One of the world's best hikes is no walk in the park
The pristine alpine lake dotted with wooden rowboats and their enthusiastic day-tripper rowers, and the cows casually mingling with picnickers on the shore, might have lulled us into a false sense of ease.
Shortly after leaving the lake we began our first ascent, to gain nearly 1000 metres in just over two kilometres, including a treacherous scramble aided by cables over rain-slicked rock. This was our first hint that the well-trodden path of the Alta Via 1 was no walk in the park. And this was just the start of our trek through the Dolomites, in northern Italy.
The trail is one of the most popular multi-day treks in Europe, and with traditional mountain cabin accommodation that comes with three-course Italian dinners and all-you-can-eat buffet breakfasts, it's also one of the fanciest.
But don't let the soft pillows, lunchtime beers or afternoon aperitivos fool you: the 120-kilometre trek is a serious hike. Narrow balcony paths, head-spinning heights and hundreds of metres of ascent every day make it a serious test of physical strength, and a mental challenge to boot.
The Dolomites are named after the distinctive pale limestone rock that dominates the landscape in dramatic towers and white-grey peaks that can soar well over 3000 metres high.
These alps erupt out of the surrounding pine forests and green valleys which often echo with the chaotic pealing of cow, goat or sheep bells. It is impossible to disagree with the UNESCO World Heritage listing for the area, describing it as one of 'the most attractive mountain landscapes in the world'.
A hike of Everest-like proportions
Believe it or not, the Alta Via 1 is one of the easier hikes through the Dolomites as it does not include any via ferrata sections, which are paths that can include ladders and cables that require technical equipment and a serious head for heights.
But easier does not mean easy: the walk includes a total of just over 7800 metres of ascent and 8850 metres of descent, roughly the equivalent in elevation gain as a hike to the top of Mount Everest and back.
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