Thursdays travels....

After all the rain yesterday we thought it would be a good day to head up the Valle Maggia to see the waterfalls up that way and to visit a few out of the way places. Shortly after we entered the valley we came upon a beautiful waterfall on the left side of the valley. Pauline and I got out to take a picture and Pauline realized that there was another one on the right off in the woods. Turns out there was a wooden bridge over a small stream that led to a path that went right to the bottom of another amazing waterfall. Another kilometer down the road as we were stopping to photograph another one. There really were so many that after a while we just enjoyed them, no more pictures. Many people have mentioned that with the rain here lately there are waterfalls where you hardly ever get a chance to see one. Two days before we arrived, Locarno had 6 inches of rain in one day, with the snow level coming down to 1500 meters. All the peaks around were covered with fresh snow which is unusual here this time of year but has only enhanced the number of waterfalls.

We stopped in the town of Cevio to see some of the sculptures there and the local architecture, we kept driving up the road through town which soon became a stomach turning series of switchbacks that never seemed to end. The road would occasionally straighten out a bit and go through the middle of a small village. In the middle of most of the villages along the way the road was barely wider than the car. The amazing thing was that there is daily bus service up here in a full size bus. Watching them get around some of the switchbacks is amazing. They have a short wheelbase and the front of the bus is literally out over the edge. One minute I think that I want to move here and drive a bus, the next I can barely get the car around a switchback and wish that I was somewhere else. This road climbed up to about 1,500 meters ending in the village of Bosco Gurin, surrounded by rugged peaks, the tops of which are the border with Italy. Along the way up we passed sheep and goats just roaming free around the hills.

     We headed back down to Civeo and took another road up the valley to the town of Foroglio. This town had been completely abandoned during WWII when every one there moved to the US. It is slowly being re-inhabited  and restored. There is a charming Grotto there with an amazing view of, yes, another waterfall. We headed back down the valley, stopping frequently to photograph the villages along the way and we even managed to back track once to check out another waterfall. We were all pretty well fried when we got home. The constant going here and there and the time difference was finally catching up with all of us. Had a light supper of soup, bread and cheese and headed off to bed early.