Italia - backpacker edition

Continued from the first and second post about my trip to Italy...
 
And now on to the post about my rugged manliness. Or lack thereof.

Where we stayed

After the wedding festivities were concluded, we drove a little further to an awesome little B&B called Chalet Pra Ronch which is located in Selva Val Gardena. This is where we set up base for the remainder of the trip so that we could do a little bit of hiking, and by 'little bit', I mean a hell lot.

Chalet Pra Ronch

I really loved this quaint little place because while not as spacious and luxurious as Rosa Alpina, it had everything we needed - a cozy room, a comfortable bed, a bathroom that was more than good (it's honestly better than my own bathroom at home) and most importantly, a YUMMY BREAKFAST!!

zzzzz

Seems like having a bidet is pretty common

They had these bears for sale!

Breakfast noms

I also really appreciated the warmth and hospitable nature of the people running the chalet - they were friendly and helpful about our hiking queries, and even offered to lend hiking boots and hiking sticks. 

Stuff we did

So I'm not terribly good at most sporty recreational activities - But it turns out I'm hella good at walking for a really long time. On our first hike starting at Passo Sella, we ended up walking for a good 8 hours. As I've said before, those Italian mountain people are crazy bad at estimated normal people walking speed so what was stated to be a 5 hour hike turned into 8 hours and I basically couldn't feel my legs after that but I felt super accomplished. 

Plus... The scenery was just breathtaking. 

 

For the most part, the trails in the mountains are all really well defined but it was sometime around that last photo where we kind of didn't know if we were still on the trail and it was a side of the mountain that didn't get much sunlight so there wasn't any vegetation and it was just rocks and gravel and it looked like some other planet. The photos can't do the place justice to be honest - the Dolomites needs to be experienced live. 

Bridge troll experiencing the wonders of nature

Where else in the world would you be able to find a giant penis throne in the middle of the mountains? Pretty sure no where else but then again, I have done zero research on such a topic so don't quote me on it.

Game of thrones x-rated edition

Stuff I stalked

Talking about walking really doesn't make for a very good blog post so here are some super cute animals that I saw on the trip. Some favourites include the llamas because apparently llamas aren't native to this area so someone actually brought 2 llamas to come live in the Dolomites. 

I also liked the badass goats that live near a restaurant hut, they jumped on the tables and ate flowers from the flower pot. 

Then there was this guy....

Seemingly dead

I was so concerned that we had come across a dead horse... But then thankfully after about a minute, he suddenly woke up. PHEW.

Seemingly alive. Or possibly a zombie-horse

Also, if you've never fed goats before, you have to do it. OMG they are so gentle and greedy and they make eating grass look really delicious. 

 

These technically don't count as animals but I found them too funny not to share...

I feel like I caught this guy doing something shady. 

Care for a ride?

Perhaps what I'll miss most about the Dolomites is the friend I had to leave behind...

Byebye buddy

I'd definitely recommend the Dolomites as a vacay destination for those interested in a more active vacation. While the trails aren't difficult to manage (lots of older folk are walking these trails), they do require some energy and a certain level of commitment. 

Thanks for reading!