Lake Como - 5 hikes around its golden triangle. Italy

Описание: Lake Como is a popular travel destination in northern Italy. Apart from its stunning natural landscape, its beautiful towns and cuisine attract different types of visitors. We wanted to try all this for ourselves so this mid November we went there for 5 days.
Upon our arrival we headed directly to a hike which was on our way. It was close to Pianni dei Resinelli in a place called Parco Valentino, where you can reach a suspended platform offering nice views of the lake. But getting close to that we noticed a quiet viewpoint not far from it and we decided to go there instead. It is called Monte Coltignone and it was perfect for sunset.

Already at night, we headed towards Dervio, our home base. Dervio was a bit off the beaten path, at least in the autumn, north of Varenna, one of the three famous towns forming the Como Golden Triangle. The other two are Menaggio, on the opposite shore of the lake, and Bellagio, at the tip of a peninsula of the upsidedown Y shaped lake. Because of this particular shape, traveling between these towns is much easier by boat than driving around the lake.
We arrived late and we barely found an open restaurant at this time of the year. A pizza place called Goffee saved us and continued to be almost a daily stop for the rest of our trip. They have some of the best pizza we have ever tried.

On our second day, after a very short train ride we got to Bellano where we visited the Orrido, a small gorge with a big waterfall. After that we hiked all the way to Varenna, a part of the most popular hike in lake Como area, Sentiero del Viandante. The path in not too difficult and it took us through the forest 200-300m above the lake. The views of the lake are nice, especially when getting close to Varenna.
After lunch and a stroll through the town, we took the boat to the opposite shore to Menaggio. We crossed the town and hiked the rugged coastline to the north up to Villa Gaeta and back. Here, as in all other towns in the area, we were mesmerized by the beautiful old churches and chapels along our way. We had a nice dinner in Menaggio and then took one of the last boats back to Varenna and the train to Dervio.

Day three was all about a slow morning to rest our bodies before attempting the highest point of the trip, monte Legnoncino, who's shape peak is visible from Dervio. It stands at 1718m and is the smaller sibling of Monte Legnone, which we did not plan to hike due to its 2600m height and the expected snow capping it. In the afternoon we took the long winding road to Roccoli-Lorla, a small hut which is the starting point for hiking both mountains. There was not much snow on Legnone but we remained faithful to our plan anyways. After a short but steep ascent, exiting the forest we reached a small chapel, San Sfirio and very soon, the peak. The 360 degree views are absolutely spectacular not only down to the lake, but all the way to the surrounding mountains. Back to Dervio for another pizza and a good night's sleep.

On day four, and our last full day in the area we learned that right next to Dervio there is a charming medieval village called Corenno Plinio. We hiked on the main road to reach it and were pleasantly surprised by its small cobblestone streets and houses, as well as the church and the Arche degli Andriani, beautifully decorated tombs of the feudal Lords of the place dating from the 14th century. The little port under the castle is equally beautiful.
To complete the golden triangle, we headed towards Bellagio. Although initially we wanted to hike Monte San Primo, the recommended hike above the town, this would have required taking the car on a ferry or driving around the lake quite a bit. We were already tired from previous hikes and just went for a walk in the town, some truffle pasta and a hike on its outskirts to the Perlo mill. Nothing spectacular but a complicated return due to cancelled trains got us back to Dervio very late but still in time for yet another pizza. The following day bad weather arrived but we didn't mind as we had to go back home anyways.

Complete hikes details and maps:

Piani dei Resinelli: https://www.komoot.com/tour/268066054...

Bellano to Varenna (Sentiero del Viandante): https://www.komoot.com/tour/268167183...

Menaggio: https://www.komoot.com/tour/268213175...

Monte Legnoncino: https://www.komoot.com/tour/268349380...

Bellagio: https://www.komoot.com/tour/268472413...

00:00 Intro
02:11 Pianni dei Resinelli hike
04:06 Orrido du Bellano
06:09 Sentiero del Viandante hike
09:37 Varenna
12:11 Menaggio to Villa Gaeta hike
17:40 Monte Legnoncino hike
23:22 Corenno Plinio
25:59 Bellagio hike