Dolomite Hike Day Three: 23k

Day Three

Lake Braies → climb to Rifugio Biella → climb to Rifugio Sennes → trail through Fodara Vedla → descend to Pederü

Distance: 23 kilometres

This was a tough day but a very beautiful one. Lake Braies is an extremely pretty milky-peacock-blue lake at the foot of magnificent Dolomite peaks. It was also apparently made famous by an Italian television series (One Step From Heaven, set in a scenic hut by the lake) and is now VERY popular with tourists (and brides and grooms and wedding parties) as a photoshoot location. Mr Darcy thought it might also be good for water skiing, which rather shocked our Italian guide!

Dripping with sweat, puffing and red in the face aren’t features that present a great many Instagram worthy photo shoots, but Lake Braise is a different thing altogether. There is also a booming boat hire trade on the lake, but these boats became more and more like matchsticks as we climbed higher and higher up the mountain.

We were a smaller hiking group today, and had a wonderful journey together. All the hikers are of a similar vintage and there is a lot to talk about, particularly as many of us have had a number of pivots in our careers and family lives. Doctor, lawyers, educators, a filmmaker and scriptwriter, people who work on the land and in business. Hiking is an equaliser and a good test of character as everyone sweats and struggles and relies on others at different times of the day. One of our party, The Oricle (named for his mastery of all things altitude) hands out jellybeans at stressful parts of the climb, which is surprisingly morale boosting (even when not keen on jellybeans, one tends to have an opinion on what flavour is best). A positive attitude is very important during a strenuous hike - if there is a problem we all support each other, but there’s no point complaining or worrying about what lies ahead because there is no rest until we reach our final destination and …

Beer and chips.

Dolomites Hike Day Two: 27km

Day Two Hike: Drei Zinnen base towards Carbonin, then the trail to Plätzwiese (Prato Piazza) → Strudelkopf (Monte Specie) → return towards Plätzwiese and descend through the Braies Valley.

Distance: 27 kilometres

Today was the day of Trail 37! Yes, there are many marked trails in the Dolomite mountains, but this one kept popping up and even allowed us, instead of hiking along wider trails (which we could call fire trails at home) to take short cuts through pine forests and still be on track. While chatting to another walker, I actually took one of these short cuts when Mr Darcy was ahead of me. He didn’t know I was now ahead of him, and manifested his concern for me by calling. This was quite a big deal as I pay Telstra to keep in contact with others, but he refuses to spend $10.00 a day unless there is an emergency. Last year, he called after running a few kilometres to find his lost phone (a true emergency) but today he called because he knows I’m a relatively fast uphill walker and believed I should have caught up!

The bus: There were three of us still hiking for the last few kilometres of the hike (me, Mr Darcy and a third musketeer who apparently shares our aversion to buses). At the foot of the trail we had to catch a bus to our accommodation (it’s impossible or at the very least dangerous to walk along mountain passes, particularly given some Italian driver’s penchant for speed and aggressive tooting). We had seen that we were only a few kilometres away from the stop, but we didn’t think to push the button to stop the bus. Massive Fail! We had very grumpy bus driver who was reluctant to let us off the bus until the next century, but the second driver took us close to our hotel and was very friendly, so balance was restored. And as it turned out, the rest of our party also didn’t push the button in time and came back via a wild off-piste route, so the three musketeers, notwithstanding taking the longer hiking option, had a much easier time of it.

The accommodation: The hotel was in the middle of nowhere, but there was a 25-metre swimming pool and it was glorious! The water was the perfect temperature for wallowing, so wallowing we did. There was also a very nice dinner except …

Yes, we are tourists, and on this tour our hotels and guest houses provide dinner, but we had tiramisu yet again. Savouiardi sponge biscuits. Eggs. Sugar. Coffee. Cocoa. All excellent. But then there is the cream (I think, traditionally, tiramisu is made with mascarpone cheese, but it tastes like cream to me and I don’t like cream). A small matter, but I hope our run of tiramisu ends soon.

The funny: Uncle Fester was a ‘presence’ in the hotel. At the desk lurching over passports. At the dinner table lurching over water (4 Euro for a small carafe of still water which is available through the tap). But my biggest gripe was at breakfast. I am a slow eater, breakfast was only served from 7.30am, and we had to have our bags packed and teeth cleaned and be assembled at reception by 8.15am. So I ate my regular fruit salad with a spoonful of muesli. And I was just about to spread an excellent looking honeycomb on two thick slices of bread when I had to leave the breakfast area. Could I take the bread and honey? No I could not because Uncle Fester was lurching!

RefuJesuses. A new word? Potentially, but crosses at the tops of hills and mountain refuges serving coffee and soup and lunch are quite the thing. The refuge food is very expensive, but as the refuges have to restock regularly and that can’t be easy, the costs are justified. And who isn’t willing to spend 7 Euro for a coffee mid-afternoon on a tiring day? As to the Jesus part of this word, the crosses are many but appreciated whatever religion one might have or not have. The crosses are also tall so a good marker as one walks up the next hill …

Dolomites Hike Day One: 20km

Day One Hike: The base of Drei Zinnen (at Dobiacco) → Val Rinbianco → Monte Piana → Misurina

Distance: 25 kilometres

A birthday. Some people like to celebrate a birthday by relaxing with a cocktail by a pool, or sharing a vineyard restaurant dinner with family, or taking a lakeside stroll.

Mr Darcy is not some people. Which is why today, thankfully in glorious Italian sunshine, we hiked 25 km up and down a mountain.

Our hike. For the six day hike we’ve planned, we are in a guided tour of eleven (in our past hikes, we have set our agenda and guided ourselves), so our lovely expert hiker and climber Christiana will be in charge of much of the navigation. However, as in previous hikes, Mr Darcy and I are likely to let the road lead us where it will (there are as many different walking goals in a group of eleven as there are hikers).

The scenery was absolutely glorious today and there was so much astounding beauty. All self explanatory I hope, so much as I should be researching volcanic eruptions and geological formations and ancient sea levels and subsequent landslides and such things, I am going to let this very limited sample of pictures tell the story.

This morning, we left our accommodation in the shadows of Drei Zinnen (Three Peaks) and walked up winding trails into the Rienza Valley and Val Rinbianco. Then we took the path to Monte Piana, which presented a summit with magnificent views, and a fascinating World War I ‘open museum.’ From 1915 – 1917 this region was a frontline in battles between Italy and the Austro-Hungarian empire, and there are many stone remnants of the trench warfare—many trenches, bunkers and tunnels. Over 14,000 soldiers were estimated to have perished here, some in combat but many others due to the harsh conditions, particularly through winter.

Our hotel. We had a lovely view of Drei Zinnen (also affectionately known as the three sisters though it means one of our daughters misses out ….) from our window. There are also many red geraniums in window boxes. Firm bed. Boiled eggs for breakfast (and I didn’t mind that a German group took two eggs each as I’m not particularly partial to a boiled egg unless it has a hard white and soft yolk and is accompanied by toast soldiers, but some in our party were displeased). Excellent bread and apricot marmalade.

Did my walking preparation pay off? It’s been a busy few months with work, on the farm, with caring responsibilities and with life generally, so besides cattle and horse wrangling and gardening and two or three 10-15km hikes in the national park close to our home, I’ve done very little preparation. Mr Darcy has done slightly more (such as walking around the harbour when he’s been in Sydney for work) so we weren’t too sure how we would go with a steep trail and a long warm day, but we were surprisingly solid. And most importantly ….

Less walking preparation, yes, but my nemesis (also known as big toe of right foot) did very well in its podiatrist approved gel condom thingy and I am taking this as a sign that I might not lose a toenail. Does visiting the podiatrist count as preparation? I believe it does. As does climbing aboard Noddy and over fences, cleaning up manure, pruning reckless wisteria and pushing grandchildren’s prams up hills.

Post walk beer. I don’t drink beer, except post walk when I really enjoy it! I also enjoy chips and in Italy, chips are often served with post walk beer which makes me very happy. As for the pictured woodpile, I’m a homebody at heart so always looking for inspiration for when we go home. This woodpile is, indeed, a thing of beauty.

Tired legs tonight, but another day tomorrow so now we are off to bed.

Did Mr Darcy have a nice birthday? Over the past few years, we have lost dear friends and family members who are younger than we are now, so we’re very grateful to still be hiking and laughing and breathing in fresh mountain air. We’re also still aspirational - hence our plans to create a woodpile like this for next winter at home!