For Steve from UK - wanted to send a quick thanks for your advice on the Dolomites. Glad we stayed 4 nights instead of 2, really didn't want to bounce from place to place. First day drove from Munich to Castelrotto, only to find out at 4pm that our reservations at Silbernagl-Zeni weren't confirmed, mainly because their computer was out of commission. They referred us to their brother at Zum Wolf. Same price, center of the village, no problem. Great room for the price (86 Euro w/breakfast).<BR><BR>Day 2 we took the bus to Alpe di Siusi since it was free for us and chose the Puflatch hike. Beautiful day for a walk. Gave us a nice first day exposure to the area.<BR><BR>Day 3 we decided to follow your recommended short drive and went from Castelrotto-Siusi-Fie. Short detour to Lake Carezza. Planned to take a lift somewhere along the way but got a little screwed up near Canazei and extended our drive a bit. But got back on track and made it through the Sella Pass, with a brief stop, and stopped at Ortisei. <BR><BR>We loved the Sella Pass area so we drove back there on Day 3 and did a few hikes. It was too easy to pack a lunch and head there rather than go farther towards Cortina. Wish I could go there every year and try other spots but I'm not complaining. Leaving out a lot of details but we loved it, really glad we stayed in Castelrotto. After not driving in Berlin for 6 weeks I made up for it in those 4 days.<BR><BR>Took the autostrada route to Como instead of the higher route and made it to Menaggio. Stayed at Grand Hotel Victoria. I booked it from Berlin and somehow ended up with a lake view. We pretty much kicked back for 2.5 days. Took the ferry to Varenna and Belaggio one day. Varenna reminded me a little of Menaggio, very quaint and loved the pace. Belaggio was great, but just a little too crowded and touristy for me at that time. Just my reaction to a long business trip (6 weeks) and the end of a long week. Menaggio's village square and surroundings were enough for us.<BR><BR>Again, Steve, thanks for pointing me in the right direction. Just wish I brought my mountain bike...<BR><BR>George<BR><BR>

Hi George!<BR><BR>Sounds like you have a fntastic trip! I got to ski the Cortina area, including the Sella Rhonda route, a few years ago. The scenery is awesome!

George - I'm glad you enjoyed your trip.<BR>The Sella Pass area is beautiful, isn't it? <BR><BR>There's lots more like that (- it's a shame you didn't manage the other drive too!), but hey, - now you've got an excuse to go back! (Make it 2 weeks next time!)<BR><BR>Steve<BR>

ttt for George

2 weeks would be great, no doubt. My wife had never been to a large mtn range and my hope was she'd get the bug I got my first time skiing the western USA. It worked! Seriously, we had a great time. Had I not driven longer than anticipated the first drive we would have gone to Cortina, but it was her idea to return to the Sella Pass. We packed a lunch, drove back up, and just picked trails.<BR><BR>Dayle, can you compare skiing Cortina to anywhere in the western USA? Just curious about the snow conditions and terrain.

Hi George!<BR><BR>Not sure where you are used to skiing, but our experience in the Dolomiti was very different from US skiing in many ways.<BR><BR>Our group was very advanced/expert level & we had a ahrd time finding challenging runs. However, I will qualify that. Our trip was near season end (mid-march)with variable snow conditions. Great snow up high & slush & mud at the Cortina level. We had plenty of snow to go everywhere we wanted.<BR><BR>If it had been prime conditions, we might have hired a guide to go off-piste. But there was so much to ski, that we really enjoyed skiing the routes from village to village, the Sella Ronda, & the Paso di Falzareggo (SP?). Our Super Dolomiti pass was good for over 430 lifts, trams, gondolas, pomas, etc.! We loved it.<BR><BR>We also did a short bus (1 hour) trip to Kronplatz on the border. This ski area, although huge, had skiing more similar to the US. Yo-yo style.<BR><BR>I can't wait to ski in Europe again. Until recently, it was less than a typical trip within the US.

Dayle - thanks for that info. I had skied in Kitzbuhel about 5 yrs ago and loved it, but had a similar reaction as yours. It was beautiful but most of our skiing was rolling, flat trails. I KNOW there is incredible terrain out there but we had trouble finding it. I'm sure a guide would have helped, but the atmosphere made up for it (it was the week of the World Cup downhill). I was picturing the Dolomites covered in snow while we hiked, it must be beautiful.

George - the Dolomites is EVEN MORE beautiful in the winter than summer. You've just got to go!<BR><BR>I think Cortina loses it's snow earlier than some places though - it's a very sunny area.<BR><BR>Did you take a long detour at Canazei? I'm trying to work out where you went, -Fedaio Pass, maybe? <BR><BR>Did you take any of the cable cars while you were there? You'd have been up above the snowline at Sass Pordoi. We were there last June and it snowed!!<BR>I'm glad you had a good time anyway.<BR><BR>Steve<BR><BR>

Steve, we pretty much followed your advice for the drive from Castelrotto - Siusi-Fie a Scillar-Tiers-Niger Pass-Lake Carezza detour-Canazei-Sella Pass-Ortisei-Castelrotto. I really can't say exactly where I went off the beaten path, but I think I got on a smaller road leaving Lake Carezza and missed the main road. Really not sure. Then around Canazei I ended up going toward Alba, then past Canazei back toward Campitello, then back through Canazei, partially up to the Pordoi Pass, then eventually through the Sella Pass. I'm pretty good with directions and mtn driving, just couldn't get it straightened out. Canazei through me a curveball. As a result, by the time we got near Pordoi, which was the lift I planned to take, we were a little too hungry to make the stop (bad planning - left without a food pack). I'm sure the view there is great but returning back to the Sella Pass the following day and spending a half day hiking around made up for it. We stopped at Lake Carezza for about an hour, it was a beautiful day.

Hi George!<BR><BR>It's easy to get the wrong road going east from Canazei. I was there about a month ago and wanted to get to the start of a walk that led up into the Marmolada massif. I managed to take the right road without knowing it - there is an intersection just past the town centre which must be badly marked because the minor road towards Alba and Rocca Pietore looks like it ought to be the main road towards the Pordoi Pass. I think you might have got mixed up here. <BR><BR>Harzer

Harzer - that's pretty much the way it went!