Italy Fausto Zambra · CC BY-SA 4.0
The cut
1,154 metres, to scale.
A slice through Orrido di Nesso where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.
Standing on the floor, to scale: Eiffel Tower · 330 m · Burj Khalifa · 828 m
Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is.
1,154m
Depth
measured on the 30 m relief model
5.1km
Rim to rim
measured on the 30 m relief model
41°
Steepest wall
average over 300 m, from the relief
197m
Floor altitude
Rim to floor
8 °C warmer at the bottom.
In July the afternoon reaches 28 °C on the floor, against 20 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are from April to May and from September to October. The rim freezes at night from December to March. The wettest months are in May and in November.
- 7°-1°Jan
- 8°1°Feb
- 13°5°Mar
- 17°10°Apr
- 22°14°May
- 26°18°Jun
- 28°20°Jul
- 27°20°Aug
- 23°16°Sep
- 18°11°Oct
- 13°5°Nov
- 8°0°Dec
Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.
Orrido di Nesso is a canyon in Italy, cut by the Torrente Tuf. The relief model measures 1,154 m from the floor to the lower rim. Rim to rim it is 5.1 km wide where the cut was taken.
Getting there.
- Nessonearest town · 0.3 km in a straight line
- Parking 210 m awaynearest car park in OpenStreetMap, straight line
- Belvedere Giancarlo Venellinearest viewpoint · 1.2 km from the floor
- Lugano Airport (LUG)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 22 km in a straight lineCar hire at MXP airport (Ferno)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
- From April to May and from September to Octoberbest months to hike (estimate)
Plan the visit
Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
The river
The Torrente Tuf runs highest from April to June and from October to November.
The Torrente Tuf carries about 7.6 m³/s on average here. It runs highest from April to June and from October to November.
- 4.6 m³/sJan
- 4.8 m³/sFeb
- 6.6 m³/sMar
- 8.5 m³/sApr
- 11 m³/sMay
- 9.8 m³/sJun
- 7.2 m³/sJul
- 7.5 m³/sAug
- 7.1 m³/sSep
- 8.3 m³/sOct
- 12 m³/sNov
- 7.6 m³/sDec
From about 4.6 m³/s in the lowest month to 12 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 247 km².
Estimate: long-term flow from the HydroATLAS model (WaterGAP, 1971–2000) shaped by the monthly rain, snow and temperature of the area (NASA POWER). Dams change it. Not a forecast.
From the sky.
The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.
N
3 km
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 12 × 12 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Around the canyon.
- 13viewpoints within 5 kmBelvedere Giancarlo Venelli, Madonna del Soldo, Nesso Bridge and 10 more
- 35marked hiking routes within 4 kmSentiero mezza costa, Sentiero botanico di Brienno, Strada Regia and 32 more
- 22footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 kmVia Careno, Nesso - Piano di Nesso, Ponte della Civera and 19 more
- 3rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 km
- 3named waterfalls within 4 kmCascata della Val Tarola, Orrido di Nesso, Cascata sul Caraello
- 5caves within 3 km
- 60car parks within 3 km
- 31information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
- 21bus stops within 2 km
- 4campsites within 8 kmCamping ai Colli Fioriti, Camping La' Vedo, Camping Alpe Fuin and 1 more
- 118hotels and guesthouses within 8 kmBar Riposo, Agriturismo "Al-Marnich" - Lago di Como, Hotel Argegno and 115 more
- 51restaurants and cafés within 4 km
- via ferrata routes within 4 km
- climbing crags within 3 km
- swimming spots within 3 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Towns nearby
- Nesso0.3 km in a straight line
- Brienno1.9 km in a straight line
- Veleso2.0 km in a straight line
- Zelbio2.0 km in a straight line
- Pognana Lario3.3 km in a straight line
- Laglio3.6 km in a straight line
- Argegno4.2 km in a straight line
- Lezzeno4.4 km in a straight line
In our other atlases
What else is around Orrido di Nesso.
The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.
Cascadyas1 waterfalls nearbyComing soon
Peakyas72 mountains within 15 km
Lakeyas4 lakes within 15 kmComing soonFigures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Month by month
The weather, at the floor and at the rim.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon · floor | 7 | 8 | 13 | 17 | 22 | 26 | 28 | 27 | 23 | 18 | 13 | 8 |
| Afternoon · rim | -1 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 14 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 16 | 11 | 5 | 0 |
| Night · rim | -8 | -7 | -3 | 2 | 6 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 8 | 3 | -1 | -6 |
| Rain (mm) | 57 | 63 | 72 | 105 | 140 | 123 | 111 | 130 | 105 | 116 | 149 | 78 |
| Rainy days | 8 | 7 | 9 | 13 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 10 |
| Sun hours/day | 4.2 | 5.5 | 6.4 | 5.9 | 5.7 | 7.4 | 7.9 | 7.1 | 6.1 | 4.7 | 3.4 | 3.5 |
| Snow on the ground (cm) | 21 | 19 | 12 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 12 | 18 |
| Afternoon · floor | Afternoon · rim | Night · rim | Rain (mm) | Sun hours/day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7 | -1 | -8 | 57 | 4.2 |
| Feb | 8 | 1 | -7 | 63 | 5.5 |
| Mar | 13 | 5 | -3 | 72 | 6.4 |
| Apr | 17 | 10 | 2 | 105 | 5.9 |
| May | 22 | 14 | 6 | 140 | 5.7 |
| Jun | 26 | 18 | 11 | 123 | 7.4 |
| Jul | 28 | 20 | 13 | 111 | 7.9 |
| Aug | 27 | 20 | 12 | 130 | 7.1 |
| Sep | 23 | 16 | 8 | 105 | 6.1 |
| Oct | 18 | 11 | 3 | 116 | 4.7 |
| Nov | 13 | 5 | -1 | 149 | 3.4 |
| Dec | 8 | 0 | -6 | 78 | 3.5 |
Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (197 m) and the rim (1,358 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.
Photographs
Seen from the trail.
Recent years
Wet years, dry years.
Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 36% | 30% | 125% | 58% | 89% | 168% | 79% | 130% | 105% | 200% | 5% | 224% |
| 2021 | 209% | 91% | 20% | 78% | 92% | 48% | 187% | 81% | 95% | 78% | 96% | 43% |
| 2022 | 30% | 55% | 19% | 61% | 73% | 88% | 82% | 76% | 106% | 83% | 53% | 80% |
| 2023 | 56% | 12% | 70% | 91% | 137% | 87% | 122% | 126% | 99% | 173% | 75% | 124% |
| 2024 | 111% | 269% | 282% | 98% | 200% | 210% | 119% | 41% | 205% | 209% | 12% | 39% |
| 2025 | 236% | 64% | 163% | 105% | 129% | 83% | 184% | 154% | 197% | 59% | 63% | 52% |
130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month
Compare with the neighbours.
Orrido di Nesso
Italy
- 1,154 mDepth
- 5.1 kmRim to rim
- —Length
- 41°Steepest wall
Where these figures come from
| Name, type, published depth and length | Wikidata (Q64222294) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| River flow and basin | HydroATLAS / RiverATLAS v1.0 (Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0 |
| Climate | NASA POWER, 1991–2020 |
| Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearby | Coastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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