“Dtwo or three times that night there was also true silence, the solemn silence of the ancient woods, comparable to no other in the world, and which very few men have heard…”. Hearing it is Sebastiano Procolo, extraordinary literary character of The secret of the Bosco Vecchio by Dino Buzzati. This suggestion, the silence, is experienced one step after another, muffled by the snow, in the Somadida Forest, Oriented Nature Reserve of 1,676 hectareson the Val’Ansiei road that leads from Auronzo di Cadore (Belluno). in Misurina.
By holding your breath as it condenses in the cold air, you can hear subtle sounds: the dry sound of breaking branches, the fluttering of the wings of a capercaillie, the breath of Vento Matteo (Buzzati’s creation), the song of the Ansiei stream. In these places, Ermanno Olmi accomplished the feat of transposing the magic of Buzzati’s pages into images in 1993, with the complicity of an unprecedented and talented Paolo Villaggio.
In the realm of fairy tales
The walk in the woods is flatto be done with snowshoes, but it is not a simple excursion in the mountains. A small wooden museum tells the story of the beauty of the surrounding nature and a Forest Library contains books that tell the legend of Tanna “Reìna de lis crodères”, a fantastic creature with a heart of stone who buries the pain of the loss of her son under avalanches.
The Somadida Forest in its heart preserves the secret garden of Tanna, the ancient forest of Col Nero 240 years old, one of the very rare primary forests (never anthropized) in Italy, with ancient stone pines and larches. Her discovery is thanks to a woman, Paola Favero, forester, mountaineer and writer awarded the International Award “A mimosa for the environment”.
Already in the 15th century, Somadida was the most beautiful fir and beech forest in Cadore and as such it was donated to the Republic of Venice so that it could make the masts for its ships. From here the colossal trunks began a journey towards the Arsenal of Venice on the current of the Piave, a female river, guided with strength and skill by the “raftsmen” up to Belluno and from there down into the lagoon. To remember these men of the river (and the only woman, “the Red”, as robust as she is fearless) are a series of murals in Belluno. The “Fameia dei Zàter e Menadàs del Piave” Association (zater.it) in the woods he built a “raso”, a 38 meter long raft, with the trees victimized by the fury of hurricane Vaia.
Lake Misurina in winter.
On horseback in the woods
The road that climbs along the Ansiei stream leads into a wild environment, the same that is found further up the long high altitude mountaineering itinerary in the presence of the Marmarole, the Chain of Solitude, one of the least frequented and most beautiful mountain groups in Cadore. The inhabited area of Auronzo preserves the ancient tabià (barns) in front of Monte Agudo, a 20 kilometer ski area. Just get out of it for nature and man’s stories to intertwine, in the silences of an enchanted kingdom of snow and ice. It is not uncommon, among the branches crystallized like white embroidery, to hear the snorting of the horses’ nostrils and the thud of their hooves sinking into the snow as they advance slowly with their riders. It is clear how the man-horse symbiosis gives mutual pleasure and going into the woods inspires ancestral emotions even in beginners in equestrian tourism (Asd Cabana Reane, tel. 3384712648).
Two steps on the frozen lake
At the bottom of the Val’Ansiei with a few hairpin bends you can reach it Measuring cup. In winter, the emerald lake is covered in snow, and the ice is so thick that you can walk on it, thus entering its fairy-tale world frozen in time. Legend has it that the lake was born from the tears of King Sorapis, transformed into a mountain by the fairy of his daughter Misurina. In fact, Sorapis had agreed to become a mountain in order to give the little girl the fairy’s magic mirror. Misurina, however, did not enjoy the mirror: she fell from her father who had become rock and crevasses, giving him this last pain.
A glimpse of the Somadida Forest.
Those sled rides
In the Dolomites, if Cortina is “the Queen”, Misurina is “the Pearl”, surrounded by some of the most famous mountains of the Alps, the Cristallo, the Sorapis, the Cadini and the Tre Cime di Lavaredo. Of a languid and slow beauty, Misurina is very different from the glam resorts, even if you can put on downhill skis on the slopes of Col de Varda: sometimes, on weekdays, you find yourself almost alone and having fun like children on a carousel. Another magnificent “carousel ride” is done, when the ice conditions allow it, by skating on the Lake Antorno, the delightful younger son of Misurinawhere you twirl surrounded by a forest of fir and pine trees. Cross-country and mountaineering skis also reign supreme here, forcing you to climb uphill before offering the thrill of the descent on untouched snow.. It’s quite mild that takes a couple of hours to Auronzo refuge, at the foot of the Tre Cime di Lavaredo, one of the most spectacular places in the entire Alpine range, among grandiose plateaus, snow-capped forks and sharp peaks. An excellent snowmobile service takes you to the refuge, and then descends with a fun sled ride (trecimeservice.com).
The Città di Carpi refuge, at 2100 metres, among the Cadini di Misurina.
Snack at altitude
«As a child I looked at the Tre Cime enthralled and some mountaineers jokingly told me that you could see Venice from Cima Grande. So at the age of 12 I ran away and, risking my life, I climbed to the top to look.” Gianni Pais Becher tells the story that, obviously, he didn’t see Venice that time, but he was so enchanted by these mountains that he traveled them as a mountain guide for his entire life. Today, in Misurina, Gianni dispenses mountain advice and equipment in a well-stocked shop. A good pair of snowshoes is useful for climbing to the Città di Carpi refuge (refugecittadicarpi.it), open in winter on weekends. To get yourself a soup, a plate of dumplings and a view of the Cadini with little effort (a couple of hours), take the Col de Varda chairlift and then path 120A. Those who are more fit instead go up path 120D in the woods from Federavecchia to Malga Maraia (malghemaraiapopena.it)for a beautiful view of the Marmarole and the robust flavors of gnocchi, polenta, cheeses and sausages.
Always with snowshoes or a snowmobile you reach the top of the Monte Piana, a plateau surrounded by an extraordinary ring of mountains. The snow cloaks in beauty a place of memories which in summer, when the thaw, emerge everywhere: barbed wire, tunnels and trenches, the scene of one of the bloodiest fronts of the Great War. In this Alpine paradise more than 14 thousand soldiers lost their lives and to remember them the Angelo Bos refugeit houses a small museum with photographs and letters that the soldiers exchanged, a moving testimony of how one manages to maintain one’s humanity in terrible conditions. Much further down, in the main street of Auronzo, the wooden statue of Procolo/Villaggio sculpted for Olmi’s film watches over everything and everyone. Those who frequent these places consider him a protective Lare, an expression of a Buzzati ecologist ante litteram: the man/Proculus bent to the worm of profit, the Geniuses of the trees in defense of the Bosco Vecchio, the wind Matteo like Vaia who sweeps the earth due of human negligence. Having a pantheistic vision is easy around here.
Where to sleep in Misurina
Hotel Chalets Lake Antorno
Locality Lago Antorno 1, Misurina. Overlooking the lake at the start of the road to the Tre Cime di Lavaredo, small, welcoming and recently renovated with elegant suites. Double room from 120 euros. lagoantorno.it
Hotel Lavaredo
Via Monte Piana 11, Misurina. In front of Lake Misurina, with a spa only for hotel guests, for relaxing in the heat after a day on the snow. Double room with half board from 140 euros. lavaredohotel.it
Where to eat
Quinz, The Locanda al Lago
Via Guide Alpine 2, Misurina. Restaurant with excellent traditional dishes and rooms with romantic views of the lake. quinz.net
Court’s Ranch
Via Valle Ansiei 33, Auronzo di Cadore. Between Auronzo and Misurina, a farmhouse with organic vegetable garden, dairy farm, Scottish cattle breeding farm. Casunziei with meadow herbs, chicken, duck and house suckling pig with polenta. cortesranch.com
Ribotta Art Bar
Via Pause 7, Auronzo. At the start of the Auronzo slopes, for a platter of cheeses and cured meats, an après ski aperitif or a dinner with mountain flavours.
What to buy
Despar
Via Montepiana 21, Misurina. At the delicatessen counter you can find local mountain, cow and goat cheeses, refined with mountain herbs, berries and flowers.
Info
Tre Cime Dolomiti Tourist Consortium. auronzomisurina.it
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