A midsummer ramble in the Dolomites
-
Loading... - Beatrix Huber
- 22 Sep 2022
- 66 Views
- 0 Like
- 0 Comment
Three men stopped ahead of me along the trail to Putia Pass. We marveled over a shallow waterfall ribbon cascading over creases of limestone toward our feet. I had passed the trio earlier along the Alta Via 2, a long-distance, high-altitude footpath in the Italian Alps, but had stopped to rearrange my gear when they passed me. Reunited at the waterfall, we had to cross — but first, a picture. Then I took the lead with an inelegant hop, skip and dash across the rocks to the other side.
It was late afternoon. I had started where the trail began, in Bressanone (also known as Brixen), and planned to follow it to its terminus in Feltre, the town where I live in Northern Italy. Already I had trekked seven miles to about 6,200 feet above sea level. Only 3,200 feet of elevation stood between me and the circular hike called Sass de Putia and, more important, what stood beyond the mountain pass.
Long-distance hiking in the Dolomites compacts the world to its finest, most delicious moments, such as that impromptu photo opportunity shared with strangers. More sumptuous were the views, which were rivaled only by the meals served along a trail that attracts day hikers as well as backpackers. Eating and walking one’s way through those rocky dips and rises is perhaps unique to this region. Certainly you can’t get truffle-buttered biscotti and crispy pork knuckle along a typical hiking trail. Here, nature and haute cuisine coexist at high altitude.
The Alta Via 2 (or Dolomites High Route 2) is one of 10 serpentine paths wending through the Dolomites of South Tyrol and the Veneto. It stretches from north to south for about 115 kilometers (about 71 miles). The hike is intended to be completed in about two weeks, over which time a hiker gains and loses more than 75,459 feet of altitude. In July, I hiked roughly the first 50 miles over four days, a time during which, as Amelia Edwards, the English writer, wrote nearly 150 years ago, “one escapes from hackneyed sights, from overcrowded hotels, from the dreary routine of table d’hôtes.” She described the “singular isolation of these mountains, many of which stand detached and alone, falling away steeply on all sides.” Read More...
