Lake Turchino is located within the Regional Park of the Upper Modena Apennines, its waters filling a small, yet environmentally significant, basin.
The lake has only a very small surface area, with a diameter of just 35 metres, and is also very shallow, no more than 2.5 metres in depth; but it is nonetheless enchanting, thanks to the picturesque surrounding landscape and the colour of its waters, which are almost turquoise if viewed from the right angle. The lake is visible until the end of the autumn, when the first snowfalls leave its whereabouts to the imagination, and just the small, privately-owned refuge stands on guard nearby, acting as a rather dignified landmark. As for the altitude, we are around 1600 metres above sea level.
There are splendid views of the Modena Apennines in all directions, with the Foce a Giovo Mountain Pass and the Tagliole Valley in the distance. A gigantic precipice of almost three hundred and fifty metres in height separates the basin of Lake Turchino from Mount Rondinaio and the overlooking Mount Rondinaio Lombardo.
The lake is fed almost entirely by rainwater, and molten ice and snow.
It is an excellent destination for a good walk in the summer or autumn, reachable by mountain trail, and also makes for a beautiful itinerary in the snow and ice – obviously with the correct mountaineering equipment and crampons – and is a starting/finishing point for medium-difficulty ski touring.
It is virtually impossible not to get there!!!
