Italy - Day 2: Rifugio Biella to Rifugio Lavarella

Obligatory shadow picture

Day 2 started at exactly 9:23 as we abandoned the cosy-ness of the rifugio and braved the inhospitable outside. Ok, it was sunny again, but earlyish. So there was still a chill in the air.

We are lazy and disorganised - we admit it. 9:23.

As usual the walk started uphill. Un as usual, this wasn't very far and then it was down hill for a long long time. Gently, but very definitively downhill. Gravity assisted walking can be some of the best.

Empty

We were surrounded by Dolomites. Some distant relation to 'Stalagmites' we believe. But the part of the family that is scared of the dark.

As we stopped for photos the other residents of the refugio flew past us, in a hurry to get somewhere. We'd only gone 500m. But we like to stop and smell the coffee and see what we came to see. We're happy to save going as fast as we can for shitty weather days.


That's our excuse and we will stick to it.

Views every where

Me taking a picture of them taking pictures of the scenery. We just can't agree on what the prettiest bit is. Eventually we will stitch the pictures together into a panorama.

Camping is hard in the Dolomites so we had left the tents behind so our packs were a light as, 10kg, feathers. I say 10 but we didn't really measure - but they definitely had a tennish feel about them.

End of the runway

Cliffs

We came to another rifugio: there are lots. Some people who don't speak Italian want to write 'refugio': uneducated idiot. But in front of the r-I-fugio someone had constructed a runway. Needless to say we didn't run. But we guess World War I or maybe the other one. But one of them. Long, flat, smooth with an impressive drop off at the end. Very James Bond.       
                    
There was more downhill. We were shocked. It appeared that we were going down almost to civilisation. Which meant a big climb back up to the up. Shit.

But it was pretty and we were fit and we had no choice. Note to self: more route planning on future walks.                                                                                                                

The view down into the random valley was spectacular with limestone cliffs towering over the road.

Then even more down. We were getting nervous. The Alta Via - The High Route is supposed to be high. We would have to pay for all of this down hill stuff. In sweat and curses no doubt.

Random view

The down got even downer. Eventually a paved road so steep that even the most off roadish cars would struggle. It was hard to walk down, any steeper and it would have been free fall. Even the e-bikes were being pushed. The loose pebbles made it more of a skating rink. One wrong step and off you went. And in some places 'off' was a long way down.

Resting before the up

The bottom eventually arrived. A quick chang ein fashions and up was the new down. The up being a pile of fallen rocks which seemed have filled the next valley, about half way up. It looked like a big dam, but being limestone there would be no lake.

Well, there were lakes and rivers. Disconcerting in limestone country. But we put this down to some impervious layer or rock. Seems we learned something in Malham (see 2014 Pennine Way).

Looking down from the up

See the red geology

The way wound its path over the fallen rock at the bottom of the cliffs. Things grew but the cliffs are always falling. Fun Fact: New limestone is red. Only gets white when exposed to air for a while. There were huge red scars on some mountains where whole cliff faces had decided it was time to let gravity win. This constant reshaping means that paths disappear,  valleys change shape. Geology in action.

Hot

The general dryness makes the area poor grazing
land, it seems, so there weren't to many cows. But as 'they' know my love for these beautiful beasts 'they' kindly stuck a few in this valley. No walking trip would be complete without ;
a) a sexy cow photo,
b) the wonderful smell of nature, or
c) the soft sinking feeling of a foot badly placed.

Cows are great.

Cottages and water and cows

The top of the valley was a swamp. On limestone. Amazing. And we were dutifully amazed. At least I was and the family pretended when I pointed the amazingness out.

There were 4 or 5 cottages in quick succession. A popular place. Of course we were staying in the one right at the end of the valley. I want to say the best. But you don't always get what you want.

Cottage and anti cow fence

All the comforts of home. Austria meets Italy, luckily taking the best from each. Beer, food, bed and sleep.