Scenic hikes in the Italian alps are super accessible via the vast cableway systems. While hiking in the alps might seem like an elite athlete activity, taking a cable car is immediate gratification. You arrive to amazing views, and you get to tailor your hike to your energy level.
From the Alpen Hotel in Ortisei, we took the SAD bus from the hotel to the town centre, picked up a pair of trekking poles and took the moving walkway up to the cable way. It was a two cable car journey to reach Seceda. Once at the top, we did nothing — for a minute or two — but take in spectacular views before us. During these moments I felt grateful for being able to do this.
This is a map of the cable system. Follow the primary cable car route and you will see Seceda Hutte at the top. The picture the below shows an arriving cable car.
Note: on this trip, I had a freshly injured ankle which I will later find out was a partial tear. I had it well wrapped and braced, but I was not able to go as far as I normally would have gone.
We walked a popular path toward Pana-Scharte then back to overlook Sofie Hutte. We ate yet another meat & cheese plate before descending back into the town of Ortisei just in time for riposo (siesta).
Tangential story about the SAD bus. The trip back on the SAD bus was an adventure. Even though it was the same driver, and more than 10 minutes behind schedule, we hopped on. A minute later we realized something was wrong as we careened at high speeds on a single lane road with two-way traffic. Luckily the views were so spectacular that it took our minds away from the potential peril before us. Around and around we went, and it appeared that the driver couldn’t communicate with any of the other passengers’ inquiries. It just seemed like no one was getting to where they needed to be. More than a few times I heard the phrase “strada caputo” which even I understood especially with the slicing gesture that accompanied it (and what made his rapid speed even more frightening). An hour later we arrived back to the hotel in one piece and with laughter shared between us and our driver. Thank goodness for the iTranslate App.
