Lake of Orta in canoe

Lake Orta is less famous than the nearby Lake Maggiore and other alpine lakes, but in his small one is not less spectacular ... indeed! For a canoe trip it is really perfect: water is calm and clean, ferry traffic and other truly limited boats, the most interesting destinations a short distance from each other.
You can therefore do not do anything else What to leave without hesitation! Omegna, Orta San Giulio and the island of San Giulio, Pella, Ronco ... Really interesting destinations that become amazing if you visit kayaks (so solving any possible parking problem!).
Under the map, we present one Guide to Lake Orta Starting from our last experience of Circumnavigation in Kayak.

The itinerary
Lake Orta is 13 km long and about 1 km wide: its coasts can therefore be visited entirely in 1 day. In this case we suggest a shorter itinerary (10 km throughout) to make quality canoe-tourism, visiting the villages encountered. Indeed, even before starting to paddle you can take a look at Omegna, a beautiful town north of the lake and crossed by the emissary of Lake Orta (which surprisingly comes out in the north, as opposed to what happens in the other lakes Alpini).
For the canoe trip, or in stand up paddle, we decided to approach by car to Orta San Giulio, posting a little before the country in order to avoid paid parking lots. As can be seen from the map, the starting point was therefore a small beach to the north-east of the peninsula on which Orta San Giulio is located.

After a refreshing dip (the day was very hot and the water was at an ideal temperature), aboard our inflatable kayak we reached the first houses on the lake. Orta San Giulio turned out slowly, behind reeds and poplars, with ancient houses, stone garage for boats and dinghies, magnificent colored villas and historical monuments.
We moored the canoe in the main square of Orta San Giulio, which sets over the lake with a series of historic buildings. We visited the village walk, admiring the alleys and houses frescoed. Since we had never heard of it, at least until a few days before, we were wonderful of the beauty of Orta San Giulio, which we undoubtedly preferred the most famous places on Lake Maggiore as Stresa. There were no groups of tourists, but they didn't take anything to the beauty of the country.
We ate an ice cream and resumed the canoe almost reluctantly, because in Orta San Giulio we could have passed much more time. We soon conjected us by heading towards the front island of San Giulio, with its monastery and its villas that are born from the lake. Similar in the concept to the Borromee Islands of Lake Maggiore, the island of San Giulio has absolute peace from its.

No visitor (at least when we reached us in kayak, which obviously has many advantages over a tourist tour), many flowered gardens and millennial buildings. We walked the dick of the island and took a bath, more offshore, admiring Lake Orta on the right and missing ... truly magnificent. The same can be done with a stand up paddle, here you are really in a paradise for canoes and sup.
Our aim was to pass to the other side of Lake Orta, I mean), then from the island we paid towards Pella, which turned out to be a peaceful jewel made of a tree-lined lakefront , old houses, quiet narrow streets and some moored sailboats. Near the village there was a small beach, behind steep hills fentreed. We ate two crèpes and resumed to paddle.
It is clear that, in so much beauty, a good idea is to spend at least one night on the lake so as to divide the itinerary into two days or take a day of kayak/sup and one of visits and walking; In case, Click here To compare the hotels and find the most convenient accommodation.
We headed north, to Omegna, following the western shore of Lake Orta. Here the landscape is really idyllic, absolute peace and nature, the shadow of the trees on the lake and the still water that laps the rocks. There was so much quiet that after a while we could even fall asleep to the paddle. Fortunately we arrived in Ronco, another authentic Gemma: a tiny village of old houses that start from the lake and turns on the first slopes of the hill.
At this point we found ourselves with a doubt if continuing along the coast until Omegna - stretch full of nature that did not seem to offer special attractions - or cut towards the other side and return to the 'car. We decided for the second hypothesis, also because getting to Omegna would have meant stretching a lot of canoeing or recovering the car by bus.

In short, we quickly cross the calm waters and touching Pettenasco and the east coast of Lake Orta (less interesting here than in the previously visited features) we returned to the beach from which we left. We had another very pleasant refreshing dip, only partly disturbed by the sight of a water stage that moved sinuous on the surface of the lake.
Lake Orta is a place that remains in the heart for peace, the landscapes, The amazing architecture ... and, more, the pleasant feeling of having made a great clever: leave the most chaotic Lake Maggiore and be welcomed by an idyllic lake, to a human scale, in which to drink a beer in position Overview Yes spend 3 euros instead of 6.
Obviously - what I say to do - canoe and stand up paddle are the best means to visit Lake Orta, in particular because they allow you to better treat the island of San Giulio.
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You can find many other images (at higher resolution) of Lake Orta in this photo gallery:

You can find photos of Lake Orta (at higher resolution) in this album sulla nostra pagina Facebook.