The Valganna is a

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between Hill, hills or Mountain, mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers ...

in the

Lugano Prealps The Lugano Prealps (''Prealpi Luganesi'' or ''Prealpi Lombarde Occidentali'' in Italian) are a mountain range in the western part of the Alps. They are located in Canton Ticino (southern Switzerland) and in Lombardy (northern Italy). Geography A ...

, located north of

Varese Varese ( , , or ; lmo, label= Varesino, Varés ; la, Baretium; archaic german: Väris) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 has reached 80,559. It is the c ...

in northwestern

Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. Its main peaks are

Monte Piambello Monte Piambello is a mountain of Lombardy, Italy. It has an elevation of 1,125 metres above sea level. The summit of the Mount is the highest point of the Cinque Vette Park The Cinque Vette Park is a natural park, established by the Region o ...

, Poncione di Ganna, Monte Monarco,

Monte Martica Monte Martica is a mountain of Lombardy, Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory larg ...

, Monte Chiusarella and Monte Minisfreddo. It is crossed by the

Olona The Olona (''Olona'' in Italian; ''Ulona'', ''Urona'' or ''Uòna'' in Western Lombard) is an Italian river belonging to the Po Basin, long, that runs through the Province of Varese and Metropolitan City of Milan whose course is developed ent ...

and

Margorabbia The Margorabbia is the river (Stream#Intermittent and ephemeral streams, intermittent stream) of Valtravaglia, a valley in the province of Varese, Lombardy, Italy. It is a tributary of the Tresa which it joins a few hundred metres upstream of Lak ...

rivers, and two small lakes,

Lago di Ganna Lago di Ganna is a lake at Valganna in the Province of Varese, Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of 0,07 km² and a maximum depth of 3 m. It is part of a natural reserve. Geography It is located in the comune of Valganna. The lake has as an u ...

and

Lago di Ghirla Lago di Ghirla is a lake at Valganna in the Province of Varese, Lombardy, Italy. Geography Ghirla Lake is at 442 metres above sea level. Its affluent is river Margorabbia which is a subterranean river coming from Lake Ganna. Its maximal dept ...

, are located in the valley. Three municipalities are located in the valley;

Valganna Valganna is a ''comune'' (municipality) within the Province of Varese in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 60 km northwest of Milan and about 13 km north of Varese. The name Valganna is a compound of valley and Ganna, which is th ...

Cunardo Cunardo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Varese in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northwest of Milan and about north of Varese. Cunardo borders the following municipalities: Bedero Valcuvia, Cugliate-Fabiasco, Ferr ...

and

Induno Olona Induno Olona is a town and ''comune'' in Italy, in north-western Lombardy, north of Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after R ...

. The Valganna is known for its

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

s and its

waterfalls A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...

, often frozen during

winter Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultures ...

References

{{coord missing, Italy Province of Varese Po basin Valleys of Italy Geography of Lombardy