We are safely home. I mention this because the last post about our first two hikes in the Dolomites raised some concerns out there: not about my safety so much, but Lori’s definitely. Numerous people reached out to her to say helpfully: “promise me you will never do anything like that again” and “when are you going to finally leave that lunatic.”
They didn’t actually say the second thing, but it was implied. Look, it was a nice hike. And plenty of others were out there that day, veritably skipping down the trail. Of course, most of those others were dogs, but still. Anyway, I agree with all of you. No more of those. With Lori that is. I hope to do loads of them still.
The rest of the week’s hikes —and we did about another 30 miles all told—were snow and ice free as a warm rain arrived the next day, melting the accumulated snow throughout the range.
Most of the Rifigios were closed for the year, but when we would find an open one, it was pure heaven to enjoy a high alpine beer after, or in the middle of, a sublime hike. One Rifugio even had its own sauna and cold plunge. These people know how to live. They also served food that looked and smelled amazing, but we were typically too full from breakfast to want it. The hotel buffets continued to be their own kind of endurance sport that we felt had to be conquered.
The hiking was definitely the highlight of the trip. We enjoyed mostly sunny autumn days that were (and it’s both trite and accurate to say this) magical. The Larch trees turn a golden brown, the high peaks are laden with snow and the pale limestone of the Dolomites create a fairy tale like appearance. It reminded me of the gorgeously illustrated Grimm’s Fairy Tale books of my youth (minus the creepy villains).
Pictures do not do it justice (especially if you are viewing this on your phone as I suspect you are). So if you want to check it out, come hiking with me. It's fun. Ask Lori.
Almost as impressively scenic as the trails are the roads in the Dolomites. In typically European fashion, they don’t let vertical mountains dissuade them from putting a road in. The result is hundreds of kilometers of winding, twisting, exhilarating mountain roads that are the most fun to drive of any I’ve ever driven in my life. Coincidentally, there was a road rally there that week so we were constantly seeing pods of around a dozen roadsters scream by us. Much to my delight, the majority were Porsches, but lots of Alfas, Ferraris, Maseratis and Mercedes too. This experience of being passed at speed when you are rounding a hairpin turn on a very narrow road with no shoulder and only a guardrail between you and a 200 meter drop off is a bit different from anything you might experience in the States. For me it was wonderful. For Lori, she would usually close her eyes, clutch the passenger handle and try not to barf. I did my best with my Citroen C3 rental, a tiny 4-cylinder beast, to put the track through its paces, but I was missing my wildly impractical car sitting at home.
Lastly, after the days hiking and driving adventures, we would return to the delightful splendor of our hotels. All of them were wonderful. Most had spas (pool, sauna, steam room, relaxation rooms, etc.). All had glorious breakfast buffets. But our favorite of the trip and possibly my favorite hotel ever was the Hotel Scherlin in Val Gardena. It had all of the above but with an enormous room and a view to die for from every part of the hotel—from pool to our room's balcony to the rooftop terrace which we had all to ourselves every evening.
Check out the cool sliding glass door between the indoor pool and the pool outside.
We were also treated to this sunrise every morning.
On our way back to Milan from the Dolomites we stopped for a night in Lake Garda, Lake Como's slightly less famous twin. Also amazing. Perhaps slightly less glamourous than Como, but still full of medievil villages and jaw dropping mountains cascading into the lake.
Having been barred from risking Lori's neck anymore, I am actively recruiting for anyone who wants to hike the Alta Via (The High Route) through the Dolomites with me so I can risk yours. What could possibly go wrong?
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