Five Go Hutting in the Maritime Alps - Prologue

An early start was required for the 11 hour journey from Timperley to Limone.

Andrew picked Sue and me up at 3.45 am, then Richard and Jenny were collected en-route to Liverpool, where the five of us managed a quick breakfast before being EasyJeted to Nice.

It was sunny there, but all a bit manic at the railway station, as the Tour de France cycle race started today in nearby Monaco. Lots of would be spectators were laying siege to the station in their efforts to get to Monaco and line the path of today's time trial.

The 12.36 to Cuneo left on time and spent a happy couple of hours rattling slowly up to Limone. The air-con was most appreciated at first, but as we rose gently up to 1000 metres the mountain air provided welcome respite from the heat of Nice, and indeed of Timperley over the past week!

Mountain Weather. We arrived here on 1 July last year, on our Italian Border Route, to be greeted by a storm. Today, as we exited France through the last of many tunnels, the sky blackened. Luckily Hotel Touring in Limone is only a very short walk from the station, so we didn't get wet. But it did storm, with huge flashes and claps, as we sheltered under a canopy with beers (pictured), before embarking on forays for food and gas.

A nap was in order before a good meal and passable Madonna di Como (Barolo) at La Diligenza restaurant - well named, they are certainly attentive.

Limone is a pleasant town. Big enough for a satisfyingly comprehensive after dinner stroll, but small enough for us to still manage a reasonably early night.

We managed to avoid breaking sweat today.

Tomorrow will be different!

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Gare de Nice Ville - Nice - Gateway to the Maritime Alps

Just checking out the weather in the South of France - it's warmer (hotter) than Timperley, so we'll probably stick around for a while.

Apologies to those who prefer piccies from Timperley!

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

A Postcard from Timperley

Yes, that's what it says on the tin, so here are today's views from sunny Timperley.

As you can see, it's a very exciting place...

...for ducks and fishermen and cyclists.

The canal stretches seemingly endlessly in both directions, but this  180º panorama makes it go round a corner! 

That's exciting!

It was very hot. 

Hotter than the Dolomites.

Hotter than the South of France?

Hmm, now there's a question...

Images from The Dolomites (1)

It's a quiet week here in Timperley.

The camera is taking a well earned rest.

I'm trying to 'process' several hundred images from last week, and will reveal slide shows in due course.

Many of the images are of flowers - they will have a separate album - there was a stunning variety of them last week.

Here's one to whet the appetite - Trumpet Gentian - Gentiana acaulis - it comes in many different shades, even white.

We had some great walks, including some assisted by wires.  It was a pleasure to have my son Mike along - his first holiday for many years.

Here he is, enjoying the scramble up the easy Piz da Cir V via ferrata, this time last week.  Was it really that long ago!

He made the summit!  Fabulous views here, towards the Austrian Alps.

 

Sunday 28 June 2009 - Arrivederci Arabba

Here's a final image from this trip (until the camera snaps are added).

Sassongher from Corvara, on a sunny morning as we travelled back to Milan via Bolzano and the pleasures of visiting Otzi in the South Tyrol 'Ice Man' museum.


Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

The Ascent of Mt Ciampani - 2668 metres (Part 4)

Our walk continued, in t-shirts and shorts for some, on a lovely afternoon.

Mountain weather! The forecast, usually pretty accurate, had been for increasing clouds and risk of rain. It turned out to be the opposite, and by 4.30 we were languishing with ice creams on the sunny verandah of Hotel Sompunt (pictured), looking down into Lech de Sompunt, with its prolific large spotted fish.

From there, a short walk back to Haus Valentin, then a 30 minute drive to Arabba, brought us to our final evening ritual of tea, sauna, beer, 4 course dinner with unlimited wine, then more beer and a few sad goodbyes.

Hic!


Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

The Ascent of Mt Ciampani - (Part 3)

The snow soon gave way to sumptuous flower meadows past rock bands similar to those on which we had earlier watched chamois scampering up and down impossible looking cliffs.

Collett's staff - Rushy and Eddie - were with us today, testing this walk as an organised one for guests. They were both good company. They are fairly hard worked at present due to staff illness and injury, and Rushy has the recent trauma of the consequences of a guest tripping up on an exposed path to get over.

A path junction led to steeper ground beyond which a rifugio appeared. Utia Gherdenacia. It didn't look open. (The only people we had seen all day were a small group of backpackers, so customers would be sparse.) But our arrival coincided with that of some stock of cold drinks, in preparation for opening for the summer in the next few days. So they sold us some.

It was warm and sunny now, and our merry band loitered whilst Sue and I posed for the above photo, by one of the frequently encountered signposts hereabouts, with the dramatic wall of the Fanes (across which passes a fine traverse - on the ascent of Monte Cavallo) behind us.


Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange