The
Brenta Dolomites Group runs from north to south for over 40 km, roughly from the
bridge at Mostizzolo to Tione. It is bounded, going clockwise, by Lake Molveno
and the Giudicarie Valley in the south, by the Rendena Valley up to the Campo
Carlo Magno Pass in the west, by the Meledrio and Sole Valleys in the north and
by the Non Valley in the east. In the Group a total of eight peaks exceed 3,00
metres (Cima Tosa, Cima Brenta, Crozzon di Brenta, Cima Ambiez, Cima Mandron,
Torre di Brenta, etc.), while many others exceed 2,800 metres. The whole of the
territory of the Brenta Group is part of the Brenta Adamello Nature Park.
After
Lake Molveno, the largest lake in the Brenta Dolomites is Lake Tóvel, once
famous for the reddish colour of its waters (a phenomenon that no longer occurs).
Other lakes include Lake Valagola in the Agola Valley in the western sector of
the Brenta, Lake Durigal near the Peller Refuge, Lake Salare near the former
Malga Cavalli near the Nana Pass, and Lake Asbelz in the southern sector.
The
main valleys and penetration points going clockwise from the south are: Algone
Valley, Manez Valley, Flanginech Valley, Agola Valley, Brenta Valley,
Vallesinella Valley, Campo Carlo Magno Pass, Gelada di Campiglio Valley,
Vento Valley, Cornai Valley, Cavai Valley, Mezol Valley, Tovel Valley, Madris
Valley, Gelada di Tuenno Valley, Giare Valley, Arza Valley, Cadino Valley,
Goslada Valley, Sporeggio Valley, Seghe Valley, Perse Valley, Ceda Valley,
Ambiez Valley and Jon valley.
The main towns and villages within the boundary of the Brenta Group are, from
the south-west and going clockwise: Stenico, Preore, Ragoli, Giustino,
Pinzolo, Madonna di Campiglio, Dimaro, Malé, Cles, Tuenno, Sporminore,
Spormaggiore, Cavedago, Andalo, Molveno and San Lorenzo in Banale.
The
main rivers are: in the west the River Sarca which collects the waters of all
the rivers and torrents that flow down from the western part of the Brenta (Bondai,
Ambiez, Rio dei Molini, Rio d'Algone, Rio Valagola, Sarca del Brenta); still in
the west and after the Campo Carlo Magno Pass is the Torrente Meledrio, a
tributary of the River Noce into which all the water courses of the
north-eastern slopes of the Brenta flow.
Long
before the first Alpine refuges were built, the main sign that humans were using
the valleys were the shepherd’s huts (or malga
in Italian); today some are still used by farmers grazing animals in the
surrounding meadows, others have been converted into bivouacs or bars and others
still have fallen into ruin.
The
ski-lifts are concentrated in the western sector of the Brenta, in the upper
Rendena Valley. Means of access into the Brenta Group by car are limited to the
Algone Valley, the Arza Valley, the Tóvel Valley, the Peller road and the
Altopiano di Pradel tableland. All the other means of access are closed to motor
vehicles thanks to a local government law.