Salò is a lakeside town on the western shore of Lake Garda, tucked into a deep bay that protects it from the worst of the wind. It has a long, elegant promenade, a cathedral with a Gothic facade and the kind of old arcades that make you want to sit with a coffee. The town is known for the violin maker Gasparo da Salò, who worked here in the sixteenth century and is considered one of the founders of the modern violin. For a very different reason, it is also remembered as the seat of the Italian Social Republic, Mussolini's puppet state, from 1943 to 1945.
With around eight thousand people, Salò has everything a rider needs: petrol stations, supermarkets, bakeries and plenty of places to eat by the water. The nearby town of Roè Volciano has more shopping and services. The Gardesana Occidentale, the road along the west shore, begins here and runs north, a famous route with tunnels carved into the cliffs and views over the water. Early in the day it is a joy; at weekends and in summer, it fills with cars, campervans and cyclists, and a leisurely pace is the only sensible one.
Garda is Italy's largest lake, formed by a glacier, and its climate is mild enough that lemon trees, olives and oleander grow along the shore. The wind pattern is well known: the Peler blows from the north in the morning, and the Ora arrives from the south in the early afternoon, making the lake a favourite for sailors and windsurfers. Spring can bring surprising squalls, and storms in summer build quickly over the mountains at the north end, so keep an eye on the sky.
The route that leaves Salò toward the hills behind the lake offers a quiet alternative. Narrow roads climb through olive groves and small villages, with a very different feel from the busy shore. The food is lake fish, such as lavarello and trout, with olive oil from the local groves, which is among the lightest in Italy. Start here early, have a proper breakfast on the front, and watch the first light turn the lake silver before the day's traffic begins.