Brenta Dolomites: away from the mad crowd

Brenta Dolomites: away from the mad crowd

Brenta Dolomites: away from the mad crowd – it’s possible! This year, mountains have been stormed. Perhaps it’s the desire for pure air, the necessity to stay within Italy, the desire for freedom. We’ve seen pictures of “via ferratas” with longer queues than in supermarkets.

In a wonderful corner of the Alps, we started filming COMPLExion with Nina Davuluri https://www.ninadavuluri.com/ and in our article https://liabeltrami.it/2020/08/24/il-colore-della-pelle-e-il-mio-fototipo-3/

Brenta Dolomites: away from the mad crowd. Where to find some shelter?

Madonna di Campiglio hides precious treasures, one has to know how to look for them. There are forests, meadows and mountain pastures that can be reached with simple walks and are kept quite free. The walk to the Malghette lake, about an hour from Campo Carlo Magno, leads to one of the most beautiful places to take exciting photos, with the lake and the Brenta mountains in the background. It is a walk within everyone’s reach. At the Malghette hut you are well-received, and the typical alpine style is maintained. Many years ago, the legendary Fritz Rupert was here: he had created one of the first “superstar” restaurants at high altitude. They ate the first blueberry risottos. In the evening you could arrive by torchlight. His wife Pia is remembered in the beautiful wooden chapel, which Fritz had made next to the refuge.

The Brenta Valley

For those who feel like trying a more demanding climb, Val Brenta will fill you with satisfaction. For me, it is one of the most enchanting places in the whole Brenta. You start from Sant’Antonio di Mavignola and climb for several hours towards the Brentei refuge. The first part is in the woods, among streams and “boioni” of water, strawberries and mosses. Here the Tourism Board https://www.campigliodolomiti.it/ organizes barefoot walks and wellness trails.

If you want to go on, you have to overcome a steep jump, with a bit of commitment and caution. Then, as often in life, after great difficulties, you’ll arrive in paradise. The path comes out in a flat little valley that seems to have been invented for fairies. There are no words to describe its beauty.

After a few minutes’ walk there are a couple of wooden huts, plenty of fresh water, lawns, all crowned by the Crozon di Brenta, one of the most majestic peaks of the chain. Bring your sandwiches, because there are no resting places, and take your rubbish home in your backpack.

Going ahead or stopping to contemplate?

If you wish, another hour’s walk will lead you to the Brentei refuge. The climb is demanding and sometimes exposed, but simply breathtaking. You must be well-equipped and be super careful not to slip.

I do not always like to have a destination, and in this case I prefer to stop in the plain in some corner on the sidelines to contemplate the wonder of creation. The Crozon is always there, a sentinel in the park, an intriguing wall, an idea of solidity. Almost 30 years ago, two dear friends of mine (Andrea Zanetti and Michele Cestari) climbed a winter route. Surprised by the bad weather during the descent, they stopped in a snow hole for 3 days. They didn’t have telephones or radios, and in the meantime the mothers called me begging me to bring their children home (I lived in Madonna di Campiglio). I went out every day with the sealskins, accompanying Fabio Stedile, to look for them. As soon as the storm ended, Simonetti’s helicopter managed to find them and bring them home. “Bon putei, ghe l’avem fata” (Well, guys, we did it – back home or on the way?).

Yosemite is a bit like this…

I was brought back to the Brenta Valley when I went to Yosemite, https://www.yosemite.com/, in California, but without the thousands of tourists queuing to take a picture! Even in Yosemite, however, you’ll just have to move away from the classic itineraries to find a surreal quiet and calm. This is the mountain: with little you can find paradise, you just need to look for it.