May 9 - The Sentiero delle Olivi

Today was a holiday in Switzerland, so as usual, everything is closed (except for a few places like restaurants). It was a nice day, so Rick and I decided to take the bus to the town of Ruvigliana, which is on Monte Bré – just a short distance from us. From Ruvigliana we made our way down the mountainside, until we came to Castagnola. There we began a hike down the “Sentiero delle Olivi” which ends in the town of Gandria down the coast.

In the pictures below, take note of the garage we saw along the way. It was an open garage, like a carport (you can see the front end of a car on the right). It was open on the other side to get the view of the lake and mountains, with also a cut-out in the ceiling. The floor was perfectly clean. And this was just the garage! I can’t imagine what the house must have looked like – we can only see the rooftop of the house, since it’s on the mountainside – the road and garage are above and the house is below. I’d like to ring the door bell and ask if I can camp in their garage…. J

Since we began in Castagnola, our hike was downhill or flat. At one point the path hugs the cliffs along the lake. There are a number of homes and a couple of hotels along this path, with no access to a road. You either have to hike there or take a boat. We also stumbled upon the Lido San Domenico, a small park with a café, locker rooms, and a swim area. We never knew this existed! It was a perfect place to stop and enjoy the view and have a cappuccino.

A little further down the path there was a hotel which had a terrace over the water where people were having lunch. Another hidden gem that had escaped us during our year stay here (and I thought I had discovered everything!) Our entire hike from Castagnola to Gandria took 1 ½ hours, which included our cappuccino stop. We arrived in Gandria just in time to take the boat back to Lugano.

View from the path between Ruvigliana and Castagnola

The amazing GARAGE with a view and sun roof. The flat area just out from the garage is the roof of the house.

At the Lido San Domenico along the Sentiero delle Olivi

My favorite view in Gandria, from the dock as we waiting for our boat.

Rick waiting for our boat

Gandria from the boat

Lugano from the boat. Monte Bre is on the right. All the houses up and down the right side of the picture on the mountain are Ruvigliana and Castagnola.