Notes From The Field- Solo Travel Through the Dolomites Alta Via 1

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A Day-To-Day Look At A Self-Guided Hiking Trip Through The Dolomites Alta Via 1

On July 7, one of our self-guided hikers embarked on an 11-day solo hike along the Dolomites Alta Via 1. We asked if she would give us a behind-the-scenes look at her day-to-day, and we’ve been following along as she traverses this breathtaking landscape. We’re excited to share some notes from the trail with you! We’ll be updating this blog as we get more reports, so save this link and follow along for the fun.

Eleven Days on the Alta Via 1: A Solo Hiker’s Journey Through the Dolomites

Day 0: Cortina d’Ampezzo — The Calm Before Climb

On day zero, our adventurer, whom we will call Bea after Beatrice Tomasson, who made the first recorded ascent of the south face of Marmolada in 1901, spent an evening in Cortina d’Ampezzo, a small Italian village about 2 hours north of Venice. She took the opportunity to have a quiet meal and savor some of the modern comforts she was about to forgo. A glass of wine and an Italian pizza couldn’t taste better after a day of travel through busy airports and long bus rides. With an early morning start ahead, it’s time to lay out the pack. Choosing what to bring on the trail and what to leave behind can be difficult, but hiking hut-to-hut means everything you need has to fit in your pack, and on your back. It can become sort of a ritual to lay things out just so, assess their value, discard the unnecessary. While Bea flew to Italy from the United States, and has already whittled things down, it’s still good to evaluate what to bring with you on the trail, and to make last-minute changes, be they additions (sunscreen) or subtractions (a second, third, or fourth book). By the time the sky is a dusky indigo with the coming night, Bea is fully packed, the alarm is set, boots are waiting by the door, and tomorrow the Alta Via 1 begins.

Day 1: Cortina to Rifugio Fodara Vedla

The first day on the trail is always an adjustment. Boots rub in unfamiliar places, packs take seemingly endless repositioning, and our bodies take a moment to find their rhythm. But spirits are high. Bea’s route took her up out of the Cortina and into the high country of the Fanes-Sennes-Braies Nature Park, which is one of the most heavily protected corners of the Dolomites. It has been a hub for alpine farming for centuries so needless to say, there were quite a few cows along the way!

The first day on trail always tells on you a little: legs not yet trail-hardened, pack not yet settled, but spirits high. The route winds through the high country of the Fanes-Sennes-Braies Nature Park, a landscape of wide alpine plateaus, grazing cows with their bells clanking a slow rhythm, and dramatic limestone peaks rising straight up from green pasture. Rifugio Fodara Vedla, where Bea will sleep that night, is tucked into its own little hollow just under 2,000 meters, and by the time she reached it she had earned the shower and hot plate of food waiting for her. Fodara Vedla has a reputation as being one of the most welcoming huts along the route, and after the first day of trail legs, it did not disappoint!

Day 2: Fodara Vedla — Rifugio Biella — Rifugio Sennes — Back to Fodara Vedla

Day two took a slightly different shape, featuring an out-and-back loop to Rifugio Biella and back again for another night at Fodara Vedla. At dinner the previous evening, Bea met a fellow solo traveler from Quebec; they shared a meal together and then decided to meet up and spend the day on the trail in one another’s company. Together they hiked across open plateaus dotted with wooden barns, these gentle grassy fields making the surrounding mountains feel incredibly grand. In every direction, limestone summits tower above. What a humbling experience! Stopping at Rifugio Sennes for lunch, they met a group of American hikers who were heading in the same direction as Bea. After a farewell to her first companion, she set off back to Fodara with newfound trail companions. When people return from FieldHouse Adventure trips, this is something we hear the most about. The solitude of self-guided and solo hiking treks is a gift, but so is the unexpected camaraderie you find along the way. Sitting down for a meal, sharing a laugh, and setting out in step with strangers bonds us together in refreshing ways. Being open to connection along the trail heightens your experience and sharpens our focus on what we should be grateful for. Tomorrow, Bea will hike to Capanna Alpina, which sits at 1,729 m in the Val di Fanes, right at the valley floor. Check back next week to see how she spent her day!

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