By Bike

For a long time, they were known only as the I Monti Pallidi, the Pale Mountains.

Home of the Ladin people, squeezed by German and Italian speakers much like the great squeeze of the African and European tectonic plates that created these remarkable mountains.

Old coral reefs, compressed for more than 200 million years into magnesium modified limestone rich in fossils, uplifted, folded, contorted and polished by a blanket of ice 2km thick during the last ice age.

A 7 day hike across the Northern Dolomites, a wonderland of towering peaks and U-shaped valleys.

Our first day is through swirling cloud and drizzle. A tricky navigation through the via ferrata, an exposed section of rock with a healthy precipice to liven the senses. Iron stakes driven into the rock with loose and heavy steel cable to hang on to. Once above the via ferrata, steady rain and snow underfoot to Rifugio Puez.

 A welcome sight, Rifugio Puez just on dark.