My visiting friend Paulette and her traveling partner Geri had asked us to take them on a visit to Siena.  After a couple of long travel days they decided they would rather take a leisurely drive around Lago Trasimeno by seasoned veterans of the area, none other than yours truly!

Lago Trasimeno is an easy half day tour which is surprising since the lake is not as big as it seems.  The area is quite important in history as Hannibal fought the Roman Army and killed over 15,000 on the lake's shores in the early 200's.  It is a very pretty drive around the lake and there are several picturesque small towns on its shores.

As we drove near Tuoro I asked the group if they minded if we stopped for a minute at the Traghetti (ferry) area so that I could try to pick a schedule for the lake.  Not only did everyone want to stop but Paulette and Geri were quite excited about maybe trying to visit Isola Maggiore, the small island nearest to Cortona.

To my surprise there was a whole little area there right on the lake, a few restaurants, a park, a beach you could rent chairs and umbrellas at and even a large camping area.  I see a new place to hang out at this summer!

The traghetti info was posted on the pier you walk out to catch the boats.  It was a little confusing to figure out and I would suggest if you are confused to ask the local bar to help you out. 

It was an amazing day out, hot and sunny and the perfect to be near the water.

Tickets are actually purchased at the end of the pier or on the boat if the ticket office is closed.  We were fortunate to have a boat pull up as we were reviewing all of the information. 



It is obvious they are used to tourists and were quite helpful and also didn't expect us to speak Italian.  The round trip fare to Isola Maggiore was less than 9 euro for 2 people.

I have read that Lago Trasimeno is not deeper than 20 feet in any area which explains why it has the beautiful aqua blue color it has.



The traghetto took about 10 minutes to slowly putt over to the island and gave us a chance to sit back, relax and gape at the view.

A closer Isola Maggiore

As we pulled up to Isola Maggiore there was also another boat that was picking up passengers for Castiglion del Lago.



Looking back towards the town of Tuoro where we came from...



The island was a little strange, between the color of the water and just the little shoreline with a few boats, I almost felt like I was on a Caribbean island.   No diving here <sigh>



We disembarked and headed for the tiny little town. 



Just after stepping off the pier, to the right is a little wooden tourist information hut with everything you could possibly need to enjoy the island.  Next to it is also a map.



Looking back at the pier...



The island was quiet and really charming.  You felt as if you had left the "louder" part of Italy for a little community of quiet and calm.  I didn't let it fool me, I'm sure this place can get loud but at this moment in time it really was peaceful!









I apologize for the amount of pictures in this post but I feel the need to point out that this is more my blogstyle (and yes that is a word, at least it is word), a bit of information but heavy on the photojournalism so you really can get a feel for what the place was like from your own eyes.











These kitties were just lazing around in the sun creating the typical Italian kitty scene.  They might be wild but don't let it trick you, all the outside kitties in Italy get to eat pasta leftovers on a daily basis.  They probably are better fed than most of us.  Well, not Keith and I anyway ;)



From the large map by the pier it seemed there was a pathway that went all the way around the island.  We really didn't have any place in mind to go, I think we were just walking along and enjoying the day.



This is one heck of a God spot.  This island is well known because of St. Francis who lived here in the early 1200's and is said to have befriended a fish after throwing it a loaf of bread. 



This is the entrance to the ruined Guglielmi caste, which dates back to the 1800's.  It has crumbled so badly that visitors are no longer allowed inside.





The lake was just beautiful to look at, I kept thinking I might possibly be in a somewhat more tropical environment.



There were several points of interest on the island which included a few churches.  This map near the walking trail was very helpful in locating everything to see on the island.



We did not walk up the hill, our guests were still worn out from their last few days of tours and since this was their day we all just slowly meandered back towards the little main part of town.





At one time there were actually 300-400 inhabitants but now there are only about 30.  Perhaps this is why the island seemed so sleepy.

Here are a few more from photographs of the little town...

Here is the island's garbage truck.

This church was near the pier and dedicated to St. Francis of Assisi.







It was almost time for lunch and it was quite hot out; Paulette and Geri took a break while Keith and I tried to snap up a few more shots along the shoreline.



I have a hard time believing there are all that many fish in a lake that isn't deeper than 20 feet but apparently fishing is part of the island's livelihood.







New friends!  And yes, I did quack/honk hello to them all...









Classic shot of the Ape at the lake...



We had lunch at Ristorante L'Oso that had an outside garden with a beautiful view of the lake.  We ate off the tourist menu and had the fish - it was great and combined with the view and an ice cold Orvieto Classico white wine, it was lovely, to say the least!



There were a few green thumbs on the island, this one happened to have a tinge of pink...



I love the God spots that are part of someone's house...



Here is another one of the churches on the island but this one was not open.



What you can't see is the cat very close nearby watching these chickens like he is a sheep/chicken herder.



Local wildlife...



Keith and I decided to walk around to the other side of the island where you can also see a smaller island nearby, Isola Minore.





There were quite a few tourists congregated closely eating lunch in this area and I finally figured it out.  There were two very pretty Italian girls bathing topless in their itsy bitsy g-strings.  I was wondering why I was seeing frothy mouths and tongues hanging out. 

Sorry......no pics of that on MY blog!

We hung out around the ferry area as more and more people came to wait for the traghetto.  Keith, Geri and Paulette filled the time by playing scopa. 



Of course we had been looking at the confusing time schedule incorrectly and expected the boat a bit earlier but at least we were there in time!



We all were really happy with our unexpected but enjoyable tour of the island.  I think Keith and I will be back soon to walk all of the trails and do a picnic lunch with Porter.

Until then...happy sailing!

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