Hi Mel. Thank you for your latest trip report. Love the photos. Now that we are no longer able to travel, I really enjoy reading about other people's adventures.

Melnq8, I just started reading your report, because as you know we have been in Australia and New Zealand, and we just arrived home. I read up to and including Stuibenfalls. Wow! That is some amazing hike! Did you walk across that rope thing across the falls? What is the via ferratta? You are amazing! I can't believe you walked up and down 1400 steps! Is the hike 5 miles one way or RT? I was exhausted after hiking the Hooker Valley Track in NZ! Can't imagine doing what you did!

Love the "don't ask" cow photo! They are so sweet!

It might take me awhile but I will continue reading your fabulous report!

Thanks for reading gomiki, Ingo, dreamon, Kay and marg!

Did you walk across that rope thing across the falls? What is the via ferratta?

Karen, heck no we didn't walk across the rope thing; that's the start of the via ferrata. I have a video of a guy crossing the falls on a wire at the top - he stops, leans back on the rope and pulls out his phone to video the falls...I thought he was nuts! Unfortunately I can't post videos here.

Here's an explanation compliments of wikipedia:

A via ferrata (Italian for "iron path", plural vie ferrate or in English via ferratas) is a protected climbing route found in the Alps and certain other Alpine locations. The protection includes steel fixtures such as cables and railings to arrest the effect of any fall, which the climber can either hold onto or clip into using climbing protection. Some via ferrata can also include steel fixtures that provide aid in overcoming the obstacles encountered, including steel ladders and steel steps.

That particular hike was five miles return...inclusive of all those steps.

We've hiked Hooker Valley too, can't remember much about it, will have to look at my NZ trip reports.

Melnq8, I skipped ahead to your chapters on South Tyrol/Dolomites since we will be staying in Merano for 4 nights during the last week of May. Hopefully, several cable cars will be open. Several people suggested we stay in Merano because there is more to do if the weather isn't cooperating for hikes and other outdoor activities. We also want to visit Otzi the Iceman while there. Your photos are gorgeous! Love the views and mountain scenery. Seems like you are on top of the world!

I love all of your food photos especially those delicious pastry photos! BTW, what is speck?

Speck is a type of ham

"Speck is a type of ham"

So if you eat just a tiny bit, do you have a speck of speck?

That works too

https://supermarketitaly.com/collections/speck

https://www.bonappetit.com/story/dif...tto-speck-hams

"Schinken" is ham. "Speck" is the bacon form of ham. And then there's "Schinkenspeck," dry aged and thin slices usually served cold. 🤣

But it's all good!

Well, I learned a lot today about ham!

Speck is just the German word for bacon
Schinken is the German word for ham

On a local breakfast menu I once found in a small Italian trattoria (obviously translated by a local genius), that looked like this:

uovi al tegame con prosciutto o lardo
Spiegeleiter mit Stinken oder Specken
afrayed eggs with Hamlet or balcony

At Bern (Swiss dialect), we say: Stierenouge mit Hamme oder Spaeck

And it looks / smells / tastes so different to ours - deep red in colour, served thinly, more like prosciutto - those speck stores smell incredible.
Tirolean speck is flavoured with juniper.

https://www.handltyrol.com/products/...-speck-pgi/ham

Mel, I agree with twk= a most thorough TR. Potential travelers to the area seeking imagery and logistics will lack for nothing given your coverage here.
My fave fotos were the snow chef and that Brunico cutie (gelato).
But your foodic fotos take the cake.

The best wine for Indian food is beer.
I am done. The mountains and Mel

Thanks for reading zebec - currently in Switzerland looking for more imagery

Finally had a chance to finish up reading - great report, and love all the photos! We are all over the map with ideas for a mountain/hiking trip next fall, with a few more added thanks to this.

Oh yeah, the flammkuchen brings back memories of a week in Alsace, where Tarte Flambée was on every menu, in about a dozen variations. I tried it once - way too heavy for me.

ms_go - we're currently in Switzerland and coincidently had flammkuchen today - I wouldn't describe it as heavy at all, as the crust is wafer thin - perhaps the French version is different? The Austrian version certainly was!

neckervd is probably rolling his eyes at the non-classic version with feta and spicy green peppers

Wafer thin - that is the classic French tarte flambee / Flammkuchen (I have a friend in Strasbourg who prepared them at home for us - very thin.)

Have a great time in Switzerland!

....sttill better than German "pizza" with Salami, chive and garlic........

I miss Austria so much, especially the Stubai valley, which is a temporal paradise for skiers in winter and hikers in summer.

As always, I love reading your trip reports, and have modeled some of our N.Z. itineraries from your posts. We are planning our third trip to the Dolomites/second trip to Austria for hiking, so I've been especially interested in this report. My husband wants to avoid Val Gardena this time "I feel like I know every pebble of every path." Thank you for the details on hikes, especially those from Sterzing and San Candido. We'll have a car as we will be driving from Lech, Austria but it is great to know that a trip can be pieced together with bus and train.

BTW - off topic. We had a little travel tip featured in a recent Wall Street Journal where I extolled the value of the Fodorite trip reports, and made special mention of a certain hiker with cranky knees whose track reports were valuable.