Hiking

Wet, cold, and foggy winter day in the plains, I knew it would be splendid in the highlands. At the last minute and even a little late by my usual safety standards, I packed my backpack and dashed into the hills. To avoid being late or having to return in the dark, I didn’t even stop eating, munching on two bars as I walked, but it was worth it. Rio Petroso is a rather complex and articulated circular tour, with frequent environmental changes, configuring itself among the most arid of the entire Park territory; I wouldn’t do this route at the height of summer. ...

Yesterday was a beautiful, sunny, cold winter Sunday. I felt like going out and enjoying nature, so I took a solo hike in the Foreste Casentinesi National Park, about an hour’s drive from home. This one marks my very first technology-assisted hiking adventure. It may seem weird for someone who’s been hiking for so long, is a notorious geek and is a professional computer programmer to have never used technology before. A trail map and sometimes a compass were all I was used to, and deliberately. I wanted to avoid technology in this aspect of my life. I welcomed the orientation challenges and superbly looked down at the crowds of phone-smartwatch-compulsive hikers I met on the route. Alas, 2023 was the year I surrendered my motorcycling habits to intercom systems and GPS navigation, and that spoiled me. In a couple of situations yesterday, the app spared me some trouble by warning me of the wrong direction I was going. Nothing major. I would’ve realized the error and backtracked, but being these the shortest and coldest days of the year, I appreciated not risking getting caught by dusk. Also, I found that I can turn on voice-assisted navigation as I do on my motorcycle, and that’s nice (albeit surreal - walking alone in the wilderness, miles from anybody, with a voice coming out of nowhere and whispering when I should take turns on the trail): it avoids looking at the cellphone all the time so I can stay focused on the experience even more, I suspect, than before when the don’t-get-lost alarm bell was constantly ringing in the back of my head. ...

There’s regular hiking, and then there’s Antarctica hiking. Check out brr’s report of a Sunday’s hike from McMurdo’s base up to the tip of Castle Rock, with spectacular views of Mount Erebus and the surroundings. brr’s Antarticta blog is a recent addition to my RSS feed collection. It’s always interesting to follow people living and working in the most remote parts of the world.

Last year I hiked the Translagorai route while accompanying my nephew and his friend on their first hiking and wild camping experience. To go full circle, I soloed the Alta Via del Granito last weekend, which covers the parts of the Lagorai mountain range not included in the Translagorai. The AVG is supposed to be a three days effort, with overnights to be spent in managed huts (“Rifugio”), but I wanted to make it in two days while camping in the wilderness. On Day One, I experimented with recording some moments on my GoPro. ...

A couple of weeks ago I went hiking the Translagorai, an 80 km-long trail that traverses the whole Lagorai mountain range in the Alps. The route takes place in a mountain environment where the anthropic pressure is reduced, especially compared to the more famous nearby Dolomites destinations. There are very few managed huts, most of which do not offer overnight stays, and relatively few bivouacs (emergency huts, usually dislocated in the most isolated areas along the hike). These characteristics make the Translagorai very attractive to those looking for wild hikes to be travelled in complete self-sufficiency with tent, food, etc. There is rich evidence (remains of barracks, trenches) dating back to the First World War. Translagorai is a brutal, wild, restless, and beautiful route reserved for well-trained, experienced mountain hikers. ...

I recently had the unexpected opportunity of spending a few days in the Alps, climbing and hiking with my daughters. After a few years of hiatus, it felt great to be back romping.