You may be able to ignore the arms industry in Brescia, but its impact is unavoidable when you pass through the Val Trompia, directly north of the city. The industry dates back over four hundred years, started by the Venetians, keen to utilize the rich iron-ore deposits of the area and to whom it became so indispensable that during the sixteenth century restrictions were actually placed on people's movements out of the region. The centre of today's (much diminished) arms industry is GARDONE VAL TROMPIA, where the Beretta company has its headquarters.

The valley beyond Gardone is crammed with industry as far as Lavone, and hiking becomes possible only at BOVEGNO. From this small village paths lead up to Monte Muffetto (4hr) and, even better, to Monte Crestoso and its tiny tarns (5hr 30min), though you'll need a tent, as there are no rifugi. There are two rifugi further on, however, Croce Domini (1992m) at the head of the valley, and Bonardi (1743m) above the lovely Passo del Maniva. From either base you can walk down to Lago d'Idro or climb Monte Colombino, again with a couple of tarns. The map to get is the Kompass Carta Turistica, Le Tre Valli Bresciane. There are also a few cheap hotels at the ski resorts of Collio and San Columbano; try the tiny Belvedere ( & 030.927.259; under €50) in the latter.

From close to the rifugio Croce Domini a steep track climbs over into the broad Valle della Berga and up to BAGOLINO on the road to Lago d'Idro. Bagolino is quiet, preserving many of its medieval houses and a church, San Rocco, that has a startlingly realistic cycle of fifteenth-century frescoes. If you want to avoid Idro's unremarkable resorts, this is the place to stay: the Cavallino hotel at Via San Giorgio 164 ( & 0365.99.103, gibili@libero.it; under €50) is quite reasonable, and buses run fairly frequently to and from the lake.

Lago d'Idro is a reasonably pretty lake, except for its marshy upper reaches where the effect is spoiled by a sand-dredger. Tourism is family-oriented, but as there's no road running along the upper reaches of the east shore, you should be able to find a quiet beach here. Although bathing in the lake is said to induce a skin rash, few people are able to resist its cool, clear waters; there are also walks in the area if you want to do more than swim and laze around. Marked paths climb up into the hills from the east shore, and from ANFO on the west shore a track leads past the rifugio Rosa di Baramone to Bagolino. Again, you'll need the Kompass map mentioned above.

Idro's resorts are uniformly bland, but if you want to stay over, Al Lago, Via Lago 10 ( & 0365.809.026; closed Oct– March; under €50), at Anfo, has cheap doubles. Of the campsites, the most convenient are the lakeside Pilù (0365.809.037, www.pilu.it; closed Oct– March) at Anfo, and Vantone Pineta (0365.823.385; closed Nov– Feb) at Vantone on the east shore: both are on the bus route from Brescia.

Northeast from Idro, via Ponte Caffaro, you reach the point where the Austrian border ran through until 1918. From here a road leads to tranquil Lago di Ledro in the Val Sabbia, only 2km long and slightly less across, and a good bolt-hole if you want to get away from the frantic northwest of Lago di Garda. Quieter than Idro, and far preferable, it has a couple of campsites, including the attractive Al Sole (0464.508.496, www.campingalsole.it) right on the lakeside, and a good hotel – the three-star Mezzolago (0464.508.181; €50-75), with balconies over the lake.