Lugano Prealps Explained

Lugano Prealps
Other Name:Prealpi Lombarde Occidentali
Country Type:Countries
Subdivision1 Type:Canton, Region
Parent:Alps
Highest:Pizzo di Gino
Elevation M:2245
Coordinates:46.1008°N 9.2056°W
Geology:Sedimentary rocks[1]
Orogeny:Alpine orogeny

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 Lombardy (northern Italy).

Geography

Administratively the Italian part of the range belongs to the provinces of Como and Varese, while the Swiss one is divided between the districts of Bellinzona, Locarno, Lugano and Mendrisio.

The western slopes of the mountains are drained by the Ticino, the eastern ones by Adda and the southern-central part of them by Lambro, Olona and other minor rivers and streams, all of them directly or indirectly tributaries of the Po.

SOIUSA classification

According to SOIUSA (International Standardized Mountain Subdivision of the Alps) the mountain range is an Alpine section, classified in the following way:[2]

Borders

Lugano Prealps' borders are (clockwise):

Subdivision

The Lugano Prealps are divided into two subsections:

which are separated by the Monte Ceneri Pass.

These subsections are further divided in supergroups:

Summits

The chief summits of the range are:

Namemetresfeet
Pizzo di Gino2,245 7,363
2,226 7,301
2,116 6,940
2,107 6,910
1,967 6,451
1,936 6,352
1,736 5,694
1,704 5,589
1,700 5,600
1,685 5,526
1,621 5,316
1,373 4,503
1,314 4,311
1,235 4,050
1,058 3,471
1,047 3,435
993 3,258
913 2,995
877 2,877
858 2,815

Maps

Notes and References

  1. Book: VV. AA. . Lombardia : esclusa Milano. Touring Club Italiano. 1999. it. 37.
  2. Book: Marazzi , Sergio . Atlante Orografico delle Alpi. SOIUSA. Priuli & Verlucca. 2005. it. 978-88-8068-273-8.