Monte Lagazuoi, Dolomites

We drove through stunning scenery between Innsbruck and Santa Fosca, the tiny village where we stayed in the Dolomites.  The most impressive section stretched between Valparola Pass and Falzarego Pass; both are included in the List of Highest Paved Roads in Europe.  It took forever to drive through here, and not just because the roads were twisty and choked with bicyclers.  We kept having to stop to gawk and take pictures. This area is relatively close to Santa Fosca, and we knew we wanted to return for a hike.  There is a cable car that whisks passengers from the elevation of 6,900 feet at Falzarego Pass ass up to an elevation of 9,000 feet near the summit of Monte Lagazuoi.  Many visitors ride the cable car both up and down, taking the short stroll to the rifugio to enjoy the views accompanied by strudel and espresso.  Hiking both up and down is also obviously an option, and we definitely wanted hike.  However, we also didn't want to burn Frankie's legs out too much the day before hiking the Puez-Odle Altopiano, so we elected to ride up, and hike back down.

When we arrived at the parking area at Falzarego Pass, it was sunny, but the mountain top was socked in under clouds.  It was a complete white-out when we arrived at the top, and cold.  We paused to bundle Frankie in every layer we'd brought.  There was some kind of construction going on at the rifugio, which was a little confusing due to our failure to understand Italian.  No matter.  We were too early for lunch, and since there were no views whatsoever, we didn't head up the spur trail, starting down right away instead, knowing we would pass below the clouds into the sun and warmth at some point.     

This mountain was on the front lines of in World War I, with bitter battles fought between Italy and Austria.  The tunnels here are open to the public, and we stuck our heads in a few to check them out.  However, we weren't sure if they would be suitable for Frankie, and didn't plan on using them to descend.  Mostly we just wanted to enjoy the views.  Ha!

There is something magical about hiking in heavy fog though.  Perhaps the mystery?  Anything could be around that bend...

As we walked down, down, down, the fog got wispier, and we started to catch some teaser views. It was exhilarating! 

avalanche fences

a side trail to a tunnel entrance

pink cinquefoil (Potentilla nitida)

views across the valley to Cinque Torri

Descending this trail, I spied my first wild edelweiss.  I had only previously seen it in window boxes in the villages and for sale in various shops.  I let out such a squeal of excitement!  Poor Erwin thought something was wrong.  Nope, just me excited about flowers. 

edelweiss (Leontopodium alpinum)

edelweiss in situ -- can you spy it?

dwarf alpenrose (Rhodothamnus chamaecistus)

The path we took was generally quite gentle, wrapping around the jagged outcrops and eventually coming out on the scree slopes below the cable car.  Of course, by the time we finished our descent, the clouds had lifted.  The early bird did not get the worm today, but this was still an amazing hike.

I took a picture of this map for reference - we hiked the M1b trail down to the M1 (but the trail signs don't match)