Lake Garda is a moody child. Clear, blue, calm and loving when the weather is fine. Grey, sleek, mysterious and dropping its lip when it’s cloudy. Sad, drab, frowning and stamping its foot when it’s raining.

The southern end of Lake Garda aligns with Milan & Brescia to the West, and Verona & Venice to the East. To its’ North, Switzerland and Austria and to its’ West, France. Our host tells us it’s very popular with German tourists and we notice many during the shoulder season. Lake Garda is somewhat of a cycling Mecca; we are wading through roadies in which ever direction we have taken these past 5 days. In this year’s Giro, part of the route was through Lake Garda’s mountainous terrain and we’re not at all surprised! The area is also well known for hiking and sailing, as well as other recreational water activities. It’s beautiful and we’ve loved our time there.

Sunday. The rain has finally eased off and Rod and I are keen to get out on foot and do some exploring. We are high up in the hills, about 150m above the waterline, but feel after all the steep steps, hills and walking we’ve done lately, we can surely walk into ‘town’ and back again. We mostly follow the narrow winding road and spot a landmark in the port area of Maderno. I set my phone navigation to that point. We find little walk throughs, to keep us off the road; they are sleek and slippery with the recent rains on top of the moss which has accumulated in the shady parts over the years. We are spat out into a little residential street which brings us directly to the front of the Church of Maderno. It was built in the 8th century, but upgraded to a Baptismal church in the 9th century (we don’t actually know what that means…). We walked in through the solid doors, worn smooth over the years with use, and looked around in amazement. Hamish has called these happenings ‘happy accidents’ where we accidentally find a little treasure. The church was incredible, with the added bonus of: no crowds, no queueing and no cost. It bore the same intricate designs and paintings that can be seen in the more well known churches.

We followed the coast and found an old mansion built by a wealthy family called Delai. It was palatial and still quite impressive; the original frescoes can be seen on the external walls. We found some steps which put us up on the main road North – this wasn’t a fun place to be, due to our proximity of the traffic and lack of space for pedestrians, but the views were beautiful. We eventually found a lesser road and started our ascent back home. Mostly this was OK, but the last few hundred metres was killer!

Monday. Our plan for the day was to drive to the northern most town of the lake (Riva del Garda) for some exploration and lunch. The roads (and Italian drivers) have really tested Rod’s nerve and skill – the road was multi-directional, hugged the coastline and largely consisted of tunnels of various form: new machine built (well lit, wide with good drainage), old machine built (pointed dome shape, cut out arches with views of the Lake, narrow lanes with varying degrees of drainage) and hand built (dark, damp cave-like and narrow).

We eventually found a real car park (after Apple Maps suggested a car park existed in a school) and were rewarded with half a day set in the most beautiful waterfront surrounds. Pedestrian areas make life much easier and Riva mostly had car free zones. We found a little restaurant in a side street and had a light lunch (caprese salad, vegetable soup, lasagne and spaghetti with olive oil and chilli). We then caught a very steep funicular to visit the Bastione Di Riva (ye olde castle ruins). Fun fact: the funicular was finished just as COVID started. Prior to this there was a chair lift. Of course, gelato was in order after this excursion and you’ll be pleased to know I’m branching out, and getting out of my ‘but I only like vanilla’ phase and ordered some sort of cherry swirl which was to die for. The ducks were cute and very interested in hanging out with the people. How can anyone be grumpy when there’s gelato AND ducks!

Tuesday. Rod has been wistfully watching the ferries cross each day, so it was only fair we explore the Eastern side of the lake by catching a ferry to Torri del Benaco. Torri is another small village and we’d done zero homework except for Rod checking out the ferry timetable. The ferry ride was smooth and in 30 minutes, we were walking off the gangway. We walked to our left and found another castle: The Scaliger castle, built in 1383 (although Rod tells me there was a castle there prior to that from the 10th century). The castle/museum was closed between 1230 and 1430 (typical Italy, closed for lunch) so we continued sauntering along the waterfront, which is a very pleasant way to spend some time. Plenty to see: water birds, buildings, statues, boats, mountains and the clearest water you can imagine. We ate lunch at a restaurant right on the lakefront and had pizza and pasta, and some refreshing rose wine (it seems to be sparkling here? – no complaints from us though!). Hamish fed the ducks with grissini and once again, we reminded ourselves how fortunate we are to be living this travelling life.

We lined up at precisely 230pm for the castle doors to be unlocked. The goal for Hamish and I was to visit the ramparts. The ferry was due to leave at 305pm so we dutifully walked through the other displays (fishing, olive oil production, something else…) before reaching the top of the castle, grabbing some quick pics, peering over the edges, before climbing the narrow stair case back down, collecting Rod on the floor below, then heading to the ferry. We made it with time to spare! Gelato was our reward back in Toscolano-Maderno, as well as the discovery of another gorgeous little church. We have seen 5 perfectly preserved, intricately decorated, old churches in Lake Garda, including one with a crypt – they have been very impressive, more happy accidents.

A note on Cycling: we haven’t.

We’re now in France, in a medieval village called Roquebrune in Cap Martin. It is tucked into the corner of France and Italy, with Monaco a mere 9km away. We’re here for 4 more nights – more stunning views which make the wine taste even sweeter.