Top 12 Gorges around Valstagna

A simply wonderful place, easy to reach from the Carpanè-Valstagna station, following a well-marked path along the Brenta River. The staff was equally fantastic, allowing us to follow the cave tour in both Italian and English (part of my group didn't speak Italian). I recommend going in spring; it's cooler and there's usually less traffic, so you can enjoy it all better. ;)

Very small rock labyrinth, but nice to do, be careful in winter that between fallen trees that do not allow passage and the frozen snow you risk getting hurt.

The Oliero caves are a complex of caverns located on the slopes of the Sette Comuni plateau, near the hamlet of Oliero (municipality of Valbrenta). Much of the water that penetrates through the plateau above flows from the caves, a classic example of karst phenomena. There are four caves currently open to the public: Covol dei Veci and Covol dei Siori from which the Oliero river flows; while the two upper ones, Covol dei Assassini and Covol dee Soree, are now dry. To visit the caves it is necessary to have a ticket and entry is allowed only with a guide. In the park of the caves it is also possible to visit the museum of speleology and karst phenomena and relax at the bike grill bar.

The "Sanctuary of the Madonna del Caravaggio al Buso" is so named because it is dedicated to the Madonna del Caravaggio (not the painter, but the town in the province of Bergamo where the Virgin appeared in 1432); and because it is built above a high natural gorge (the "Buso Vecio")... however, it is commonly referred to as "the Madonna del Buso." What is striking about this humble little temple and its bell tower is their secluded and solitary location, hidden and almost forgotten: they emerge unexpectedly at the bottom of the narrow and shady Val Frenzèla, immersed in coniferous forests, along the old and obsolete road connecting Gallio and Stoccareddo, used until the construction of the more convenient and faster metal overpass at the end of the 20th century, which now overlooks the shrine at a height of 70 meters! History. Here, in 1830, Fra Giovanni Battista Casera, a Franciscan hermit, returning from one of his many pilgrimages, found himself stranded by a severe spring storm and the resulting "brentana" (river flood), which prevented him from crossing the ravine. He therefore sought shelter among these rocks. As an act of faith for having escaped danger, in accordance with his own wishes, the bridge connecting the two banks and the chapel were built in the years immediately following, serving as a rest stop for travelers and a place of worship. He himself spent the rest of his days as a hermit in that building. The site quickly became a pilgrimage destination. It was destroyed by bombing during World War I and rebuilt in 1927. https://www.vaticano.com/turismo/scheda_1251_il-santuario-del-buso.html

The Valle dei Gorghi Scuri is a fascinating and narrow impluvium full of waterfalls, natural pools, whirlpools and lively waterways formed by the Valletta stream, which originates right here. As a frame, a florid and lush vegetation of ferns and moss. The path starts from the hamlet of Capo di Sopra, along a dirt road that runs along the rising gorge carved out by the stream from above, where the first water features can be glimpsed; from here you reach the upper part, the most evocative and fairy-tale-like, where you can venture off-track, as far as the water and rocks allow depending on the season. I recommend the route after the rains, even if the path can be slippery (EE), and in spring/summer, when very green and lush vegetation frames the water.

A small but evocative geological labyrinth: nature has carved deep furrows into the hard Rosso Ammonitico limestone, forming corridors that pass through square blocks of rock. Rosso Ammonitico is a pinkish rock from the Jurassic period, generally characterized by a notable abundance of ammonite fossils, hence its name. Within the labyrinth, you'll also find the Cima del Monte Corno (1,383 m): the highest point is here, not where the Monument to the Unknown Soldier overlooks the plain. Along the perimeter of the rocky agglomeration are two Italian artillery emplacements from the First World War, dug directly into rock turrets to defend the Piana di Granezza below, which was an important logistics base. The trail is enjoyable, but not clean: some secondary branches are blocked by fallen trees; in winter, there is ice; in summer, nettles infest some passages.

L'oliero is a show and if you've never been to the caves you don't know what you're missing. Go there

The caves of Oliero are beautiful. In MTB near the entrance there is a stand, a pump and a screwdriver for small maintenance. Drinking fountain with fresh water to fill the bottles.