We woke up before dawn and photographed until close to breakfast time on the flat area with the veins of white rock – leading lines to the mountain peaks.
We planned to manage the hike back without delaying the group by leaving right after breakfast, so we packed before breakfast and were ready to eat at 7 am – we were on the trail 20 minutes later.
The hiking was cool and pleasant in the shade of the mountain ridge. Most of our group had passed us around the halfway point, near the saddle at Forcella Lavaredo. We finished sooner than expected though, and at Auronzo, we were able to get on the road around 10:30. Nicole needed a little first aid after she was bitten by a puppy that she played with at the Lavaredo snack hut.
We headed west today stopping by Lago Antorno, a little lake with a view of a jagged peak, for some reflection photos.
Afterwards, we proceeded towards Passo delle Erbe, aka Würzjoch. I think our route was the northerly one, passing by Bruneck. The mountain roads got narrower — two-way traffic on pretty much one-lane roads. Traffic was light, however, which is how they manage.
Our rifugio, Halslhütte, was just west of Passo delle Erbe. It is in a very green valley of pastures and the mountain spruces. The spruces looked more healthy here than in lower elevation mountain slopes further south. (Some of the typical cool-weather mountain trees are dying because of climate change-induced drought and bark beetles. I read a report at science.org about German forests describing the problem.)
The Halslhütte drink menu was great. They offered a spritz that was a refreshing variation on the Aperol spritz, and they made excellent non-alcoholic drinks with home-made elderberry syrup or currant syrup. We had a delicious lunch at the tables outside.
We were in full lounging mode and forgot to listen to David S’s talk on Orten effect. It was great to just sit and appreciate the lovely valley — green meadow, tall trees, jagged mountain peaks with high elevation pastures. The lodge also had a kids’ playground.
Our sunset location was the often-photographed San Giovanni in Ranui chapel in a nearby valley by the town of Santa Magdalena. Rain threatened and the sun dropped behind thickening clouds, but the dark clouds had drama. We were crammed into a crowded viewing platform, all framing the same shot. Presumably, the owner set it up this way to keep photographers from wandering all over the land at this popular location.
Note: I haven’t been very consistent about which names I render in Italian and which in German. Here in the northern part of South Tyrol, the map and signs have names in both languages.