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| Mountains to visit between Munich and Venice |
The trek begins! Before the trek, we spent 6 amazing days in Munich, Innsbruck and Mongelfo/Welsberg in the South Tyrol region of northeastern Italy. The Dolomites are located at the eastern edge of the Alps.
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| Overland route and transportation to the trailhead |
We used a variety of different modes of transport to get to the trailhead, including a double-decker bus, a train, and finally a private transport van from Mongelfo to the trailhead near Cortina d’Ampezzo. Before we begin our description of the trek, let’s take two final looks at the area near Monguerfo.
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| It is located northeast of Monguelfo, in the Val de Santa Maddalena – this is Bavaria! |
We took public transport to a secondary valley called Santa Maddalena, where dairy farming is thriving, with many dairy cows grazing in the pastures.
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| The mountains of the Santa Maddalena Valley are not Dolomite limestone |
Day 1 – June 21
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| Don, Anne and Helen at the trailhead near Cortina d’Ampezzo |
Finally, on June 21st we started our trek from San Umberto at an altitude of 4,900 feet. This is the entrance to the Parco Naturale di Ampezzo, created in 1990. However, this area is also part of the Regole d’Ampezzo, a form of communal ownership of the pastures and forests of these mountains. The first documentation of the Regola here dates back to at least 1225. You can find out more about this interesting European institution here and here, and about the management of this communal heritage here. All this information I only found out while blogging after the trek. Very interesting!
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| Google Earth images from the first two days of the trek. Refugios are in orange. |
The annotated Google Earth image above shows the trailhead just north of Cortina d’Ampezzo. I will post Google Earth images of each leg of the hike. Above are the routes for Day 1 and Day 2We started out of the forest and entered the grasslands of La Stua, then climbed a zig-zag dirt road up to the plateau where our first Refugio, Fodala Vedra, was located. Our total distance on day one was about 5.5 miles, and day two was about the same (although on day two it felt more like 8 miles).
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| View of the northern Dolomites from near La Stua |
During the hike, I noticed a gentle but persistent northeasterly slope of the rocks (lower right in this photo), with occasional localized faults and folds. right This widespread depression was uninterrupted but observed for many days on the mountain. I took this photo about an hour into our nine-day trek, but had no idea how widespread the depression was. As the days went on, it became clearer.
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| Helen looks south as she crosses the bridge |
We purchased a self-guided tour package that included 12 nights’ accommodation, transportation to and from the trek, and a detailed itinerary to reach our destination. The directions on this first day could have been clearer, or perhaps we just needed to get used to the vagaries of European mountain travel, where distance is measured in time. Still, our notes for this trail section did not include all the signs and junctions we encountered.
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| Eventually we reached our first lunch stop, La Stua. |
After about an hour and a half we stopped off at Ra Stua for a cappuccino and some delicious French fries – a pretty sophisticated hike, very nice indeed.
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| Understanding at La Stua |
As with many places around the world, the people who make the signs and explain the routes may not have been there themselves, and they know their land so well that they don’t always explain things in a way that visitors can immediately understand. It took us a few days to get a feel for what locals have known for centuries. Traveling eliminates prejudice – Mark Twain.
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| The Road After La Stua |
I was a bit surprised to learn that the “trail” actually included many roads, some of which were paved. In fact, it wasn’t even a “trail” at all, but many trails with different numbers, all of which connected together to form what is called AV 1 or Alta Via 1. It was great for hiking.
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| Climbing from La Stua |
Just past La Stua we left the valley and started to climb up the western plateau (about 750m climb). Before this trip I had bought new hiking pants with deep pockets, so I kept taking out my bandana to wipe the sweat off my brow. When I got to this spot I reached into my pocket but it wasn’t there, so Helen (in the yellow shirt above) offered to go down the zigzag path to get it for me. What a sweetheart! She went down the zigzag path 4-5 times and came back without it. It turned out my pants pockets were really deep and my bandana was hidden deep inside. My mistake. But it allowed me to see the Triassic limestone that would be my landmark for the next 9 days.
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| Looking south from the plateau towards Sas Dora Para (top left) – seen in the last photo Google Earth imagery – with tracks drawn on it |
We climbed to an open plateau at an elevation of 750 feet. We saw two marmots along the trail – the only two we saw on the trip – and the mountains stretched out before us.
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| Refugio Fodala Vedra |
Finally, through the hazy skies, we reached Fodala Vedra at an elevation of 6,562 ft. I had chosen this particular date to try to “break” the seemingly never-ending haze that hangs over Europe in summer, and on this day at least, it looked like the attempt might fail.
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| Also notice the reflection in the window. |
Signs tell you everything. This is in the mountains so there is no internet but somehow we got connected. Occasionally the cell phone signal traveled to many of the refuges.
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| Fodara Vedra Dining Room |
Every refugio we experienced was like a small rustic hotel with pretty much every amenity: running water, kitchen, full bar, beds, etc. And thus ended day 1. Here we had one of the best primi piatti (first plates) – eggplant ragu. So delicious!
Day 2 – June 22
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| A final view of Fodara Vedra and Sas Dora Parra (photo: H. Ranyi) |
The day started with a steep descent that we all commented on: about 1,400 feet of descent, mostly on paved roads (to resupply at Fodala Vedra), but it was paved because our vehicles wouldn’t have been able to get traction on dirt roads, and by the bottom of the hill our feet were hurting.
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| Down, down, down |
In less steep sections the road becomes dirt again. But with the curves and steep inclines it’s really tough. You have to watch your step. The worst part is that the next shelter is at the same elevation as the last one and you have to climb back up the other side. Notice that the rocks ahead also slope to the northeast. There are many caves in the bedding plane of the strata.
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| Refugio Pedro in the Val de Tamersc |
You can see Refugio Pederú on the valley floor. Also note the debris flows coming down from the mountains. Everywhere we went we saw evidence of recent events with huge amounts of rock tumbling down the steep walls. It was very impressive and we took lots of photos.
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| Art installation at the bottom of the Peder valley |
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| Cappuccino Italiano! |
Helen doesn’t usually drink coffee, but the temptation of a mid-morning cappuccino in Italy was a big challenge. It was delicious.
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| The road to Refugio Lavarella |
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| After leaving Peder |
There was a steep climb up the footpath on the west side of the road (in this view looking north towards Peder you can see both the footpath on the left and the road on the right) – mountain bikes and e-bikes took the road and hikers took the footpath.
It seemed to last longer than I expected, but the views were amazing!
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| Sign to Refugio Lavarella |
Installation of shoe racks now mandatory in accommodation facilities
All refugios have a shoe rack in the basement behind the bar. When you go inside, you take off your hiking shoes and take them to the shoe rack. The shoe rack at Refugio Lavarella has a heated post for drying your boots (it rains a lot, so your shoes may get wet).
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| Refugio Lavarella |
You might have noticed the sign two pictures above advertising beer – La Varella has its own brewery and is advertised as the highest altitude brewery in Europe – and the beer was very good.
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| Sunset from Lavarella |
That concludes the first two days. I’ll post again soon. Thanks for reading.
