Having put a lot of planning in place to hike/tramp the Alta Via #1 in the Italian Dolomites, we headed to Val Gardena for some warm-up day hikes staying at Apartments Boè in Santa Cristina.
Most of the lifts were starting to open for the summer season, and most of the rifugios too, providing plenty of options and combinations for exploring up and down the valley.
Day 1 | Seceda
We got an early bus down to Ortisei and then took a gondola & cable-car up to Seceda. Had forgotten how busy the Alps & Dolomites can be compared to NZ, but heading 20 mins away from the viewpoints does make a difference. Still plenty of opportunities to practise our greetings with hikers coming the other way. Even though the cloud was down on most of the peaks around us, the Seceda ridgeline heading towards the Odle peaks is spectacular. The other highlight was an impressive 60-metre high menhir called Pieralongia, which Ildica was happy to clamber up for me.
Day 2 | Rif. Vicenza/Langkofelhütte
After walking through the village from the apartment we headed up the chairlifts from Santa Cristina to Monte Pana/Mont Seura and traversed round under Sassolungo/Langkofel and up to Rif. Vicenza/Langkofelhütte (2253m). Good views out across the Seiser Alm plateau which we were looking forward to exploring later in the week.
Day 4 | Alpe di Suisi/Seiser Alm
We had not appreciated that there is now no vehicular access to the Seiser Alm plateau between 9am & 5pm due to tourist pressures, so we joined the crowds heading up the gondola from Suisi/Seis to Compaccio/Compatsch. Did a beautiful relaxed loop walk in the Puflatsch area, including lunch at the family run Messner Schwaige.
I was keen to get some sunset photos of Sassolungo/Langkofel so we drove back up to Compaccio/Compatsch that evening for a 9km walk out along the plateau for photos. Well worth it, very peaceful.
Day 5 | Vallunga
Wasn’t a great forecast for the day and still a reasonable amount of snow higher up, so while we had originally planned a high long loop of the Val de Chedul & Vallunga, we instead opted for a walk up Vallunga and back before the rain set in.
