Here is the continuation of our roadtrip in the dolomites... The landscapes are breathtaking and in this 2nd part, we will not be disappointed... lakes, mountains, high plateaus, sharp peaks, meadows... We let you appreciate in pictures...

To discover the beginning of our route, I let you read the “Dolomiti • Salve Alto Adige Partie 1” which started in Verona, then Nova Levante, Cortina d'Ampezzo & San Candido. We continue here from Val di Funes, Alpe di Siusi & to finish in Resia near the Austrian and Swiss border.

-> VAL DI FUNES [ 2 NightS ]

LAGO DI BRAIES

With our breakfast to go... Here we go in the direction of the FAMEUX lago di Braies... So famous that we decided to get up early to be there before the crowd... Our basic idea: to have a breakfast & a Wild Coffee with our Italian Mocha on a bench contemplating the lake... BUT... Arrived on the parking of the lake of Braies, the temperature dropped and according to the Mini Cooper it is 0°... So it will be breakfast in the car before adding some layers.

We advise you to arrive before the opening of the boat rentals (rather random time, when we were there it was 9 am) in order to be able to see the boats parked & motionless on the lake and maybe have the chance to see the mirror of the mountains reflected in the lake... We spent hours there... On a high bench, I prepared our Wild Coffee to warm us up while Marc scanned the landscape waiting for the right light... I strongly advise you to go and explore his pictures in the portfolio to discover his pictures. Then we succumbed, because yes we are tourists, to the famous boat ride on the lake ... The navigation was not very easy... but the landscape took another dimension.

PLAN DE CORONES

After this beautiful morning in the cold, we went to the Plan de Corones. A mountain, or rather a big hill, which is not part of the Dolomites but which shelters a big ski area and 2 museums that we wanted to see mainly for their architecture: Messner Mountain Museum & Lumen Museum. The first one is dedicated to the mountain and the Dolomites, I don't necessarily advise to pay the entrance fee, but rather to admire the architecture from the outside. As for the Lumen, it is a museum dedicated to the image and the photography... a beautiful museum high up!

CHIESETTA SAN GIOVANNI IN RANUI

The hour turns and we still have a long way to go to reach the Val di Funes... From Plan Corones we head for the Val Badia and then take the Passo delle Erbe with its beautiful landscape but the road is so narrow that it is difficult to enjoy it while staying focused on the road... Once we reach the top, we can finally stop and contemplate the Val Eores and the Odle Eores less known than the Odle of the Val di Funes... But we do not linger too much because the luminosity drops too quickly in this month of September and we want to arrive before the sunset. The road that we take brings us by the top in the Val di Funes, the bright green of its meadows jumps to our eyes... it is magnificent... we continue our way towards the small church of San Giovanni in Ranui...

We are not the only ones, but the atmosphere is really nice because all are there with their tripod to capture the last lights on the small church. It must be said that to stop the influx of tourists as well as abuses ... the church is well protected ... a high wooden barrier prohibits approaching it, the entrance is paid and the flight of drones is prohibited. The photographers have however access to a dedicated platform in front of the church... not so bad, because there are no tourists on the pictures!

PARCO NATURALE PUEZ-ODLE

Today we're going to discover the Odle... that mountain range we saw last night behind the church of San Giovanni in Ranui. We take the car and in a few minutes we reach the Zannes parking lot, our terminus... then we join a walk that, through the forest, leads us to the Adolf-Munkel-Weg path literally at the feet of the Odle... impressive & beautiful.

We join then a meadow of altitude which offers us a landscape on Odle even more fabulous... small more, a stop at the Malag Casgnago/Gschnagenhardt Alm or a lunch with local colors. We spend the afternoon on this high plateau basking in the sun while waiting for the light to turn and illuminate the mountain range to the maximum.

For these 2 nights in the Val di Funes, we stayed at the Hotel Tyrol, the room was clean with a view on the Odle, but for my taste it was cruelly lacking in charm. However, the undeniable advantage is its location, very close to the church and the Odle.

-> CASTELROTTO [ 3 NighTS ]

SECEDA

The weather is spoiling.... we can't really complain because until now the blue sky hadn't left us. We decide to maintain the program: we leave the Val di Funes to join the Val Gardena. We stop in Ortisei to take the double cable car to join the Seceda to 2519m of altitude... the weather is capricious, we juggle between sun, clouds, fog and wind... but the sight is just splendid... this wave of mountains which is in fact the Odle (besides on this photo we guess on the left below the high plateau where we had spent the afternoon the previous day).

After having braved the cold and the wind... it's time to eat at the Baita Troier Hütte, here also the typical dishes are honored and the service is family and so nice. After our meal, we would have liked to go further but the time is passing and the weather is getting worse... we will come back for sure... because the landscape is just great!

After this wonderful day... let's go to our accommodation for 3 nights : Hotel Sonus Alpis, at the foot of the Alpe di Siusi not far from the pretty village of Castelrotto. This accommodation has everything to please: spa, infinity pool, incredible view, very nice welcome... But, yes there is a but... Our 2nd regret in the organization of this roadtrip, we should have rather planned an accommodation directly on the Alpe di Siusi. But why? Indeed the Alpe di Siusi is restricted to cars. Vehicles can only go up before 9am or after 5pm in Compatsch, the entrance village of the Altipiano, after this time, you can only access by cable car or bus. This restriction is desirable to limit the traffic on the altipano... and to allow to enjoy this magnificent nature. But we, who like freedom and the evening light... the constraint of the schedules did not suit us so much. By staying directly on the Alpe di Siusi, you get a permit to move freely on the altipiano, and everything is reachable by bike... We discovered a hotel when we were walking around that would really be worth breaking the bank: Adler Lodge Alpe ! Just Whouaaaa...

CHIESETTA SAN VALENTINO

Today... it rains, it rains, it rains... We decide to try "the adventure" not far from our hotel towards the Chiesetta di San Valentino... With this weather, we are quickly soaked even with our umbrellas because to reach the small church we have to pass through the fields... The Sciliar massif plays hide and seek with the incessant dance of the clouds... A mystical & wet morning!

We continue our day with the discovery of the small village of Castelrotto with its small streets, a small stop to warm up at the Caffè Stern, tea room filled with Tyrolean desserts 😋...

ALPE DI SIUSI

The sun seems to be back... We will finally discover the Alpe di Siusi... As mentioned above we have to reach Compatsch before 9am. Arrived at 8am at the top, we are surprised by the number of tourists already on the way... Considering the still low luminosity we decide to do first the tour of the Bulacia which allows us to have a view on the whole Alpe di Siusi, the Sassopiatto & the Sassolungo... We take advantage to have a coffee when we cross a Malga... The walk is simple and very pleasant because we decided to go up in a cabin and to make the tour and the descent to Compatsch on foot... we were alone during the whole tour, then towards the end of the descent, we met so many people... it was a bit too much the tourist highway... Conclusion you have to come early!

Considering the number of tourists, we decide to take the bus and to go a little bit further on the plateau... We wanted to find the typical landscape that we see everywhere with its fields with hills... But first we reached the Malga Contrin to enjoy one last time a typical Tyrolean dish in the middle of the nature... it's from there that we found these famous little hills dotted with mini-cottages... with a view of the Sassopiatto and Sassolungo... we let you discover in pictures... we spent hours and hours there, waiting for the evening light... the tourists were getting rarer and rarer... we had the impression to be alone... it was magic! We understood afterwards why... we had missed the last bus to go back to Compatsch... we had to walk... it's not a big deal, because it was a beautiful day.

-> RESIA [ 1 NighT ]

BOLZANO

We leave with a lot of regret the mountains of the Dolomites... for this last day in Italy, we make a stop in Bolzano to make our last purchases of Speck... but it is with surprise that we discover a city animated by its daily market, its pedestrian lanes and its colored buildings... We stroll around without a camera, to enjoy this last moment alone & of these magnificent vacations...

LAGO DI RESIA

t is with a twinge of sadness that we arrive at our last stop at the Italian, Swiss & Austrian border, before going back home... Unfortunately the weather is really awful... Strong wind, rain & snow... Very changeable compared to our morning in Bolzano... But it reflects a bit our sad mood to have to go back already... For this last stop we stayed at the Hotel Eden (nothing special but clean and practical). This last stop offers us however a last magnificent landscape with this bell tower drowned in the Lago di Resia... there is no word it is mystical!

• un piatto di canederli e un pò di speck, per favore ? •

FIND ALL OUR ARTICLES ON ROADTRIPS IN THE DOLOMITES

Here are the maps we used, because the Lonely Planet Dolomiti (only in Italian) is really not detailed enough. The Tabacco maps are very accurate and useful for off-the-beaten-track walks. They are easily available in Bolzano or on Amazon.