Following the lagoon along the waterways we discover a new dimension: the distances unfold, the horizons seem to open out and the green transparency of the waters gives way to the secret universe of the shallows.
The excursion is a long circumnavigation of the historic lands of Cavallino Treporti: in the first part you pass through the lagoon township of Cavallino, with its small fish farms, and in the urban district of Canale Pordelio with the landscape of market gardens and the tangible signs of fishermen at work. The wild but bright scenery of the Palude Maggiore (the large marsh), where it is possible to navigate between the canals of
San Felice through the system of salt marshes, and the adjacent ones at Lio Piccolo; in the second section, you follow the canals that separate the small islands, with their urban Riviera and their market gardens, along the Valli Liona, the Canale d'Arco and the Valle Falconera. You will discover the vast dimensions of the main lagoon as it shares the colours of water and sky in an ideal setting where once there were salt works, now nets laid out in the shallows, the voices, the wriggling and leaping of fish and birds.
Means of transport: by boat.
Route: Cavallino - Canale Pordelio - Canale Saccagnana - Canale San
Felice - Canale Cenesa - Canale dei Bari - Canale d'Arco - Canale Pordelio.
Distance: km 31.5.
Estimated time: 4 hours (stops not included).
Canal depth: maximum m. 20 (Canale di San Felice); minimum m. 1.2
(Canale di Saccagnana).
Points of support: bars, restaurants and shops at Cavallino and Treporti;
on the farthest part of the trip there are none.
Suggested period: all year round.
Clothing: suitable for the season with waterproof garments for protection
against the cold air in winter and the cooler seasons.
Warning: avoid the days when there is strong northeast (bora) or sirocco
winds. Do not go beyond the limit indicated along the Canale di Cenesa.
Do not exceed the speed limits that range from 8 km/h to 20 km/h,
depending on the canals.
Type of vessel recommended: a light boat, up to m. 4 in length, with a
careened hull and a draught not exceeding cm 50.
