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Walking in Europe 2023

Haziran - Ağustos 2023
West Highland Way, Paris, the Danube, Switzerland and the Dolomites of the northern Italy and south Tyrol Okumaya devam et
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  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 24

    From croissant to kaiser

    18 Temmuz 2023, İsviçre ⋅ 🌙 64 °F

    An early morning walk to The Salzach, the river that flows out of the Kitzbuhl Alps through and dividing Salzburg between the old town and the folks who live (and work) there…or so it seems.
    If that wasn't enough we decided to venture to the lovely gardens of the Maribel Palace to contrast yesterday’s pictures with morning's light.
    The itinerary for today was to hop on the train headed for Zurich. To get there was a treat, traveling into the area that has many high mountain ski resorts…Boxer is feeling right at home…(This trip is morphing from a summer journey to a winter destination fact finding adventure.)
    Joe Dawkins's good friend Andy once shared with Boxer that Austria is shaped like a ‘frying pan’, as we get closer to the handle (in western Austria) the landscape changes to rolling hills of green and houses adorned with window boxes filled with color.
    In Zurich Mimi and Boxer are forced to our Google Maps app to find our hotel for the evening. We did not need an app to locate a restaurant exclusively serving fondue…now Boxer is sure that he is at home…    Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 25

    40 years…nearly…dearly…sincerely

    19 Temmuz 2023, İsviçre ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F

    On 22July1983 Boxer + Mimi, then Chris and Michelle committed to a life together. It provided them with an abundance of memorable moments, two wonderful children and children of children.
    On the last full day Mimi and Boxer will be together until early August we celebrated our 40th…albeit three days early!!
    The early morning ritual of a walk continued in Zurich, our train does not leave for Geneva until midday, thus we can take a longer look at this cosmopolitan city with the aldstadt (Old Town) ranging to pre-medieval times.
    At breakfast we met a couple from New Jersey, after finding a common denominator (in pumping gas) Mimi found out that the gal was a school psychologist (and the husband retired) we went for the quinella with skiing. Unfortunately we didn’t get the answer, but they we’re headed to Zermatt, if Boxer were betting, they are skiers headed to do some hiking…
    The train ride to Geneva was filled with views of the Alps to the south, then Lake Geneva with the small towns and vineyards dotting the shores.
    The last stop on our three hour journey was the Geneva International Airport and a shuttle to our hotel.
    Fairly sure that 40 years ago we did not know that we would celebrate our ‘ruby’ anniversary in Geneva, Switzerland.    Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 26

    Bon Voyage mon ami…mon amour

    20 Temmuz 2023, İsviçre ⋅ ☁️ 79 °F

    It was with sadness Boxer bid adieu to Mimi they were going in different directions. Mimi flying west to PDX via London Heathrow and Boxer heading east by southeast to Castelrotto in the South Tyrol.
    That is just the beginning… Mimi will with the help of Nana and Opa (Alice and Joe) watch the ‘littles’ while their parents join me in the Dolomite’s.
    The area we will be hiking is near where the Winter Olympics will be held in 2026. But I progress, the plan was to take the train back to Zurich and early Friday complete the trip to Castelrotto. I did have an opportunity to explore Zurich in the late afternoon. Zurich, like Salzburg has an ‘aldstadt’ with contemporary shops dotting the walkway. After a light meal Boxer was ready to go to bed and dream about all the trekking trails in the Dolomites.    Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 27

    He who rests rusts...finding Castelrotto

    21 Temmuz 2023, İtalya ⋅ 🌧 64 °F

    The penultimate leg of ‘Walking in Europe’ began today in Zurich…if all goes to plan I will leave Switzerland travel through Austria and take a hard right into northern Italy.
    On the train between Zurich, Switzerland and Innsbruck, Austria a rather large number of tourists boarded. It was utter chaos as they tried to find their seats. I share this anecdote because the last gal to board looked rather confused and as fate would have it the last empty seat was next to me. I could tell she was just trying to find a spot as the train started to move. Shortly thereafter the ticket collector came by and said she was in the wrong coach that she would have to upgrade her ticket to stay... after a rather heated conversation she paid for the upgraded seat. I share this because the conversation was in German so I was unable to understand. After the collector left I reached on my bag and pulled out a piece of chocolate that Mimi had left with me to hand to the septuagenarian. We shared, she smiled and we chatted using ‘Goggle translate’, although she knew more English than I knew German. As Boxer is inclined to do finding common denominators…she skis and has children and grandchildren…and that her daughter turned 40 yesterday, “well you know we have that in common as our son had a birthday yesterday as well,” We shared pictures of our families and chatted about my travels, she went to her phone and began to type and when she was done she said, “my mother has a saying, he who rests rusts.”Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 28

    46°33’44”N 11°33’14” E - elevation 3310’

    22 Temmuz 2023, İtalya ⋅ ☀️ 55 °F

    45°18’15”N 121°45’24”W - elevation 3984’ Govy There is 8820 km (5480 miles) between Castelrotto (Kastelruth) and Government Camp. Note that the latitude is nearly identical, elevation is similar but finding other commonalities is difficult. More on that in later posts…more importantly when it comes to navigating around the area I am staying for the next couple of weeks is that all information is in both German and Italian. Although located in Italy we are very close to Austria and the German culture is prevalent…maybe. Once I realized that trail markers were in both languages it became easier to figure out where I am…more importantly where I want to go.
    Today I walked to Suisi to take the gondola to Alpe di Suisi where there are an abundance on trails to choose from. Earlier I said finding similarities between Castelrotto and Govy is hard…when hiking in this area you are on a high plateau, grassland with cliffs and trees below and the Dolomites rising above. No dormant volcano just a mountain range that forms
    part of the Southern Limestone Alps.
    The trail Boxer took had four huttes where he could have a coffee, glass of wine and even a light meal. Miles walk today more than nine…including a steep descent off the plateau through the trees back to Castelrotto and a pizza and beer.    Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 29

    In the dark of the night

    23 Temmuz 2023, İtalya ⋅ 🌩️ 70 °F

    They arrived in the middle of the night…330am to be precise. They settled into their room quickly and I did not see or hear from them until 930 am, they were up just in time to have the continental breakfast that the Hotel Garni Melissa serves every morning.
    Steph, Peter and Boxer walked to the town of Seis Alm Schlern (Suisi) to catch the gondola to the top of the Seiser Alm where the plan was to hike south to Rifigio Molignon.
    Two and half hours later they were enjoying lunch near the base of Sasso Plato (Platkkofel,) a 9700’ peak.
    After lunch Steph and Peter ditched Boxer to head for the pass between Plattkofel and Langkofel. Boxer headed north by northwest for the Steger trail, named for a couple of alpine skiing and mountain climbing legends. What a treat, spectacular views and a cute hut with a spring to fill his water.
    That is where the enjoyment ended as I planned to walk back to the hotel. Many miles, steep descents and poor tread later I arrived in Kastelruth (Castelrotto). More than 20 miles hiked.
    I was only thinking about the ‘even dozen’, a hot shower, a cold beer and 10 hours of sleep.
    P.S. the three of us enjoyed a nice meal at Saalstuben.
    P.S. #2 - after lunch Boxer needed visit the water closet, as he was heading into the women’s he was saved by an English speaking fellow from Toronto. We exchanged pleasantries and chatted about our time in Europe, he was very interested in the West Highland Way. A few hours later we ran into each other near the gondola and he introduced me to his wife. If the story ended there I would not share it…while at dinner I was sharing the experience of being extricated from the women’s water closet when behind us was the hero himself. He was quick to verify Boxer’s account.    Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 30

    Boxer doesn’t have a ghost writer

    24 Temmuz 2023, İtalya ⋅ 🌧 70 °F

    Needless to say…It has been a few post’s since Boxer’s photo appeared in a footprint. He does exist. With the arrival of Peter and Steph one can take to the bank that there will be more pictures.
    Today the weather forecast dictates our schedule. We took advantage of the unlimited bus pass for travel between the small towns along the Dolomites in the Alpi de Suisi/Seiser Alm region. We decided to east to St Ulrich (Ortisei) and to Selva. On the route we passed through the alpine skiing community of Val Gardena.
    As the weather looked to be improving we decided to take the gondola from Ortisei up to Piz a different high alpine meadow northeast of the one I hiked on Saturday. The plan was to trek north to the gondola at Alpi di Suisi, the same lift that we used yesterday. Today I was either going to take the gondola down or catch the bus…not interested in the 2+ hour descent. As the weather deteriorated the bus became the best option, even at 16 €. (Not part of free bus travel)
    The balance of the day was split between researching different routes, updating the blog and sharing a meal (prepared by Peter and Steph) at our hotel.    Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 31

    The skies spoke to me

    25 Temmuz 2023, İtalya ⋅ 🌧 59 °F

    The fourth day at the Garni Hotel Melissa began with a thunderstorm reminiscent of the ones I experienced in western North Carolina.
    With it came a cloudburst, I referred to my weather app and it suggested that the storm may last most of the day.
    My plan was to head southwest down the valley to Fie Allo Sciliar (an emphatic ‘hello Sciliar’) the town is underneath the Sciliar the emblem of the South Tyrol. Once there, I would hike up to a lake referred to as Laghetto Fie and beyond to what my map shows as a ‘wood cross fit’ feature.
    This intrigued Boxer…what he found was an outdoor gym constructed with materials available in the forested meadow (save some of the metal posts.)
    Boxer was fully prepared to find a group of people working out.
    Not so…maybe it was the remoteness, but this amazing outdoor gymnasium was designed for children to young adults.
    After lunching on a bench across the meadow I left for Laghetto Fie and walked back to Suisi to catch a bus back to Castelrotto.
    Steph and Peter met me at the garni just in time for the three of us to walk into Castelrotto for dinner at a restaurant known for its pizza. It was a good place to relax and reflect on our day in the Alpi di Suisi.
    It was a melancholy day for Boxer…on his walk to the forested gym he reflected on how much he missed his older brother Michael, who passed twelve weeks ago and his sister Ellen, a year and a half ago. The skies were shedding tears as well…    Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 32

    Boxer humbled

    26 Temmuz 2023, İtalya ⋅ ⛅ 64 °F

    Today the plan was to hike in the zone of the two prominent peaks Sasso Longo and Sasso Plato
    With that goal in mind we set out early to drive to Alpi di Suisi. Blue skies with a brisk breeze met it was chilly. From there
    Steph and Peter caught the first bus to Saltria, while Boxer dawdled (not an unusual verb to describe him.) He visited the WC and put on more layers. This dilly-dallying was ok as Boxer was not going’s to climb to the top of Sasso Plato. His plan was to trek to the hut at the trailhead leading up to Sasso Plato, a multi mile walk with a commensurate elevation gain. As with most of the popular treks in the Alpe di Suisi, one can take a gondola or chairlift to start the journey. Boxer calls it “lift assist”.
    I caught the next bus to Saltria the small town below Sasso Plato to start the hike. Two hours later I arrived at the alpine hut, tired but still had ‘gas in the tank’. I pushed on with the goal of reaching the junction of a trail that would lead back to Saltria. This is where my hubris got the best of me. Rather than taking the trail I continued on to a hut at Duron Pass, another four miles ahead…half way there I ‘bonked’, Even after stopping for a snack and tea I was wasted. It was decision time, turn back or push forward to the hut at the end of the path. Boxer arrived at Rifugio Alpe di Tires with one thing in mind…some nourishment…a beer and seltzer water. As fate would have it Steph and Peter arrived (totally unplanned,)
    After they took on a more sensible meal we all trekked back to the car, another 4 miles away.    Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
  • GezginWalking in Europe 2023
    Gün 33

    Tranquility with a dash of hubris

    27 Temmuz 2023, İtalya ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

    With twelve hours of sleep I was ready to explore another area of Alpe di Suisi. Today the plan was to use “lift assist” from Castelrotto to the start of a trail that would lead to Bullaccia, an alpine meadow with multiple huts to visit. I just had to choose which one I was going to lunch at.
    The chairlift reminded Boxer of those at Multorpor/SkiBowl… no high speed quad. The views were special, although Boxer worried about dropping his iPhone from lift while trying to get that perfect shot…
    The hike was the antithesis of yesterday’s climb. Forested most of the way with good tread and spectacular views to the west and the icon of the region the Sciliar. The carrot at the end of the walk was lunch at Baita Tschotsch Alm.
    Steph and Peter were exploring a different area of Alpe di Siusi, so Boxer was able to trek at a more familiar pace…
    After lunch I retraced my route back to the Marinzen hut and a chairlift ride back to Castelrotto, sit by the pool and even do some grocery shopping for tonight’s dinner. And mentally prepare for tomorrow’s game plan…    Okumaya devam et

    Çeviriyi gör
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