Cortina d’Ampezzo is framed by several prominent mountain groups, e.g. Cristallo, Sorapis, Tofane, Antelao, Nuvolau or Croda da Lago. They are also called the Ampezzo Dolomites. Many winding pass roads with magnificent views of the alpine landscape lead into the Cortina basin in the Boite valley, which flows south into the Piave. Read more
Dawn on the summit of Piccolo Lagazuoi (2,778 m) on this autumn day in October is breathtaking. Against the glowing strip of light on the horizon and the pastel-coloured cirrus clouds, the mountain groups of the Ampezzo Dolomites rise dark and massive; behind me the Tofane and to the south Averau and Nuvolau, 5 Torri, Ra Gusela. Behind them follows the panorama with Hexenstein, Settsass, Antelao, Monte Pelmo, Monte Civetta and many more melodious peaks. Read more
I love autumn and its moods. It’s a time of transition, of saying goodbye to the abundance of summer and preparing for the coming winter. Shorter days with a sun that still warms, longer nights with temperatures that are often already frosty. Morning mist instead of humidity and thunderstorms. Glowing yellows and reds of the trees alternate with the already dull, earthy browns of meadows and fallen leaves. That’s when I love being out in nature. This year, the opportunity arose again to head to the Dolomites for a few days following a good weather forecast. Read more
After the ascent to the Ramolhaus, the clouds had already cleared the previous evening for a brief glimpse of the peaks and glaciers in the Gurgler Valley. This increased our anticipation for the crossing over the Ramoljoch into the Vent Valley the next day. Later that evening, however, it started to snow, so we went to bed with mixed feelings. Read more
At sunset, the clouds cleared. A spectacular day’s tour in the Ötztal Alps concluded with a view from the Ramolhaus of the main Alpine ridge and the Gurgler Glacier, a sight no longer expected that day. This summer, on the tour to the Brunnenkogelhaus, I had already become acquainted with a part of the “quiet side of Sölden,” as the valleys and mountains away from the ski resorts are marketed. Now I returned to hike through another quiet and peaceful region of the Ötztal Alps on a two-day tour, crossing the Ramoljoch from the Gurgler Valley into the Venter Valley. Read more
As I set off in the dark of early morning from the car park on the Ackernalm to experience the sunrise on Veitsberg (1,787 m), a car pulled up beside me. A tired young couple in traditional dress wound down the passenger window. A friend had gone missing from the party, and they asked if I had seen a young woman in a dirndl. The music, the laughter, the arriving and departing guests of the celebration at the mountain inn – the Almkirta – had been audible all night. She hadn’t passed my roof tent, and I hadn’t encountered her anywhere else. As I later found out, she had found a safe and cosy hideaway with a handsome young man. Read more
On the drive to Ackernalm in the Bavarian Prealps, the wide thunderstorm front approaching from the west caught up with me already in the Alpine foothills. Lightning flashed and heavy showers accompanied me for the remaining kilometres of the journey via Bayrischzell, the Ursprung Pass and finally up the toll road to the alm. Read more
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