical wooden local fishing boats, to be
andseen. Some of thecatch is left outside to dry in the
Milan.sun in the traditionalmanner.
Just outside Sarnico, heading east, stands theYou can visit a traditional boatyard, Cantiere Nautico
Faccononivilla, designed by one of Italys best Artin
Nouveau architects,Peschiere Maraglio, and see the construction of
Sommaruga, for the wealthy Faccanoni family. Thethehandmade wooden boats.
villa onthe lakeshore exemplifies SommarugasI think that Monte Isola is a charming, tranquil place
trademark Florealestyle.to visit,still relatively peaceful and relaxing. It is very
RIVA DI SOLTOthickly wooded,when you observe it from the shore
The stretch from Tavernola north constitutes theits hard to imaginebeing able to reach the summit.
mostdramatic stretch of the west bank. Just try toOne of the big events on the island is the festival of
blot out thequarry at Tavernola! Riva is a prettyCorzano, a hamlet that dates back to the 1600s. This
fishing hamlet, full ofarches and alleys. The old centreonlytakes place every five years.
is up the hill at Zorzino.There are regular ferries from several towns on
The Zorzino Bong, with its vertical slabs ofthelakeshore to the coastal villages in Monte Isola.
limestoneplunging Mount Clemo, creates its ownSuggested Itineraries
enclosed bay.Day Trip:
Further north is the Castro Bogn.Driving: it is possible to drive round the lake with a
LOVEREfewstops in one day from Milan, Brescia or Bergamo
The Lovere area was occupied by the Gauls in theand seeunique sights.
Iron Age,and by the second century BC the RomanPublic transport: bus/train to Iseo, ferry trip from
settlement beganto take form.there.
Lovere still has ramparts remaining from its period asTrains from Brescia operate every hour, and it is a
amedieval fortified town. The oldest church is thehalf-hourjourney to Iseo, and they also go up to
12thcentury Capell di San Martino. The town wasPisogne, stopping at
famous in theSulzano and Sale Marsino.
15th century as Venetian textile town. Most of theWeekend/Short stay (2-3 nights) you could either be
output ofwoollen cloth was sold in Germany andbasedin Iseo, spending a day visiting Monte Isola, one
Austria. At thebeginning of the 16th century thereday visitingthe west bank of the lake and one day
was a period of turmoil,with periods of rule by theon the east bank. Analternative would be to tour the
French, the Holy Roman Empireand the Spanish,lake in a day and spend aday either in Bergamo or
which greatly disrupted the production anddistributionVerona.
of the cloth. There was more strife later thatcenturyIseo town would be a good base for day trips to the
with plagues and famines. By the 17th centurycities of
theauthorities had tackled the security problem ofBergamo, Verona, Venice, Brescia, Vicenzia and
bandits andsome Lombardy noblemen began to travelPadova.
to Lovere fortheir holidays. The Basilica of Santa