Читать книгу Shorter Walks in the Dolomites. 50 varied day walks in the mountains онлайн

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Once back at the Lago di Braies water’s edge, keep R for the delightful path along the rocky eastern shore. You pass a waterfall before a raised walkway leads round a rocky point, followed by a marshy stretch back to Hotel Lago di Braies (1494m, 1hr).

Rifugio Biella Tel 0436 866991, June to September rifugiobiella@libero.it.

A male ibex on Croda del Becco

WALK 3

Picco di Vallandro and Monte Specie

Start/FinishRifugio PratopiazzaDistance15.6km/9.7 milesAscent/Descent1120mGrade2–3Time6hr (can be shortened to 2hr 45min)MapsTabacco n.03 or n.010 scale 1:25,000AccessIn Val Pusteria, between Monguelfo and Villabassa, a road forks S for Braies followed by Ponticello, which are reachable by SAD bus. From here the next 7km to Pratopiazza are closed to private traffic in summer, but they are covered by a shuttle bus which terminates a short distance below Pratopiazza.

Pratopiazza is one of those rare, perfect alpine basins dotted with pines and inhabited by contented dairy cows and photogenic timber chalets, but with the extra appeal of being encircled by a number of spectacular Dolomites. First and foremost it looks to majestic, deep-red Croda Rossa, ‘our blood-stained “Mount of sacrifice” for Gilbert and Churchill (1864). An ancient tale attributes the striking colour as the rock blushing in sympathy with an orphan who was brought up by marmots in the mountain’s caves; after her inevitable marriage to a handsome prince, the girl was deliberately embarrassed by a jealous noblewoman who revealed her humble background. However, she found solidarity in nature.