Selva di Progno

Discover Selva di Progno

At 570 metres above sea level, where the Val d’Illasi narrows and gives way to the eastern Lessinia plateau, Selva di Progno has 923 inhabitants spread between the main settlement and the scattered hamlets on the surrounding slopes. The municipality belongs to the Comunità Montana della Lessinia and preserves in its place names and local speech the traces of the German-Cimbrian colonisation that from the 13th century onwards reshaped the economy and landscape of these valleys. Asking what to see in Selva di Progno means entering a territory where the geology of the Lessini Mountains — Jurassic limestone, marine fossils, karst caves — intersects with a linguistic and cultural history that is unique in the Veneto region.

History and origins of Selva di Progno

The name “Selva” refers to the forest cover that dominated the valley floor until the Middle Ages; “Progno” derives from the dialect term for a seasonal stream — the Progno d’Illasi — that runs through the municipal territory. The first documented mention of the settlement dates to the period of Scaliger rule, when the Della Scala family governed Verona and its surrounding lands. However, the decisive transformation took place between the 12th and 13th centuries, with the arrival of German-Cimbrian-speaking communities, summoned by the Republic of Venice and the bishops of Verona to clear forests and colonise the plateaus of Lessinia.

These settlers brought with them a language — Cimbrian — a system of communal pasture management, and building techniques still recognisable today in the upper hamlets: dry-stone walls in limestone, steeply pitched roofs, and barn-haylofts integrated into the dwelling. During Venetian rule, Selva di Progno formed part of the Vicariato della Val d’Illasi. The economy revolved around charcoal production, sheep farming, and wool processing. Over the course of the 19th century, emigration towards the plains and overseas progressively reduced the population, but did not erase the Cimbrian identity: well into the 20th century, linguistics scholars documented Cimbrian speakers in the most isolated hamlets of the municipality.

During the First World War, the proximity to the front line on the Altopiano dei Fimbri and Monte Pasubio made the area a strategic rear zone. Military paths and mule tracks that are still walkable today cross the woods above the village. In the post-Second World War period, Selva di Progno followed the demographic trajectory of many mountain municipalities in Veneto: depopulation, closure of hamlet schools, and more recently an attempt at revival linked to hiking tourism and the promotion of the Cimbrian heritage.

What to see in Selva di Progno: 5 main attractions

1. Museum of the Cimbri

Housed in the municipal building, the Museum of the Cimbri documents the German-Cimbrian colonisation of Lessinia through agricultural tools, reconstructions of domestic settings, recordings of the Cimbrian language, and panels tracing the migratory routes of the settlers from southern Bavaria and Tyrol. It is the starting point for understanding the linguistic identity of the valley and the settlement system of the hamlets.

2. Parish Church of the Assumption of Mary

The church dedicated to the village’s patron saint — celebrated on 15 August — has a 19th-century façade and houses inside a polychrome marble high altar of Veronese craftsmanship. The bell tower, visible from the valley floor, serves as a topographic reference point for those travelling along the provincial road. The building was altered several times, but the original floor plan dates to the phase of settlement consolidation under the Serenissima.

3. The hamlet of Giazza

Giazza, a hamlet at a higher altitude than the main settlement, is regarded as the last Cimbrian-speaking settlement in Lessinia. Here the Municipality of Selva di Progno has promoted the restoration of buildings in local stone and the creation of ethnographic trails. The church in Giazza preserves inscriptions and furnishings that document the coexistence of the Italian, Venetian, and Cimbrian languages in local liturgy.

4. Covoli di Velo

Within the municipal territory and in the surrounding areas, karst cavities known as “covoli” open up in the rock; over the centuries they were used as pastoral shelters, storage spaces, and, during conflicts, as refuges. The Jurassic limestone geological formations of eastern Lessinia make the area of considerable interest to speleologists. Some of these caves have yielded archaeological finds dating to the Bronze Age, now held in museums in Verona.

5. European long-distance path E5 and the hiking network

The territory of Selva di Progno is crossed by a section of the European long-distance path E5, which connects Lake Constance to Verona. The trails climb from the valley floor towards the mountain dairies of eastern Lessinia, passing through pastures, beech forests, and fossil outcrops. The trail network also includes former military mule tracks from the Great War, with trenches and positions still visible in the terrain.

Food and local produce

The table in Selva di Progno reflects a mountain agro-pastoral economy. Monte Veronese DOP cheese, in its aged “d’allevo” version — made with milk from the Lessinia mountain dairies — is the defining dairy product of the area. It is joined by the “whole milk” Monte Veronese DOP, younger and softer. In the upper hamlets, “pressed cheese” is still produced according to methods handed down by Cimbrian-speaking families. Soprèssa Vicentina DOP, although originating from the neighbouring Vicenza area, can be found in the butcher shops and farmhouse restaurants of the valley. Among the dishes, “gnocchi sbatùi” — gnocchi made with flour and butter served with melted cheese — and polenta made from Marano maize, a local coarse-grained variety, accompany game and porcini mushrooms gathered in the communal woods. “Pàpare co’ le fassole” (a bean soup made with Lamon IGP beans and fresh pasta) and “bigoli co’ l’arna” (bigoli with duck ragù) appear on the menus of trattorias in the lower valley.

In summer, the active mountain dairies produce fresh ricotta and alpine butter. Black truffle from the Lessini Mountains is hunted in beech and hornbeam woods between September and December. Chestnut honey and mountain wildflower honey round out the range of local products. The patron saint’s feast day on 15 August traditionally coincides with communal banquets where roast mutton is served, accompanied by Lessini Durello DOC, a sparkling wine made from Durella grapes grown in the hillside vineyards of the lower Val d’Illasi. In the hamlets, festivals dedicated to forest products — chestnuts, mushrooms — and to dairy-making in the mountain dairies are still held in summer and autumn.

When to visit Selva di Progno: the best time

The most favourable period to reach Selva di Progno runs from May to October. In summer, daytime temperatures range between 20 and 28 degrees, and the mountain dairies are in operation: it is possible to watch cheese-making and walk the high-altitude trails without snow. On 15 August, the feast of the Assumption of Mary, the village is at its liveliest, with religious celebrations and the gathering of families who have left the municipality. In autumn, the beech forests of eastern Lessinia turn from yellow to red, and the mushroom and black truffle season draws foragers and enthusiasts. Winter, with frequent snowfall above 700 metres, limits access to some hamlets and outlying settlements, but opens up the possibility of snowshoeing along trails marked by the CAI (Italian Alpine Club). Spring, between April and May, is the time of meadow blooming and the ascent of livestock to the alpine pastures.

How to reach Selva di Progno

From Verona, approximately 40 kilometres away, take the SP10 heading north up the Val d’Illasi. The most convenient motorway exit is Verona Est on the A4 Turin–Trieste; from there, take the road to Illasi, then continue towards Tregnago and finally Selva di Progno. The journey takes around 50 minutes. The nearest railway station is Verona Porta Nuova, connected to the Milan–Venice and Verona–Brenner lines. From Verona, the ATV bus service (Azienda Trasporti Verona) covers the route to the Val d’Illasi with limited services, more frequent on weekdays. The reference airport is Valerio Catullo in Verona-Villafranca, approximately 55 kilometres away. For those coming from Vicenza, the distance is around 70 kilometres via the SP246 and the roads of eastern Lessinia. A car is the most practical means of reaching the outlying hamlets and upper settlements.

Other villages to discover in Veneto

Veneto offers a territorial variety that ranges from the alluvial plain to the Dolomites, passing through morainic hills and pre-Alpine uplands. Those interested in the lowland landscape and agricultural land reclamation can head to Concamarise, a small municipality in the lower Veronese plain where the land is marked by irrigation canals and the intensive cultivation of rice and cereals. It is a radically different context from the Lessinia mountain setting of Selva di Progno, useful for grasping the breadth of Veneto’s rural mosaic.

At the opposite end of the altimetric spectrum, Cortina d’Ampezzo represents the Dolomite face of the region: a vertical landscape, Ladin history, Alpine architecture in wood and stone, and an economy tied to winter tourism and the 2026 Olympics. The comparison between these three villages — plain, pre-Alpine hills, high mountains — conveys the geographical and cultural complexity of a regional territory that defies any simplification.