Adige

Second longest river (after the Po) in Italy, 410 km/255 mi in length. It rises in the Rhaetian Alps, crosses the Lombardy Plain and enters the Adriatic just north of the Po delta.

From its source in three small lakes near Resia, the Adige flows east to Merano, then south past Bolzano, Trento, and Rovereto, then southeast past Verona. It is deep, and below Verona has a width of about 155 m/508 ft, but its rapid current makes navigation difficult. Its valley, leading north towards the Brenner Pass, has always been a main routeway linking Italy and Austria. The river provides hydroelectric power in its upper reaches, and irrigates the lowlands of Venetia.