Le Bandie degli eroi

Le Bandie degli eroi is an open water swimming race held in the enclosed waters of Lake Le Bandie, located in Spresiano within the Veneto region of northern Italy. The event brings swimmers together for a spring challenge over courses marked across the sheltered lake. Swimmers tackle lap courses shaped across the calm basin, choosing between the 926-meter Mezzo Miglio completed in a single lap, the two-lap Miglio covering 1,852 meters, and the four-lap Iron 3.5K spanning 3,500 meters. In the open water, the lake surface remains protected from river currents and ocean swell, letting competitors settle into a steady rhythm. First held in mid-May, the race has treated participants to mild and hospitable conditions, avoiding the biting chill often felt in mountain waters at this time of year.

Organized by Asd Pavanello, the gathering forms part of the AdriaticMan circuit. The title of the race draws its name from the local memory of the Eroi del Piave. At its inaugural edition, swimmers gathered in what was hailed as a fascinating and magical natural setting in the province of Treviso, celebrating a day centered on sport, friendship, and solidarity.

Grave di Papadopoli: Italy's largest river island

The Grave di Papadopoli is recognized as the largest river island in Italy. The term grave reflects the stony, pebble-strewn nature of the terrain. This immense island did not exist in antiquity; it was carved out suddenly in 1882 when an immense flood fractured the Piave, splitting the flow into two separate branches that wrapped around the newly isolated landmass. The Soligo river collects water diverted through the Tajada canal from the Revine Lago lakes. Flowing through the Valmareno valley before bending southward past Follina, the water takes the name Soligo only after reaching Soller, eventually emptying into the Piave just south-east of Falzè di Piave.

The Piave river crossings and Lovadina monastery

From a strategic crossing on the Piave, the monastic community of Lovadina administered multiple churches scattered along the banks of both the Piave and Livenza rivers. Living beside an unpredictable alpine river brought constant danger to the settlements along its margins. In 1368, another violent flood altered the river's path and left the monastery isolated on an island cut off by surging torrents. After that devastating inundation destroyed the complex, the monastery was rebuilt in 1459 on safer ground along the right bank at Lovadina. Centuries later, the island of Papadopoli and its braided waters became a decisive crossing ground during the closing campaigns of the First World War. Austrian forces assaulted and crossed the island during the Battle of the Solstice on June 15, 1918. In late October 1918, during the Battle of Vittorio Veneto, the 10th Army of the Royal Italian Army pushed back across the island to force a decisive passage, braving the Piave even as the river surged in full flood.

Treviso: water moats and the Sile canals

One of the most characteristic river features is the Isola della Pescheria, an artificial island created in 1856 by merging three natural islets inside the Cagnan Grando canal. Measuring fifty meters long and twenty meters wide, this neat platform rises only 1.20 meters above the waterline and connects to the riverbank across an iron footbridge produced by the Giacomelli foundry.