The Dolomites and Via Ferrata 2007

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Monday, July 16

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On the 3rd of the 5 summits, we waited for Daryl to finish his archeological explorations. On the 5th summit, called the "Cima dell'osservatorio" (aka "observation summit"), there was a neat installation of hollow metal tubes, each one precisely pointed at a geographic feature somewhere nearby or on the horizon. We spent a bit of time peering to and fro. A neat idea.

courtesy PChen

Daryl Spelunking

Group self-portrait

Past old stoneworks

Daryl can't resist

Cima dell' Osservatorio

Checking the alignment

It was now late in the day, and we still had a relatively long trip back to our starting point. But, it was pointed out, our return route should be much faster, because it followed the easy grade of the strada del 52 gallerie. Or so we hoped. Heading down from Cima dell'osservatorio, we reached the very scenically situated Rifugio Papa, a mountain hut at the far end of the strada.

courtesy DBoyd

Rifugio Papa

Wall of the rifugio

A big junction

The rifugio was mostly deserted, except for the staff, and we wpent some time on the scenic and sunny outside deck, having large, good quality and cheap (2 Euro) glasses of beer. The late day had brought clearer and less hazy skies. The views and the setting were idyllic.

Drinks on the deck

Enjoying life on the deck

Enjoying a beer

Our walk back along the strada was both educational and relatively quick (relatively, because it was hard to get Pu to walk more than 10 feet without him stopping to take tons of pictures!). Each galleria (tunnel) of the strada del 52 gallerie had a plaque above it, with its name and length. There were interpretive signs every so often, explaining some aspect of the construction or operation of the tunnels (they were all built in less than a year, in part during the winter, in 1917).