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Theme Trail recommended route Multi-day route

The educational path between mountains and lake

Theme Trail · Ascona-Locarno
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  • Photo: Mariano Berri, Ascona-Locarno Tourism

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    The educational route Between Mountains and Lake is a didactic route from Dirinella, where the mountain path of the same name also begins, to the SBB train station Cadenazzo. The route leads through forests, meadows, and villages with picturesque corners and splendid panoramas, but also offers the opportunity to engage with industrial zones, agriculture, traffic routes, and special features of the Gambarogno as well as the Magadino plain.

    moderate
    Distance 23.5 km
    7:20 h
    1,085 m
    1,085 m
    392 m
    194 m

    The approximately forty thematic panels, created in cooperation with the schools of Gambarogno, tell old, evocative, but also modern and fascinating stories. They familiarize hikers with historical, geographical and scientific facts, old crafts and new settlements, nature parks and recreational areas. They also explain the major territorial and socio-economic changes of the last 200 years, from the advent of the railway to the canalization of the Ticino River and the subsequent reclamation of the Magadino plain.

    The educational path was created as part of an Interreg initiative in 2004 with the first section Dirinella – San Nazzaro, was extended to Contone in 2017, and has reached the SBB train station Cadenazzo since 2019. This extension was pursued as part of the projects Le Terre del Ceneri and La Via del Ceneri, which aim to highlight the historical, cultural, and landscape features of the areas of Cadenazzo, Gambarogno, and Monteceneri north of Monte Ceneri as well as the commissioning of the Ceneri Base Tunnel opened in 2020.

    The educational path is aimed at a broad audience: schoolchildren, families, but also older people. It has no major difficulties and can be walked in both directions.

    Due to its length of around 23 kilometers, the educational path is divided into three stages.

    Profile picture of Christian Bordoli - Ente Regionale per lo Sviluppo Locarnese e Vallemaggia
    Author
    Christian Bordoli - Ente Regionale per lo Sviluppo Locarnese e Vallemaggia
    Logo Ascona-Locarno Tourism
    Responsible for this content
    Ascona-Locarno Tourism  Verified partner 
    Difficulty
    T1 moderate
    Overall difficulty
    moderate

    Derived from the technical difficulty and the stamina requirements.

    Highest point
    392 m
    Lowest point
    194 m
    Best time of year
    Jan
    Feb
    Mar
    Apr
    May
    Jun
    Jul
    Aug
    Sep
    Oct
    Nov
    Dec

    Track types

    Asphalt 45.86%Dirt road 2.10%Forested/wild trail 2.36%Path 32.34%Road 17.14%Unknown 0.17%
    Asphalt
    10.8 km
    Dirt road
    494 m
    Forested/wild trail
    555 m
    Path
    7.6 km
    Road
    4 km
    Unknown
    42 m
    Show elevation profile

    Public transport

    Public-transport-friendly

    From Locarno: Take the boat towards Ascona. Get off at San Nazzaro. Or take the train towards Castione-Arbedo. Get off at Cadenazzo and then take bus B 350 towards Dirinella. Get off at San Nazzaro.

    Return from Magadino: Take the boat to Locarno. Or take bus B 350 towards S. Antonino, Centri Commerciali. Get off at Cadenazzo. Take the train towards Locarno. Get off at the station. More information: www.sbb.ch

    Coordinates

    SwissGrid
    2'702'069E 1'106'742N
    DD
    46.104456, 8.758689
    DMS
    46°06'16.0"N 8°45'31.3"E
    UTM
    32T 481349 5105681
    w3w 
    ///asterisk.repeat.extremely
    Get there by train, car, bike, or on foot!

    Equipment

    • Day hiking backpack (approx. 20 liters) with rain cover
    • Sturdy and comfortable footwear
    • Weather-appropriate and durable clothing in layers, if necessary telescopic poles,
    • Sun and rain protection
    • Provisions and drinking water,
    • First aid kit
    • Pocket knife
    • Mobile phone, if necessary headlamp,
    • Map material

    Localization

    Parts of this content were machine translated using German as the source language

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    Difficulty
    T1 moderate
    Overall difficulty
    moderate

    Derived from the technical difficulty and the stamina requirements.

    Distance
    23.5 km
    Duration
    7:20 h
    Ascent
    1,085 m
    Descent
    1,085 m
    Highest point
    392 m
    Lowest point
    194 m
    Public-transport-friendly Scenic Linear route Refreshment stops available Cultural/historical interest Flora

    Weather at the starting point

    10-day forecast

    Statistics

    • Content
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    Features
    Maps and trails
    Theme Trail · Ascona-Locarno
    Educational trail - Between the Mountains and the Lake - Stage 1: Dirinella-San Nazzaro
    recommended route Difficulty T1 easy Stage 1
    Distance 7.5 km
    Duration 3:00 h
    Ascent 281 m
    Descent 291 m

    The first part of the Between the Mountains and the Lake educational trail links Dirinella and San Nazzaro.

    from Christian Bordoli - Ente Regionale per lo Sviluppo Locarnese e Vallemaggia,   Ascona-Locarno Tourism
    Theme Trail · Ascona-Locarno
    Educational trail - Between the Mountains and the Lake - Stage 2: San Nazzaro-Magadino
    recommended route Difficulty T1 easy Stage 2
    Distance 6.7 km
    Duration 2:30 h
    Ascent 196 m
    Descent 199 m

    from Christian Bordoli - Ente Regionale per lo Sviluppo Locarnese e Vallemaggia,   Ascona-Locarno Tourism
    Theme Trail · Ascona-Locarno
    Educational trail - Between the Mountains and the Lake - Stage 3: Magadino-Cadenazzo
    recommended route Difficulty T1 easy Stage 3
    Distance 8.9 km
    Duration 3:30 h
    Ascent 393 m
    Descent 385 m

    from Christian Bordoli - Ente Regionale per lo Sviluppo Locarnese e Vallemaggia,   Ascona-Locarno Tourism
    Nothing selected - click and drag in the elevation profile to zoom
    Distance
    Duration
    Ascent
    Descent
    Elevation profile

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