Renon
Enchanted by the Renon
Renon isn’t chaotic, polluted, noisy, frivolous. Its colours, its perfumes and its tastes are so charming because of the lack of any borders between men and nature, both plunged into an environment that reminds a sort of earthly Eden. It’s half an hour by car from Bolzano or 15 minutes by cable way, the Plateau of Renon features amazing breathless views and it can be crossed even by its famous cable train which bravely runs from the Eastern to the Western side, slows down a bit along the bends and stops in the small communities: it runs for around 7 kilometres in around 16 minutes, it is a true wonder.
If you leave from Soprabolzano the first stop is Costalovara, laying on the lake’s shore and surrounded by green fields where you can visit the Apiculture Museum that is set inside the Plattner old farm (maso), featured by the typical architecture of this area: the house, the barn, the stable, all under the same roof. It is a treasure of the peasant art and the honey is a true Nectar of the Gods especially the raspberry and the heather one. From Costalovara, if you want to glance over the Bolzano plane, we suggest you to go to Signato, along a route of 3 kilometres. The next stop by the old train is Stella – plunged into the forest – and going ahead by the railway you can reach Colle then Collalbo, the most important village of this area and the starting point of many trips towards a number of different directions. You can’t miss a visit of the village where Sigmund Freud stayed with his family in 1911: the room of the father of psychoanalysis can be visited as well as its ancient furniture. From Collalbo you can walk along the Fenn path, around 3 kilometres walk suitable for everyone with benches installed on a number of strategic spots, from there you can reach Longomoso. It is an ancient village where the pilgrims who were going to Rome through the Imperial Way in the Middle Ages used to gather: the ancient building of the Commenda of the Teutonic order and the parish witness that ancient time. From Longomoso you can go to Monte di Mezzo, famous for its earth pyramids – they are the typical geological formations made of a high pillar with a big stone on the top - the erosion phenomenon rises above all in the places where Ice Age glaciers have deposited moraine slit in the valleys, thus these earth pillars were shaped by the rivers that excavated the surface of the Renon. There are some in Soprabolzano and Auna di Sotto too. Near Monte di Mezzo there is the small village of Longostagno, its surrounding forests provide fields where children can play and they say that they once were the best collecting point of witches.
The route by the small train ends there but the Renon’s surprises are not over. Soprabolzano, for instance, where the cable way arrives was the first settlement of the plateau; some centuries ago, the males heirs of wealthy people from Bolzano were entitled to receive a building in the area of via dei Portici while the females were entitled to get a house in the Renon. In Maria Assunta, a very tiny village surrounded by the forests and the silence there are still a number of wonderful buildings and you can still see the heirs of those aristocratic families strolling around in their white coat and red collar. Throughout the whole Renon there are numbered paths that lead to many different old farms where you can taste amazing food and before being caught by the temptations of gluttony you can practise all kinds of sport activities. The yearly competition “Gran Prix of ice speed sliding” is one of the most important events that are held in that area of Corno of Renon that reaches 2000 metres of height and it is recommended for skiing; it can be reached by a chair lift that will take you to Cima Lago Nero. You’ll almost touch the sky with your fingers and feel an extraordinary, incredible and rarefied serenity.
Luciana Francesca Rebonato
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