[VAL GARDENA, BOLZANO] — We were on a long gondola ride heading up a long valley of undulating hills outside of the beautiful town of Ortisei, no doubt perfect ski runs in the winter. But it was summer, off season, so everything was super lush and green, hardly anybody around.

The lift pauses at one skier drop-off then continues on, up up up and over a steep massive wall of granite, still shaded by the stark morning sun, darkening the interior of the gondola so much that you had to take off your sunglasses.  Suddenly, you pop over the ridge and you’re thrust into the bright summer sun. Stammering to get your bearings again.

We scrambled off, the hustling gondola nipping at our heels like a border collie. And that’s when it hit us.

This eerie Other World. A lush green carpet, the puffs of clouds dappling its folds with shafts of light moving across a great green and blue valley. Giant beasts of mountains thrusting to the sky. The only sound, cowbells clanging in the distance.

I frisked myself, making sure I wasn’t wearing a bright orange furry suit on a Teletubbies set. I looked around. Freakish. Unreal. After a rushed breakfast decision to come up here, little did we know we’d hit the jackpot.

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When you first hear about the Italian Dolomites and see the amazing pictures of the area, you want to do as I did and say “I want to go there.”  But trying to figure it out is kind of difficult because there isn’t just one mountain range, but more like a grid of mountain ranges, vast in area. But as you learn more you realize that it is really broken down to a range of valleys, each having its own mountains, its own geological characteristic. That’s why this whole area has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Val Gardena is one of those prized valleys. Val Gardena is almost like a “marketing region” comprised of a string of villages that pearl up the valley floor — Ortisei, Selva di Val Gardena and Santa Cristina — dramatic mountains looming over every shoulder like a crowded New York subway car.

This was my second visit here, this time dragging my best friends along. My first trip was baffling, trying to piece it all together. It’s confusing because this has been an area in flux for thousands of years. First prehistoric, then its own isolated region of Ladin-speaking people cut off from the rest of the world due to its intense geography — the Ladin people and language dating back to Roman times, isolated from the world, but still maintaining their own ancient identity. Then it became part of Austria. Then divvied up again after the brutal WWI, where the front lines cut right through here, the spoils going to a reconstituted Italy.

Because of that history, what makes the Dolomites difficult is that everything is in three different languages. German. Italian. Ladin. Often used interchangeably. So, for example, the sweet village of Ortisei is also referred to as Urtijëi in Ladin and St. Ulrich in German. So bear with me. Even the Dolomites are also referred to as South Tyrol or Südtirol and Alto Adige.   And then the Dolomites spread across multiple regions, so you could be in Bolzano, Trentino or Belluno. It’s enough to drive you crazy. But I’m here to help.

In winter, this whole region has 1,200 kilometers of ski slopes, 450 lifts, and 50 small towns. All interconnected. Much of it above tree line. One ski pass and you can ski all of the slopes and lifts, and ski from town to town.

But in summer, this area is perfect for what I call by Mountain Strolling. All this turns to the lush rolling green carpet of grass and farms that it started out as. The sound of cow bells clanging in every pasture and valley. Chairlifts can take you on top of the mountains, often above treeline, and looping trails connect everything together. You can even hike from town to town, with a fantastic bus system that can take you back to your village.

Each day you just head out and decide how far, how long and how hard you want to go. Family-run “huts” called rifugios — really, cabin-like restaurants — are all along the way.  Perfectly spaced out about half-hour or hour apart from each other, serving panini or polenta with porcini, with a spicy red Lagrein to wash it down and a doppio espresso to propel you to the next happy hütte. Proper bathrooms and toilet paper in each hut provide confidence and comfort along the way.

It’s all so Civilized.

Everywhere you turn in lush, green Val Gardena you see these looming massifs, brooding over the valleys on all sides, like a Vulture Convention ready for something to happen. You’ve never seen anything like it. Vast crumbling walls jutting to the sky, each grouping having its own personality. I’m in heaven here.

Hiking Down Sassolungo to Rifugio Vicenza

The Saslonch, Sassolungo or Langkofel is the highest mountain of the Langkofel Group in the Dolomites in South Tyrol, Italy. The name translates to “long peak” / “long rock” in all three languages.

This is a great hike. Actually a hike-down-to-lunch spot. You take a goofy two-man standup lift that you load-in like a Roman chariot to the top of Sassolungo (one of the most pokey-outest of the Dolomite formations). It towers over the entire valley.

Everyone hanging out on a mountain top, having a nice cold beer, some polenta and local mushrooms and a doppio macchiato to encourage the next three hours of hiking.

You take a goofy two-man standup lift that you load-in like a Roman chariot to the top of Sassalungo (one of the most pokey-outest of the Dolomite formations). Some of the down part gets a little hairy and a little crowded, but worth it for what comes next.

The gondola drops you off at the waaaay top, in the crux between those two peaks above. From there, it’s jaw-dropping view down the steep scree chute on the other side. The first bits are a little hairy, it’s like rock skiing, without skis.

After lunch and a rest, you’re on your way down to the base of Sassolungo, which sits like a big upside tooth in the middle of the valley. The trail circles the base, with views of the deceptively massive Sella Massif wall across the valley.

Two Hikes From The Top of Seceda

I mean, seriously. This place is ridiculous. So many amazing mountains. So many perfect hikes. Such a delightful way to get into the mountains. The Seceda hike is a four hour, two-beer, two-hut trek; my favorite so far. (Until the next one…)  You can make it longer if you want because you’re up on a giant plateau.

This is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most stupendous views of all the Dolomites.

Here’s how it works: The hike is in the national park called Puez-Odle started with driving to the next town of Ortisei, you got to the end of the town and look for the Ortisei-Furnas-Seceda gondola, taking a cable car to Seceda, up above steep rocky cliffs and dumping us in the bright sun on the other side. The car makes a stop, but keep on it until the end at the top of the ridge. You’ll know when you’re there.

A huge basin opens below, rolling green and lush, like the set of a Teletubbies episode, pocked with hay barns and cow sheds and criss-crossing trails.

From there, you can see forever — it’s a national park studded with huge bizarre rock formations as far as you can see. You can go off in any direction, trails funnel you down the valleys to the base, stopping for nourishment along the way. No need to pack your food, or even water, family-run huts are every 40 minutes our so, serving up good food, cold beer, hot espresso and toilets that rival a Hilton. (P.S. if you find a Canon point-and-shoot camera at one of the huts, DM me!).

These are just crazy looking mountains. Perfect for a leisurely Mountain Stroll. This hike was particularly easy, you take a gondola up to this high point, then leisurely wind your way down past all the moo cows dinging their clalook for signs that lead you to the left towards Malga Pieralongia and Rifugio Firenze. It’s a pretty flat trail that scoots across the base of the mountains

First, Sidetrack Up To The Ridgeline of Seceda

But before starting the descent, head UP the hill to the steep but short trail behind the gondola, the Seceda ridgeline, you’ll see the trail go right up to the lip of the mountain. From here you get the single best view of the Odles, if not the entire Dolomites. Weather is created here. There’s a trail that you can follow all along the ridge, then cut back down, following the signs to Pieralongia and Rifugio Firenze.

From Seceda to Troier Hütte

Troier Hut is a small little rifugio about a third of the way down from the top of Seceda and an easy short hike if your short on time. It´s directly down the mountain from the Seceda lift and you zigzag your way down. Great goulash and pasta and incredible views. Then, after you´re stuffed you can just walk 20 mins down to a shorter lift that´ll take you back up to the top of Seceda. Or you can continue down the mountain and take a lift down from there.

Seceda to Pieralongia to Rifugio Firenze

Now you can get back to the trail to head to Pieralongi. You can see on the map above, you scoot across the top of the plateau. Mountains to your left, the amazing view to your right. Your head will be swiveling. Look for signs that lead you to the left towards Malga Pieralongia and Rifugio Firenze. It’s a pretty flat trail that shoots across the base of the mountains.

And once you see the devil horns popping eerily from the green carpet, you know you’re on the right track.

Malga Pieralongia is the rifugio stop on the way. Fantastic little place with a grazing cattle, stubborn mules and cold beer. There are big picnic tables for a group, or to nuzzle up next to strangers. You get a beer, order your food from the main cabin and they bring it out to you. There’s even a playground for kids, here, on top of a mountain.

Then after a beer and rest, you head another 45 mins down to Rifugio Firenze. Time for another beer. First built in 1888, they have a much bigger deck and menu. From there, you can either walk down to town or cross the mountain and take a lift down to taxis or buses that wait at the bottom of the lift to take you back to your chalet.

This was is my favorite hike of the Dolomites, I’ve done it twice now. Not very difficult. Make sure you hang a left as you get off, we missed it, but there are incredible views of the backside of these mountains.

I can’t wait to go back.

Here’s more info on this hike, from the office Val Gardena website. The newly robust AllTrails post on Seceda — when I first came here, it was hard to find anything in English!

Definitely Stop at the Top of Passo Gardena

The zigzag road that goes up and over Passo Gardena can get a little crazy, with motorcycles right on your ass, busses coming at you from the other direction, people pulling off to take pictures or skidding into the parking lot of the restaurants at the top of the pass.

But all that is worth it once you get out and climb up ten minutes onto the trails above the pass. View for miles into Val Gardena, and into Colfosco and Corvara and Val Badia the other direction.

PRO TIP: Stop every time you go over Passo Gardena, the light and weather changes so often it looks like a different place each time.

Where to Eat in Val Gardena

There are a lot of great restaurants in the many towns of Ortisei, Santa Cristina and Selva. Be adventurous and venture into a different village each night, they’re each just minutes from each other. It’s Italy, so if anywhere was bad, they’d be out of business.

These are the two nicest ones we’ve found.

Restaurant Tubladel

Sotriffer Ristorante Rosticceria & Wine Bar

Sotriffer Ristorante & Wine Bar is so great. Right in the heart of Ortisei, we just stumbled in to see if that had a table. Loved everything. Sit in the back room where they open up the windows to the cool mountain air. Came back on our trip two years later.

Here’s the TripAdvisor review of Tubladel. Love this place:  https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g194841-d1636719-Reviews-Tubladel-Ortisei_Val_Gardena_Province_of_South_Tyrol_Trentino_Alto_Adige.html

Here’s the website for the awesome second restaurant in Ortesei.Ristorante Rosticceria Grill Room di Luis Sotriffer

More Travel Resources for Val Garden and the Dolomites

Here’s a post I did on three great hikes in Alta Badia, the next valley over. Here’s a post I did on the nearby town of San Cassiano in the nearby Alta Badia.

Here’s a very recent article 36 Hours in the Italians Dolomites in the NYTimes.  Here’s a great overview article of the Dolomites in Elle Decor.   And this is the most useful and up to date guide to Val Gardena, the official website of the valley.

And a pretty good article in Travel & Leisure.  And a great Summer in the Dolomites article in the UK’s Telegraph.  And here’s Fodor’s super guide to the Dolomites.  And a fabulous big spread in the New York Times Travel section on eating and hiking in the Dolomites.  And a perfect article on Walking Holidays in the Dolomites in the UK’s The Independent.

And Lonely Planet’s guide to the Dolomites. And this video of the Dolomites in 4K will just blow your brain out.