The Alpine crossing from Merano to Lake Molveno is part 2, so to speak, the continuation of the fascinating tour from Garmisch-Partenkirchen to Merano and is in no way inferior to this wonderful multi-day mountain hike! This time we start where everything ended last time and where we celebrated our destination with a glass of red wine - the Mediterranean, former trading town of Merano.
From here, we hike from hut to hut from South Tyrol via the Stelvio National Park through the wild and rugged Brenta Dolomites to the marvellous Lago di Molveno in Trentino. We will be able to collect many wonderful impressions and some stages will really challenge us, but those who have coped with the difficulties of the first part of the crossing of the Alps will not be overwhelmed on this tour either. Small, steep mountain paths alternate with normal hiking trails and the varied, impressive mountain scenery ensures that every single day will take up a permanent place in the memory of every participant that they will not want to miss for the rest of their lives.
As the extremely long descents familiar from the Garmisch Meran crossing of the Alps are spared on this wonderful tour, the overall demands of this tour are minimally lower than those of Garmisch-Meran. Nevertheless, due to stages 3 and 5 in particular, all participants must be absolutely sure-footed, have a head for heights and have some mountain hiking experience.
Procedure:
Day 1 (duration approx. 6 hours / ascent: 600 metres / descent 450 metres)
If you want to take it easy, you should travel to Merano the day before and stay overnight at the Hotel Praidlerhof in Dorf Tirol. From there you can walk to the meeting point.
We meet at the Hochmuth cable car in Tirolo, on the northern edge of Merano, and take the cable car up the first few metres in altitude. On the first day, we'll be walking along the Merano High Mountain Trail, stopping for a cosy break along the way and enjoying the view of the Vinschgau Valley. Our destination for the day is the Rifugio Nasereit.
Day 2 (duration approx. 6 hours / ascent: 550 metres / descent 780 metres)
Today we continue along the Merano High Mountain Trail. Without any strenuous steep ascents or descents, the path winds beautifully above the valley along waterfalls and over suspension bridges until we reach the Unterstell cable car, which takes us down to Naturns. From there, a short shuttle transfer takes us to the Stelvio National Park. A short hut ascent separates us from our after-work snack and the wonderful sun terrace at the Zufallhütte in the Martell valley.
Day 3 (duration approx. 6.5 hours / ascent: 900 metres / descent 700 metres)
A more strenuous stage awaits us today, which also marks the highest point of our crossing of the Alps - the Sallentjoch at 2981 metres above sea level. Surrounded by many 3000 metre peaks, we enjoy the view and descend to the Rifugio Dorigoni, where we will spend the night. This stage is technically the most difficult stage of the tour, so we can celebrate our success with a glass of wine with the friendly landlady at the Dorigoni hut.
Day 4 (duration approx. 6.0 hours / ascent: 450 metres / descent 1300 metres)
Today could not be more eventful. First, we use the wonderful descent from the Rifugio Dorigoni to warm up our muscles. The beautiful waterfalls along the way make the morning atmosphere perfect. Once we arrive at Malga Stablasolo, we take another shuttle to Madonna di Campiglio in the heart of the Brenta Dolomites. There we take the Groste Express up to the Rifugio Stoppani at an altitude of just under 2450 metres and after about 1.5-2 hours we can enjoy the wonderful onward journey to the breathtaking Tuckethütte, where we will spend the night today.
Day 5 (duration approx. 5 hours / ascent: 1050 metres / descent 820 metres)
Another impressive stage awaits us today in terms of alpine mountain scenery. Always surrounded by the steep mountain faces of the Brenta, we feel really small. A few tricky passages await us today that require our full attention, but we will also master these with flying colours. Passing the Brentei hut, we work our way forwards bit by bit, using one or two hand ropes and finally reach the Rifugio Tosa Pedrotti.
Day 6 (duration approx. 5 hours / ascent: 250 metres / descent 1400 metres)
Today is the last day of mountain hiking and we soak up all the impressions of the breathtaking Brenta once again. Mostly downhill, our route takes us past Monte Daino and the Rifugio Selvata. In between, we can see the destination of our journey again and again, the beautiful Lake Molveno. We finally hike to the Rifugio Pradel and then take the cable car directly to the village of Molveno. Now it's time to celebrate and finally take a dip in the lake!
Day 7 (duration approx. 2 hours)
A transfer takes us back to our starting point, back to Merano where our journey ends.
Information about the tour:
- Duration: 6 hiking days + 1 return day
- Meeting point: At 09:30 am at the car park of the Hochmuth cable car
- Minimum number of participants: 5 participants
- Included services
- Guided tour by a certified mountain guide
- We spend the night in good mountain huts
- 5 x overnight stays in a hut with half board in a dormitory or shared room
- 1 x overnight stay in a hotel with half board in a double or shared room
- 4x cable car rides
- 2x shuttle transfer
- 1x return transport to Merano
- Additional costs:
- Accommodation/catering: Costs for drinks and catering
- Additional costs resulting from a change to the planned itinerary
- Parking fees for your private car at the agreed meeting point, if applicable
- Tips, if applicable
- Requirements for participants:
- Fitness: Good fitness for daily stages of approx. 6-7 hours and up to approx. 1000 metres in ascent and up to 1500 metres in descent
- Technique: Sure-footedness, safe walking on moderately difficult mountain hiking trails (marked in red)
- Other: Participants should already have some experience of mountain hiking.
- Recommended equipment:
- Country: Italy
