The Strada del Genio (Engineers' Road) was a military road built before the Great War, in the late 19th century, when the entire border between the Kingdom of Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire was fortified on both sides. Specifically, the Strada del Genio connected Fort Tombion (a valley-floor barrage for close-range defense) to the Col del Gallo battery (at high altitude, equipped with long-range cannons). The combination of the two fortifications (typical of the entire border) served to guard the access from the Valsugana valley against a potential invasion. It was no coincidence that this location was chosen: the narrowest point of the Brenta Valley and the confluence with the Cismon Valley.
It was boldly carved into the rock, on the vertical left slope of the Brenta Valley, and has a typically military feel: a moderate and constant gradient, hairpin bends (16), cave shelters, and 'mine furnaces' (recesses in which explosives were packed to blow up the road in the event of an enemy invasion).
Today the road is a path reserved for hikers and mountain bikers: wide, with a constant but moderate climb, and beautiful views of the Brenta Canyon and the Asiago Plateau beyond.