Route 1: from Marchirolo to Monte la Nave (Military engineering…in liberty style)
The church of San Martino in Marchirolo, which rises in a panoramic position on the remains of a Lombard castle, is the starting point of the first route.
From here, on foot along a mule track or by car along the road going from Marchirolo to Fabiasco, you reach the church of San Paolo and the annexed convent with its breathtaking view of Valganna, Valmarchirolo, the valleys and mountains of the Canton Ticino and Lake Ceresio.
Returning to the road, a new track begins in the woods of Alpe Paci, where a howitzer post is covered by a concrete roof. You can see the escape route and the niches where supplies were kept and where people could shelter from the blast waves when bombing started. Next to the structure, two small barracks with double slabs guaranteed greater safety.
The route progresses towards Monte la Nave, where two distinct communication trenches lead to the double entry of the observation post. Tight control of the whole Tresa Valley could be kept from the slits, which gave a view that was made more pleasant by the old cultivated fields, today run over by forest vegetation. From here the high grades would correct the shot of the artillery batteries, sending orders and information to the more advanced posts through a network of telephone cables.
The entry to the observation post, an entry arch marked by false ashlars, is worth noting. The care taken in detail reflects the taste and ability of the workers who constructed the military line, those same workers who in those years worked in the yards of the Varesotto belle époque villas.
The internal communication trench was divided into rooms, with slits and connecting stairs to the lower floor. Water was collected from culverts and directed towards natural channels positioned downstream using artificial slopes, channels and stream bridges to avoid compromising the territorial balance and preserve the walking surface from erosion.
From here, on foot along a mule track or by car along the road going from Marchirolo to Fabiasco, you reach the church of San Paolo and the annexed convent with its breathtaking view of Valganna, Valmarchirolo, the valleys and mountains of the Canton Ticino and Lake Ceresio.
Returning to the road, a new track begins in the woods of Alpe Paci, where a howitzer post is covered by a concrete roof. You can see the escape route and the niches where supplies were kept and where people could shelter from the blast waves when bombing started. Next to the structure, two small barracks with double slabs guaranteed greater safety.
The route progresses towards Monte la Nave, where two distinct communication trenches lead to the double entry of the observation post. Tight control of the whole Tresa Valley could be kept from the slits, which gave a view that was made more pleasant by the old cultivated fields, today run over by forest vegetation. From here the high grades would correct the shot of the artillery batteries, sending orders and information to the more advanced posts through a network of telephone cables.
The entry to the observation post, an entry arch marked by false ashlars, is worth noting. The care taken in detail reflects the taste and ability of the workers who constructed the military line, those same workers who in those years worked in the yards of the Varesotto belle époque villas.
The internal communication trench was divided into rooms, with slits and connecting stairs to the lower floor. Water was collected from culverts and directed towards natural channels positioned downstream using artificial slopes, channels and stream bridges to avoid compromising the territorial balance and preserve the walking surface from erosion.
