Hiking The Cinque Torri and Rifugios Averau & Nuvolau ~ Italy Day 1

After our late night last night, we woke to having no food for breakfast, so we walked a few minutes to the nearest bakery and grabbed some very yummy (though not very nutritious) pastries and croissants for breakfast.  We then drove to the Bai de Dones chairlift, about a 20 minute drive, and snagged one of the last remaining parking spots in their lot. 

We could have hiked up the mountain to the Cinque Torri, but why, when there is a handy chairlift to take us there! (We learned the hard way in Switzerland years ago - take the chairlift when offered.) It was 24€ per person, round trip.

The chairlift dropped us off at Rifugio Scoiattoli.....

...and immediately we were awed by amazing 360-degree views.

After we each took dozens (no exaggeration) of photos, we meandered around the network of WWI trenches that had been repaired/reconstructed over the years. Brad was more interested in all this than Suzanne. 

What we did not realize until we arrived to this area, was that there is not "one trail," but rather multiple trails that one can take to explore the area. So we meandered every which way trying to (1) get our bearings, as we knew where we wanted to go, just needed to figure out how to get there, and (2) avoid the masses of people. There were a TON of people!  We also did not realize until this moment that The Dolomites are very accessible and very popular - we were taken aback by the number of people.  

So we walked around, taking more photos.....

Eventually watching a few rock-climbers.

We ended up back at Rifugio Scoiattoli with the plan to hike to both Rifugio Averau and Rifugio Nuvolau. Lots of views and photos along the way....

Rifugio Averai is at the top, in the middle.

Rifugio Avarau ~ getting closer

It was a steady uphill climb, with lots of people. Here is Rifugio Avarau.... (there were lots of people here, but Suzanne erased them in editing! 😂)

Like we said, lots of hiking options....

...and great views....

We then continued onto Rifugio Nuvolau, which meant hiking up pretty muck a solid rock for a bit....again,with lots of people!

(Notice the clouds coming in.....)

Arriving about 20 minutes later....

Great views from here as well!

We decided to grab a coffee ~ Suzanne ordered a cappuccino (right) and Brad an espresso (left) - which ended up being about a tablespoon of coffee! 😂

We chatted with a very friendly Italian guy who said, yes The Dolomites are very busy - it's gotten worse these past few years. Not only are The Dolomites themselves very accessible, the hikes are also very accessible, especially as many have ski lifts, which makes it easier for lots of people to hike a bit. Great! Or not. 😉

We enjoyed our beverages (Suzanne more than Brad) and headed back to Rifugio Scoiattoli while the clouds were getting more ominous.....

It was back on the chairlift and to our car - perfect timing as that's when the rains started. 

We headed back to the airbnb to shower, go grocery shopping, grab dinner, etc...  One thing about this area which is a surprise - there are limited restaurants.  We were walking around looking for a place to eat by 5pm, and were turned away from one restaurant because to was full. We were turned away the night before at 7pm from two restaurants. Can't win! It is also almost all pizza, which - shock or all shocks - we are getting tired of! 😲

However it was a good day all around - and in the end, we did not go hungry!