7 Tips to SUP in safety

•  Always find out about the winds, weather and water conditions. The lake is subject to currents and steady winds which in the afternoon can make the water rough so that sup becomes difficult for beginners.
• If you are planning solo sessions, always tell some where you are going and what time you are leaving. Use schools or the sup club as a base.
• Keep to the coast but stay 500/600m from the shore and the cliffs where there might be rock falls.
• It is important to know how to swim in rough water and have the right equipment and proper clothing for the weather conditions. You must use a sup board with a volume suited to your abilities and wear an CE approved personal buoyancy aid.
• Always tie on the leash; the coast or shore might be far away and in case of problems you should never abandon the sup.
• Find out about any local ordinances and ask locals for advice
• Enjoy yourself. Sup combines a love of sport and nature and the beauty of Garda Trentino.

The information on this chart is subject to inevitable variations, so this means that none of the indications are absolute. It is not entirely possible to avoid giving inexact or imprecise information, given how quickly environmental and weather conditions can change. For this reason we decline any responsibility for changes which the user may encounter. In any case,  the hiker is advised to check the conditions of the places, environment and weather before setting out.

The starting point is Purfina di Riva del Garda, where you can enter the water by means of a slipway; now head in the direction of Torbole, paddling just a few metres from the sheer cliffs before the harbour of San Nicolò. Here you will pass a famous scuba diving training ground, famous for the metal statue of  "Silent Christ", more than 3 metres tall and situated at a depth of 15 metres. The training ground is protected from boats by an effective system of buoys marking the perimeter.

A little further ahead, you come to the slopes of Mount Brione, nature reserve: if you look closely, you may see some of the many nests of waterbirds.

Once you get to the marvellous blue bay, always busy with surfers of every age, continue on across the mouth of the River Sarca in the municipality of Torbole where a small stretch of reed beds remains which still shows how the lake front originally looked.

Continue on, admiring the busy beach of Torbole, paddling in front of Pavese Park, until you come to the area called Conca d'Oro, right beside the impressive Adige-Garda tunnel. The beach was actually built using the rubble which came from the excavation of the tunnel through which the River Adige flows into the lake and is open in periods of flood in order to allow water to drain away.

Head south along the lake shore as far as Corno di Bò, where you can admire climbers in action. The nearby Spiaggia delle Lucertole, is the perfect stop off point to catch your breath before heading back, cutting across the lake to the point you started from.

For up-to-the-minute information on timetables and routes: www.gardatrentino.it

Free parking in Riva del Garda at the old hospital (via Rosmini) and the old cemetery (Viale D. Chiesa). Further pay parking at the Public Gardens Porta Orientale, Roman Baths, Viale Lutti (Ex Agraria), Monte Oro, shopping center Blue Garden.