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Journal: |
I was the last to leave the Hutte, just after 8am, on an overcast
morning. As the guidebook had warned, the first hour involved
a very steep descent through barren and rocky terrain, but the trail
was again well-maintained, with plenty of steps and cables to hang
on to. I just took it steadily, making sure of my footing with
every step and using my trekking poles to take some of the weight
off my knees. Before I had even been going an hour, the first
rumbles of thunder sounded from the surrounding peaks and it began
to spit with rain. The cloud must have been thick, because it
was very dark, like dusk. A headlamp would have stood out in
the gloom. I felt sorry for three of my Hutte companions who
were hoping to summit some of the nearby peaks this morning. I
suspect they would have cancelled.
Soon after the first peals
of thunder, I met a woman on her way up the mountain (she must have
started early) who had taken shelter in a tiny hut and was clearly
anxious about continuing in the storm. She didn't speak
English and I didn't speak enough German, but I think I conveyed my
view that it wasn't too bad to continue upwards. The thunder
had just been spasmodic. However, in the next hour it worsened
considerably, with thunder and lightning every minute or two,
and steady rain. I donned my raincoat and trudged on downwards
along the puddled trail, feeling a bit guilty and concerned about
the woman I had passed. I'm sure she would have been OK, but
you feel very vulnerable at high altitude on difficult trail in
adverse weather, and I'm sure she would have been stressed.
The fog had closed in as well, making the whole experience pretty
miserable.
The rain and thunder continued as I neared the
valley, Antholzertal, at the base of the mountain. My boots
are nearing the end of their useful life and the uppers are wearing
away in a few places, making them less than water-tight.
Although I tried to dodge the puddles, I could feel my feet getting
more and more damp. On reaching the valley floor, I made a
decision to detour, avoiding the next mountain pass, and instead to
follow Antholzertal down to its end and then turn up another valley
to rejoin the Via Alpina at Welsberg. There just didn't seem
any sense to climbing back up to nearly 2400m in rain and
thunderstorms with limited visibility, and there was nothing special
in the guidebook about the mountain route.
I first stopped at
a bakery in Antholz-Mittertal and bought a pastry and Coke which I
ate on a bench outside the shop sheltering from the rain.
There were a few holidaymakers about with umbrellas, trying to make
the best of a bad day, but the weather made the town dreary,
although ghostly bits of white cloud loitering on the lower forested
slopes of the mountains contrasting with the dark green of the pine
forests and the lighter wet green of the valley crops, still made a
pretty picture. From the town, I mostly followed farm and
forest roads downstream through farm crops close to the Antholzer
Bach (river). The walking was easy and the rain gradually
diminished although there was still the occasional roar of thunder
from high above.
By the time I stopped for a very late lunch
in a little park in Oberrasen, it had warmed up and the sun was
making an occasional appearance. Soon after, I turned left up
another valley on my way to Welsberg and picked up a very pleasant
forest road that followed the shore of a dam and then a river
upstream. The trail was a very popular mountain-biking route
and a number bikers came flying by at high speed. The sun
shone and the forest road was cool under the trees with only a
slight climbing gradient and I continued to make good time. I
reached Welsberg soon after 4:30pm and quickly realised that it must
be the headquarters for a weekend mountain-bike race (hence the
number of riders on the trail). There were riders everywhere
and bikes on cars and vans. I tried a couple of hotels and
they were full. I recalled my conversation with the Via Alpina
hiker, Carla, last night when we both said we dreaded finding
accommodation on Friday and Saturday nights. I found my way to
the town tourist office and the girl there gave me the addresses of
three guesthouses with supposedly spare rooms. The first I
tried was full, but the second had a room and I gladly accepted it.
There is a lot of accommodation in Welsberg, but I reckon I got the
last unbooked room and was fully expecting to have to catch a bus or
train to another town to find a room.
I tried to use the free
wi-fi back at the tourist office after I had showered, but couldn't
get it to connect and gave up. I bought some provisions and a
pizza on my way back to my room and hope to get an early night.
I've been feeling very tired all day. It's raining again.
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