P.step by step, take a deep breath, listen to your heartbeat and adjust your pace. In the mountains, you know, it is important align your physical abilities well with the orography of the territory, to tackle climbs and descents without worries along the countless pedestrian-cycling routes that outline the emotional canvases of the mountain areas. And this is the optimal season for walking, cycling, but also to fill up on scenic beauty, where nose and eyes are the faithful allies of the legs for a sensory immersion in the scents-colors of spontaneous spring blooms and postcard-effect panoramas.
Trekking and biking in Trentino
In Trentino it is easy to play, this region holds an “accounting register” that will make your head spin, with 1,165 paths for a total of 5,843 kilometers and 297 lakes of which 257 of glacial originjust to name a few. An area that condenses and encompasses these multiple aspects is the Primiero Valley in the easternmost part. A valley that is also an example of Trentino resilience. Yes, because this area was touched at the end of October 2018 by the terrible storm Vaia who made a massacre of spruce trees (14 million trees damaged in Trentino, Veneto, Lombardy, Friuli), throwing them to the ground like giant sticks of Shanghai. Since that disaster natural with the removal of fallen trees in former wooded areas new paths and cycle paths will open.
By bicycle at the foot of the Pale di San Martino. San Martino di Castrozza – Passo Rolle. Trentino Sviluppo SpA Photo Library
The majestic complex of the Pale di San Martino, the largest mountain group in the Dolomites incorporated in the Paneveggio-Pale di San Martino Natural Park. The Pale are the stars of the area, superb mountains that strut with vertical walls, sharp spiers, peaks that reach three thousand meters above sea level, which reveal a haughty character but that blush like teenagers at sunset (and dawn) when the sun it lights them up with all shades of pink and red thanks to the enrosadira phenomenon, generated by the composition of the dolomite rock.
Barefoot in the park
The first stop is San Martino di Castrozza, the most important urban center at an altitude of 1,450 meters in the Paneveggio-Pale Natural Park of San Martino. From the lively locality, there is no shortage of opportunities to practice outdoor activities, even alternative ones. Examples are i three trails – 3.2, 4, 6.3 kilometers – dedicated to the Barefoot Trailthat is, the practice of walking barefoot in silence (sanmartino.com/IT/barefoot). It seems impossible in the mountains, yet, this is a way to connect with nature more and more loved, so much so that the Barefoot Academy – The Silence of the Passesthe, first school in Italy for barefoot walking founded by the Trentino writer Andrea Bianchi, with over 40 thousand followers on Facebook.
San Martino di Castrozza – Val Venegia. Trentino Sviluppo SpA Photo Library
Always from San Martino taking the Panzer path, near the Tognola refuge at 2,200 meters above sea level – also reachable by cable car – a short walk leads to the Balcony on the Dolomites, a panoramic point with didactic panels on the geomorphology of the surrounding mountains. From here the view sweeps over the inevitable Pale di San Martino, but also on the peaks of Alpe Tognola, the Lagorai chain and Marmolada. The most trained try their hand at Palaronda Trek: it lasts three days and you sleep in the shelters. Departure and arrival from San Martino di Castrozza, a high altitude trek immersed in a beauty to be conquered: the last section involves seven hours of walking and an uphill climb of 1,100 meters.
Birds and streams in concert
Moving around further north towards the Passo Rolle area (1,984 meters) characterized by the profile of Cimon della Pala (3,186 meters), it is a pleasure to walk in the Val Venegia collection, whose silence is broken by the lowing and bells of grazing cows, by the water that hops on the stones in the streams, by the singing of birds. From these parts the Tour of the Malghe unfolds, circular itinerary of medium difficulty, with four different routes. These tracks, in addition to the suggestion of the views, combine the pleasure of the palate: at the Juribello, Venegiota, Venegia huts (open from June to September) you can regain your energy by tasting the specialties of the area. The Segantini hut at an altitude of 2,200 meters is also a must, a stop for hikers hungry for fairytale scenery and good food.
Moving in the direction south towards Fiera di Primiero, nature is “versatile” near the village of Transacqua. Here, i Navoi Wellness Gardens – Belvedere Enrica Gardens, a wellness park crossed by Kneipp, Aqua erapy and Health paths with gymnastic equipment and a platform for practicing yoga. A perfect oasis also to rest while admiring the panorama of the Pale. They are also worth a stop the ancient villages of Transacqua, Tonadico, Sirór or Mezzano, also known for the stacks of wood: some have become art installations.
The little one is also worth seeing P-Quì Museum in the Palazzo delle Miniere in Fiera di Primiero. Inaugurated in July 2020, it tells the story of Primiero in 14 rooms with settings made with the wood of the trees broken by the hurricane Vaia that “smoothed” the nearby Val Canali. Although wounded, this valley deserves to be rediscovered to admire the ruins of Castel Pietra and visit Villa Welsperga former noble residence (today the administrative headquarters of the Park) from which the easy Muse Fedaie thematic path begins, which can be traveled on foot and by bicycle: a flat ring that winds near the Welsperg lake, which mirrors the vain Pale di San Martino. An enchantment.
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