From Trento in the north, Austrian armies had secure communications with Innsbruck across the Brenner Pass. An Austrian army at Trento had three ways to reach the Po valley in 1796. The first route used the roads running parallel with the Adige on the east side of Lake Garda. The second route went west of Lake Garda via Riva and Lake Idro to either Brescia or Lonato del Garda. The third route lay to the east through Levico Terme and Borgo Valsugana, then south along the Brenta River valley to Bassano del Grappa. By holding both Trento and Bassano, an Austrian army could move troops and supplies through the mountains without the French being able to interfere.