The Rittner Horn

On Monday, our last full day in the mountains, Amy and crew opted to travel for a spa experience which ultimately didn't work out. I'll leave her to blog about that if she feels like it. Being an un-spa kind of guy, I opted for a strenuous hike in the mountains. The Alpenverein Sudtirol (AVS) maintains a large network of trails which cover the entire region and one of which (Wanderweg 6A) goes right through the back of the Geyrerhof property, creating easy access to the entire network. After a hearty breakfast I set out to conquer the Rittner Horn, the highest point in the nearby region. Amy and I hiked this on our first trip to stay in Oberbozen on a sultry, hot, buggy August day. By contrast, on Monday the day was cool, crisp and clear - pretty much perfect hiking weather. My trek took me onto trail 6 after roughly 1 kilometer and then through rolling, forested countryside interspersed with Alpine meadows.

The first little "town" alomg the way is Riggermoos. I place town in quotes since most of the hamlets which dot the region consist of little more than a few houses and the obligatory hotel and restaurant. Heading out of Riggermoos you begin to climb and eventually meet up with Wanderweg 1, which goes all the way to the peak, and follow it as it meanders (while steadily climbing) to the town of Auf der Tann. Up until that point the trail had been made up of primarily, narrow dirt lanes upon which you could actually drive should you be courageous enough. However, at Auf der Tann you pick up a major paved road and follow it to Pemmern. At Pemmern you have a choice, take the conveniently placed, gondola-style chairlift which covers 2 km and climbs some 500 meters or walk. I must admit that I chose discretion over valor and took the lift. Side note: the next day Amy drove to the base of the chairlift and, while she and our friends made their way up, I DID climb to the other end of the lift. In reality, it was a good thing I took the lift the first day since I'm not sure how I would have fared for the rest of the hike had I not done so. When you arrive at the top, you are greeted by a beautiful view of the Rittner Horn some 2 km and 200 meters above you. The 200 meter rise is deceptive since the first thing you do is go down and then you need to recover all of that elevation as well as the 200 meters. There is a Alpine hut at the peak which is open during the summer for food and shelter, but which was closed for the season when I arrived.

The top of the horn is all above the tree line which offers breathtaking, 360 degree panoramic views. Actually, I'm not sure it was the views that took my breath away or the strenuous hike.

After a twenty minute rest I began my descent, taking a different, longer, more circuitous route down the mountain and back home. On the way down I got a view of the upper end of the chair lift.

My downward trek took me along Wanderweg 1 to Wanderweg 4 and down toward the town of Oberinn. Before I reached the town I decided to take Wanderweg 4A, cutting off a long section of walking, which was where the fun began. Until that point, the way down had been much like the way up, dirt and paved lanes and roads. The first sign directed me to open a gate in the fence and, I kid you not, walk down somebody's driveway and into their back yard. It was ... interesting. At one point I was walking in somebody's side yard when I came across a pair of lambs tied to a lamp post. It was a good thing they were there since it was only when I stopped to pet them that I noticed the arrow directing me to turn left and head across several hundred meters of open field on a barely discernable path, shown below.

At another point, I opened a gate and entered a field. I noted that there were four cows in the distance, but I couldn't tell what field they were in and I was walking the opposite treeline. As I got closer, I realized they were in the same field as I was, but I was still OK since I wasn't anywhere near them. Until I came upon an arrow that directed me across the field right past them. OK, across I went. About half way across I realized that they weren't all cows. One was a bull, complete with horns, and he was NOT happy that I was in the field with him. A race across the remaining distance to the far gate ensued which, fortunately, I won! After catching my breath I snapped a shot of him, staring at me and snorting. The horns are hard to see; trust me they are there.

As we got closer to home the lanes and roads turned into true footpaths through the woods. At one point I came across a nice little waterfall. That part of the trip reminded me a lot of the hikes I took with my father and brothers in the Smokey Mountains.

The trip to the top took 2 hours and 10 minutes. The trip down took 3 hours and 10 minutes. The entire trip, including time at the top took just over 5 and a half hours. The total distance was around 25 km with an overall elevation rise of 1000 meters (a net 400 meters of that was done by the chairlift). The path was undulating so it is impossible to say exactly how much gross elevation change there was. I have highlighted the route taken on the map below.

After several bottles of cold water, a hot shower and a couple of ibuprofin I relaxed and waited for the fourth and final of our magnificent dinners.