Sentiero Monte Brè
Top hike in Ticino
02|02|2021
Sentiero Monte Brè | Top hike in Ticino
Picturesque villages of Gandria and Brè | Breath-taking views | Top hike in Ticino
Die Fakten:
Ausgangspunkt | Parking just above Gandria (392 m). We recommend, however, to start at the very bottom, at Gandrai boat station (276 m)
Endpunkt | As above – we came the same way back down, as the funicular was not operating yet. Usually you can take the “Funiculare Monte Brè” down to Lugano Casserate and then you can hop on the bus (B490) back to Gandria (9 min bus ride).
Reine Laufzeit | 2 Std 50 Minuten
Aufnahmedauer insgesamt | 3 hrs 40 minutes
Streckenlänge | 8.07 km
Aufstieg | 604 m | Abstieg | 604 m
Technischer Anspruch | leicht | Kondition | easy to moderate
Familienfreundlich? Ja
Erfrischung | WC Stopp Ja
Wegpunkte | Gandria – Brè – Monte Brè – Gandria
This quick route through the forest led us from the Gandria to the artistic village of Brè and further on to the summit of Monte Brè. A short and sweet hike that offers picturesque villages and stunning views of the gulf of Lugano.
The tour “officially” starts at Gandria boat station.
Somehow, we parked our car above the village (the parking seemed so convenient) and thereby missed to visit Gandria itself L. Don´t make the same mistake, just drive a little further and start the journey from there.
When we left the car park, however, we could immediately feel the spirit of Ticino. Blue skies, palm trees and sand-coloured houses gave us that so familiar Mediterranean warmth (we lived in Malta for six years). Beautiful, breathtakingly beautiful!
We embarked on a pleasant hike through the forest, steadily ascending, whilst enjoying the warmer climate.
Living close to Zurich in the northern part of Switzerland, one can feel the difference straight away, especially when you pass the Gotthard tunnel.
After 20 minutes through the tunnels across the Alps, you start feeling the atmosphere changing gradually. It will completely change once you emerge on the other side. Definitively, a warmer world where Italian is the dominant language. This put us straight away into the mood of gelato, sunglasses and good coffee.
We found all of this and more pleasant surprises at our next waypoint, the charming village of Brè.
We took a relaxed walk through the narrow streets of the village and admired the artistic flair in almost every corner.
The entire track is then completed in just another thirty minutes of stair climbing. The stairs are not bad at all! We started getting rewarded during our way up with the most wonderful views of Lake Lugano and the surrounding areas.
A little further up, the views got even better. What is it with Switzerland and these never-ending great views???
On top at 925 m above sea level (our geo tracker showed 971 m???) we sat down and in a closed restaurant (thanks to Corona) and enjoyed the sun (and some nuts and cheese).
In normal (not pandemic) circumstances, one could have taken an exciting ride with the Monte Brè funiculare down to Lugano where one could have taken the bus back to Gandria.
In our current times, we walked the same way back down that we came from. Let´s consider this some more healthy exercise after all!
This hike is short and sweet. Don´t miss it when you are in the area