Dolomites, Italy. Hiking the Alta Via 1, Part One. Fodara Vedla-Lagazuoi-Scoiatolli-Croda da Lago

Come join me, my good friend Natalie, and new friend Tim as we hike 70 miles through the beautiful Italian Alps.
This is Part One of a 9 day journey.
At the end of Part Two, I talk about a few tips and things that Ive learned about trekking the Dolomites that could help you with your journey. So be sure to catch Part Two!
• Dolomites, Italy. Hiki...
Also, if you caught that bit about me opening up an etsy shop, I finally did and if youre interested in checking it out, heres the link:
www.etsy.com/s...
or you can search for "BackcountryProvision" store in the search bar.
As always thanks for all the support!

[@gerardflower5441]

I have watched all your videos, I have enjoyed them all. The level of professionalism keeps getting better and better (your totally in the zone! - and have been for a while!). I love the adventure and sprit of your episodes. Cheers and keep on doing what you do ! - oh and looking forward to your retail site (wherever it is 😊)

[@BackcountryWahine]

oh wow THANK YOU. That is so so nice to hear. Thank you for the awesome comment, and yes currently working on a few things for an etsy shop 😅 Hopefully coming next month or so. Thanks for all the support!

[@paulkim1384]

Hi, just became your fan and enjoyed watching your adventure in dolomiti. 😊 It's a wonderful place and I feel thankful that I live near by now. Happy trails and keep on smiling!😊 From Corea/Italy, pk

[@lovethemack]

had this going 4 times while i cooked and ate dinner, cleaned 8 lbs of chanterelles and one beachball sized cauliflower mushroom, processed and vacume sealed yesterdays pile of coho salmon, did the dishes drank a beer and had a bowl of count chocula lol. I really like the B W esthetic, that tea party at the waterfall video fr example was perfect. This trip, crafted content and your engaging personality make this such a pleasure to watch~! super cool

[@BackcountryWahine]

Wow! Thank you so much! What a compliment! and that sounds AMAZING! Hoping to get to the PNW soon because I know those mushrooms are poppin off right now! and the salmon 🤤sounds like a dream! lol @ count chocula...we actually have a count chocula candle burning rn! haha and going to pick up some halloween crunch today!😂(my husband loves halloween.)

[@Virago_XV]

Great video! I love the idea of hiking from one refugio to another. Excited for part #2!

[@BackcountryWahine]

Thanks Greg!

[@billblazek3062]

Excellent!!! Very helpful! Thanks for all the work that went into it!!!

[@BackcountryWahine]

Oh good Im glad! I tried to include tips on things that werent very clear for me when I was researching. Hope you make it out there!

[@upndown-traveling]

So, so beautiful👍👍👍 we love that your sharing your experience ! The mountains looked beautiful, best regards Up'n'Down-Traveling

[@BackcountryWahine]

Thank you so much for watching!

[@giofranz2]

Good video, you stopped in the top huts of AV1, good choice best food, top level de luxe! These kind of trips are a mistic experience ❤

[@BackcountryWahine]

Thank you! Definitely agree, itll be a precious memory for my lifetime. 😊

[@mandymyer1450]

Another masterpiece!! 😻so beautiful! ⛰🏔

[@BackcountryWahine]

thank ya darling dearest 😘

[@AdventurewithSunny]

I enjoy watching your Dolomite hike! I did the hut-to-hut for 10 days in Switzerland this year, and I'm thinking about hiking Alta Via 1 next summer. Thank you for the detailed information and for showing refugios. Those food looks fantastic too! I'll watch the part 2 next.

[@BackcountryWahine]

Oooh 10 day hut to hut sounds amazing!! I just did Mont Blanc this summer (need to get to editing that video) so I had a small taste of hiking in Switzerland. Absolutely stunning country! and Im glad my tips could help! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@AdventurewithSunny]

@@BackcountryWahine Oh, you hiked TMB this past summer!? I did it some years ago, and loved it! Although I had rainy days half of the time and had a snowstorm at one of the mountain passes, I still had a wonderful time. I'd like to do many other hut-to-hut hikes!

[@BackcountryWahine]

@@AdventurewithSunny yeah I did! 😊 oh man thats too bad about the weather for you. we got really lucky till the last day, so I actually didnt get the last 10 miles or so in because a big thunderstorm was rolling in for the next few days. Hut to huts are fun! I think Patagonia was maybe my favorite (although I did more tent camping.) Have you been?

[@timvandennoort5441]

Amazing video, feeling privileged to be a part of it👏

[@BackcountryWahine]

whoop whoop!

[@Ken-ty7sw]

Another gorgeous video! 👏

[@BackcountryWahine]

Thanks Ken! 😄

[@TravelHungryForLife]

Fantastic share and channel well done Stay safe out there see you again CHEERS 👍

[@BackcountryWahine]

Thanks so much! Same to you!

[@RuinYourDayNow]

YEEESH that is crazy! sorry i hadn't subbed yet. 70 miles! great job!

[@BackcountryWahine]

Heey thanks dude! It was a fantastic 70 miles though 😁👌haha .Totes would do again!

[@PMan-fn7vc]

Haven't seen Part 2 yet but would not be surprised at all if you end up with 25 new friends at the finish line :-D

[@japanarik]

Hello, I enjoyed watching both videos you made on hiking the dolomites. I'm using them to plan my trip there :) Can you please list the 8 places you've stayed along the way with there emails?

[@BackcountryWahine]

Oh wonderful! And thank you! In the title of both videos there are the names of the rifugios. If you just look that up you should find their websites and emails no problem. Remember there are close alternatives if you cant get reservations at those particular ones. The book I suggest in Part 2 was a lot of help for me. Good luck and have fun on your trip!

[@adrianasivera1337]

I honestly cannot wait for part two. I wonder why you don't use trekking poles? those elevations look hella rough on knees!

[@BackcountryWahine]

I knooow 😖I really missed them so much! I actually love trekking poles, but its because I was flying standby, and TSA makes you check your poles (well depending on the agent a lot of times.) Just could risk checking my bag for a trip that started pretty much immediately after arriving. BUT! I would highly recommend poles. Luckily Tim lent us a pole when we needed. 😅 And yay! Glad to hear you enjoyed part 1 😊Thank you thank you!

[@idasvensson6639]

Planning to go in August 2022! Can't wait! Did you meet anyone who was wildcamping?

[@BackcountryWahine]

Oh thats awesome! Thats the same time we were there. And yes, Tim mostly wild camped but stayed in the huts a couple of days. They were surprisingly very helpful about wild camping. The huts even told him the best places to put his tent!

[@idasvensson6639]

@@BackcountryWahine Great! I am planning on wild camping and didn't know how secretive you would have to be about it. But then I guess it's pretty normal even though it's 'not' allowed 😅😋 Loved you videos! Got me even more excited and can't wait for August! ☀️🏕️⛰️

[@BackcountryWahine]

@@idasvensson6639 I wasnt sure when planning my trip either. I couldnt find a whole ton of info, so thats why we just opted for the rifugios (because I do love tent camping) but when we got there, it was no big deal! Super normal. Just need to get packed up early enough and also you set up later but I dont think youll have any issues. Hope you have a blast!

[@idasvensson6639]

@@BackcountryWahine I think it will be a blast! Thank you for your amazing video and all the info 🥰

[@angelalau28]

May I know which map did you use for Alta Via 1? Thank you!

[@BackcountryWahine]

Hey sorry for the late response, it may not be relevant to you anymore but i found that the paper map i bought in town worked the best. I used maps.me at some points, which don’t get me wrong is great especially for a free app, but it gave me an alternative i didn’t like at the end, hence not finishing out the last stretch properly. Albeit that was mostly my fault. And at the time, from what I can remember, my garmin didn’t give me the easiest layout but it may be different now.

[@victoriagarden4312]

What are the sizes of your back packs? Also what are you wearing? Do you have a list?

[@BackcountryWahine]

I have a zpacks bag, which I absolutely love. I believe its a 55L but honestly doesnt even need to be that big if you plan to stay and eat in the refugios. You could get away with a lot smaller. I couldve/shouldve carried a lot less. Didnt really need my cook pot, although it was nice at moments. I brought 5 shirts, couldve done a lot less. I always bring a down puffy, super light and nights get cold. I bring a light wool long sleeve zip for layering (mine is from icebreaker.) My favorite item had to be my pants because they zipped to shorts and because of that I pretty much just hiked in one pair of pants. I highly recommended that option. Its fjallravens abisko lite zip offs. I unfortunately dont have a list of what I carried that trip, but like I said that just sorta depends on how you plan to do the alta via, wild camp or refugio, cause that would make a huge difference. Anyway hope that helps a bit! Enjoy the hike! its absolutely stunning!

[@richnunya9547]

I'm sorry to correct your English but the proper way to say "did a dookee" is simply "dookee-ed" abbreviated. haha another great video. I just did 15 miles in the Winthrop WA area. Found zero mushrooms. Did you see any fungi here in Italy?

[@BackcountryWahine]

hahaha touche. and thank you! Not too many, just a few lactarius. No porcinis unforutnately. ..probably because they all know about them there!😆

[@cbingham40]

How did you plan all this out. I’m having a hard time finding a good source of info. We want to travel to different Refugio’s and not stay at one base hotel. Also, did you pack everything in a back pack and took a flight that way. Just seems a little hard to pack all you need for 9 days and keep the back pack light. Any help would be appreciated

[@BackcountryWahine]

hey there! so if you watch the end of my second video, I discuss a few tips. In there I talk about this book I ordered and gives you a lay out of the path along with the refugios that are available, along with possible day plans. Its a great help. From that I contacted a bunch of places and figured out who was available for the path that I needed. My suggestion is to get on it early because it books out pretty quick and you need it to work out, otherwise you may have to end up tacking on more mileage on certain days to make it to other refugios that could be potentially a lot further away. We also emailed the hotel and told them we were doing the alta via (I think its common in that town since its the main place to start) and asked them if they have bag storage. They did, and for free, so that was great. Im sure most places offer the same service. Hopefully that helps! Good luck! And have a great trip!

[@kathfern]

This was wonderful thankyou! What time of the year did you do this?

[@BackcountryWahine]

Thank you! This was at the end of August. The weather was perfect 😊

[@kathfern]

@@BackcountryWahine Thankyou!

[@BackcountryWahine]

@@kathfern absolutely!

[@stephanielu8326]

Recommend water filter? Or was it basically bottled water most of the route?

[@BackcountryWahine]

We mostly filled up at the refugios before we left and had enough for the journey, but I always like to carry a filter in case.. And its nice to use when you do find running water! My favorite is the katadyn be free water filter. Its light, filters pretty quickly, and you can basically use it as an extra water bottle.

[@miker6578]

I want to do this in September, but it looks like a lot of the huts are all booked up. Any advice on how to book huts for hikes in the Dolomites?

[@BackcountryWahine]

hey unfortunately I think they book up pretty quick and because you need your dates to aline with your mileage it makes it a bit tough. My recommendation is to check out the book or and see what huts are available near the mileage you need per day and then just email each of them asking if they have any availability even in their bivouac (we stayed at a few of those and saw no difference really.) Also another option may be to carry your tent and then try stopping in to some of the rifugios when you arrive and ask if they have openings. I made a mistake on our last booking and booked the wrong day, but luckily people didnt show up so we got a space. Then if that doesnt work out youll at least have your tent to fall back on. They honestly did not seem to mind the wild camping. I think as long as youre respectful and if you purchase meals from them you are still giving them business. Anyway, hope that helps! and hope you can make it out there!

[@miker6578]

@@BackcountryWahine Very helpful. Thank you. But I heard camping in tents in highly forbidden up there. Is that true?

[@BackcountryWahine]

@@miker6578 That is what I had also read so thats why I opted for the rifugios, but while being out there that is not what I experienced. Tim wild camped many days and he would even ask some of the rifugios of where to put his tent and they were super helpful! I think as long as you are out of sight, and set up at dusk and breakdown around dawn then you are ok. Im sure they dont mind if they are completely full and have no place to board you. Then if you eat there that just ends up being extra business for them which cant be a bad thing. Anyway, thats what we experienced 🤷🏻‍♀️ but I totally understand the apprehension.

[@valentinbueno1232]

Your Strength and Stamina are truly inspiring. I have trouble with the Kaiwi Lighthouse trail! Keep up the good work. I am planning to visit the Dolomites, but not with this much hiking!

[@BackcountryWahine]

Oh wow mahalo for that! I have not done Kaiwi lighthouse trail. Ill have to check it out! Im sure any amount of time in the Dolomites will be special.😊Have a fun trip!