Today Lake Garda is synonymous with bright landscapes, villages overlooking the water and slow days among olive trees and sailing boats. In the nineteenth century, however, the lake was also a frontier. After 1866, with the annexation of Veneto to the Kingdom of Italy, Garda marked the border with the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Two states, two different tax systems and heavy duties on essential goods such as salt, tobacco, sugar, alcohol and coffee. For many farming and lakeside families these products were expensive and difficult to obtain. Thus smuggling on Lake Garda was born, a practice that spread throughout this border region. The smugglers were not bandits, but fishermen, boatmen and farmers trying to supplement their income and ensure their families’ survival.
Boats in the Night of Torri del Benaco
One of the places most closely linked to this story is Torri del Benaco, dominated by the towers of its castle overlooking the water. At night the lake became a dark and silent expanse. The boats would set off slowly, almost without making a sound, gliding across the water. Under fishing nets or among wooden crates the cargo was hidden. Sometimes ingenuity was essential. In this area it is said that the goods were hidden inside barrels tied beneath the boats. If a patrol of the Italian Finance Police appeared, it was enough to cut the rope: the barrels would sink slowly and were later recovered thanks to small hidden floats. The smugglers knew every current and every stretch of coast where it was possible to land without being seen. From Torri they headed towards Malcesine, Riva del Garda or other landing places along the lake, trying to avoid surveillance. At night the lake became a secret road.
The Men of the Mountains
The journey often did not end on the water. Much of the merchandise continued inland, climbing the mountains above Torri del Benaco, on the slopes of Monte Baldo. Here the “spalloni” appeared — porters who carried loads on their backs using special wooden frames called “careghete”. Villages such as Crero became support points and small hidden storage places. From here steep mule tracks and paths crossed woods and ravines. The spalloni often walked at night to avoid patrols, facing sudden fog, storms and altitude differences of more than a thousand metres. It was hard and risky work, but for many families it represented an essential resource.
Between History and Memory of Garda
Today Torri del Benaco is a peaceful tourist town on Lake Garda. The harbour, the lakeside promenade and the towers of the Castello Scaligero tell the story of a landscape filled with light, tourism and relaxation. Yet behind this calm lies the memory of a more adventurous past. Walking through the narrow streets of the village or along the paths that climb towards Monte Baldo, it is easy to imagine boats gliding through the night and the quick footsteps of smugglers among olive trees and chestnut woods. Some of these routes still exist today, such as the so-called "Sentiero dei Contrabbandieri" (Smugglers' Trail - in the photo)), located between Riva del Garda and Limone sul Garda, which follows ancient mule tracks once used to cross the border.
Between documented history and stories passed down from generation to generation, the smugglers continue to live in the imagination of Garda, recalling a time when the lake was not only a landscape to admire, but also a route of survival.
