The geo-palaeontological trail on Monte San Giorgio turns a mountain walk above Lake Lugano into a journey through one of the world’s most important Middle Triassic fossil landscapes. Around 230 to 245 million years ago, this region lay beside a tropical lagoon. Fine sediments preserved fish, marine reptiles, invertebrates and plants with exceptional detail, creating the scientific record that later earned the mountain international recognition.
The Swiss side of Monte San Giorgio entered UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 2003, followed by the Italian extension in 2010. The walking landscape crosses today’s national border, but the fossil story is shared. Interpretation along the routes connects rock layers and excavation history with the modern woods, villages and viewpoints. It is a rare place where a hiker can understand that the mountain beneath each step was once part of a very different world.
