Trip to Dolomiti
Youth Group Mountains:
When nothing goes according to plan
One beautiful day our youth group decides to make a summer trip to the mountains.
The arrangement is pretty punk, it's mostly done via WhatsApp. Finally we agree and come up with a route - the lot falls on the famous beautiful Alta Via I. There are 8 of us - the exact number that can fit in the preacher's giant car. A few of us are experienced mountaineers, but there are also some of us who have never walked in the mountains with a backpack. We more experienced ones know it's probabaly going to be an interesting experience. There are 2 girls - me and Sofi - and the rest are all guys. Erm. That's already a good indication of what our holiday was going to be like.
View from the top of Picco di Vallandro
The beginning of troubles
On the day of departure, the car is packed to the brim with people and bags. We're off. Our pastor - Peter - is behind the wheel of a big, light green van, which has already been through a lot, and is speeding down the highway. The car´s air is filled with jokes, laughter and Czech music. The atmosphere vibrates with excitement and adventure. Before Munich, the road becomes jammed with traffic. It doesn´t look good. Luckily, after a few kilometres of endless waiting, the cops direct all the drivers to the exit - there's been a really bad accident. We get off the highway and keep on going on the normal road. In the evening we stop in Regensburg and make a short detour. The boys are in dire need of a beer. They have to have it, German beer is something you don't pass up. We sit down in a crowded outdoor restaurant and order. I'm reluctant because alcohol has a giant effect on me - one drink and I'm in a coma. Literally. But I'm super curious about the beer and I know these guys are a safe space, so I relent. Wrong. After half a glass, my world is spinning. I'd like to slap myself. I'm just glad I can make it to the car.
We drive on and stop in the middle of the night in the woods. We're setting up our mats, sleeping bags, snoring like a dead man. At least I am after the damn beer.
After half a glass, my world is spinning. I'd like to slap myself. I'm just glad I can make it to the car.
We wake up to a beautiful morning. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the forest is buzzing with life. We pack up and head out. The trek starts in Villabasa, where we take a bus to Lago di Braies. From there, we walk. The first problem is finding parking. All the parking spots are limited to overnight parking. After a frantic search, we leave the car on the edge of the town by the apartment building and pray that we will find it there in a week. Our preacher doesn't lock it as a matter of principle, since it's a clunker and no one would steal it anyway. We hide the keys behind a wooden cross with Jesus by the side of the road, which of course is a joke that everyone is having fun with half the day.
We put on our backpacks and head for the bus. There we find out that you have to buy tickets online, which of course none of our punk male expedition leaders did. Scanning the QR code to buy tickets, we discover that the first available bus doesn't leave until after noon. So we decide to drive to the lake. We return to the car with our backpacks, throw them in the trunk again, grab the keys from behind Jesus, and take off. A few kilometers before the lake we are confronted with barriers, through which we are not allowed to pass without a valid ticket. So we go back to the ticket office to get our ticket. There we find out that it costs a fortune, and that it is much more worthwhile to take the bus. So we go back to Villabasa again and park at our old familiar spot. At the end, Jesus is really gonna hold the keys for us. We chill under a tree for about 2 hours and wait for the bus. We load our backpacks for the third time and this time we successfully board the crowded bus with valid tickets. The driver is very nervous - 3 times in the short journey he stops to shout at someone. On the one hand, I don't blame him if he has to deal with rude tourists getting in every day without tickets.
At the end, Jesus is really gonna hold the keys for us.
Finally we reach the lake. It's already afternoon and we have our biggest hike today. I wonder how we're gonna do. There are crowds of tourists at the lake, who have driven up here in the comfort of their cars for instagram pictures. I hate this sh*t. Crowds of people in nature. Inside of me, the emergency alarm automatically goes off - "Run!" I'm trying to breathe and pace myself. We walk around the lake to the other side where we hope will be fewer people. It's really hot and we'd like to take a dip. Our hopes come true and we do find a beautiful, abandoned spot. I finally have room to breathe and get a good look at the water. I stop in awe. Lago di Braies has absolutely perfect emerald-turquoise water - it's exactly the colour you imagine in fairy-tale glacial lakes. None of us can resist it. We strip down to our swimsuits and jump into the icy water. We barely last a few minutes, but it's worth the refreshment.
Lago di Braies has absolutely perfect emerald-turquoise water - it's exactly the colour you imagine in fairy-tale glacial lakes.
After swimming, we´re heading up. We have a whole afternoon climb to the top of the mountains, where we intend to spend the night. By the way, we have nothing but two tarps with us. I wasn´t sure about that at first, because in the high mountains even I have never slept under a tarp. But the boys are used to sleeping like that as they do a lot of scout hiking, and they looked absolutely convinced, so I didn't refute them.
We start climbing. The road is steep and rocky, it goes on forever and we are running out of breath. Few people stay far behind, which makes me quite worried and I begin to doubt whether we will walk at least part of our planned route. We didn't exactly choose the easiest trek to start with. That's when you leave it to the pastor mountaineer & sportsman. Not that I'm complaining. But not everyone is used to this kind of mountain trekking. When we reach the first hut after five hours, I give up all my hopes. It's clear to me that Alta Via is tabu. We'll have to change our plans. At the hut we find a shelter with mattresses, which serves as a free emergency shelter. But when we enter the shelter, we find it's already partially occupied. Inside, the young Italians who work in the mountain hut next door are stretched out. Obviously, they wanted some privacy. Peter and the boys start to negotiate and I step away from the action for a while. When I don't necessarily need to be part of the conflict, I strategically retreat to the sidelines. But there's another reason. As evening approaches and the sun goes down, the sky is filled with dramatic clouds, revealing breathtaking scenery full of soft light. And so I flee with my camera, and for a few long dozens of minutes, the world belongs to me.
We can tell from their bitter face expressions what they think of us. A bunch of noisy Czechs who kicked them out of the hut and ruined their night.
When I return from my beauty hunt, I see that the negotiation was successful. As trekkers, the lodge staff have to vacate the shelter for us and we can tell from their bitter face expressions what they think of us. A bunch of noisy Czechs who kicked them out of the hut and ruined their night. In the end, the shelter is all ours and it's the luxury living we never hoped for. Peter is a gentleman and needs to play a little, so he make a private bedroom for me and Sofi, using one of the tarps. It's awesome. There's also a table and benches outside the shelter, which becomes our dining room today. After a long time of unpacking, we all hungrily gather there. Peter triumphantly throws our dinner on the table - five kilos of goulash, which he has been heroically dragging with him all day. He's a little crazy. But the goulash stung like never before and we are getting ready for a sweet sleep.
As evening approaches and the sun goes down, the sky is filled with dramatic clouds, revealing breathtaking scenery full of soft light.
Trial by fire
In the morning we are greeted by a rainy drizzle. Alta Via is not happening, of course, in the composition of our group we have neither time nor strength for it. We climb out of our heated sleeping bags and cook up our breakfast - oatmeal that we left soaking overnight. We finish it off with chocolate and dried banana. When we've stuffed our bellies with the goodness, it's time to go. Slowly and reluctantly, we pack up and set off in the opposite direction from the magical Dolomite peaks that mock us in the distance, shrouded in a veil of rain. Even though I almost certainly knew beforehand that this was how it´s gonna turn out, my heart sinks in my chest. I cast one more disappointed glance into the distance, gather all my willpower from the ground, and follow the others on an unpleasant journey through the wet.