Harrowing Roads and Epic Hikes
Places mentioned in this post:
Madonna della Corona
Malcesine
Monte Baldo
Riva del Garda
San Lorenzo
Trento
Bolzano
Santa Maddalena
Alleghe
Cinque Torri
(All in Northern Italy)
Within hours of our friends' arrival a couple weeks ago, we hopped in the car early the next morning for a jam-packed and incredible weekend up in the Dolomites. Rich and Andrea had been planning this trip out for months, fine-tuning some details with us along the way. We did not force them to get up and load up into the car that early for a three day journey, ha ha. This was the plan all along, and it ended up being pretty amazing!
Day One (of 3): Madonna della Corona, Malcesine, Monte Baldo, Riva del Garda, and San Lorenzo
From there, it is maybe a 3 minute walk through town to get to the STEEP paved trail that leads DOWN to the sanctuary of Madonna della Corona. Just remember that what goes down, must later come UP . . . ha ha.
*This is a photo from our first visit 18 months ago in April 2023, where you can see the dynamics of the church and how it nestles into the cliffs.
The trail includes several points of interest along the way, called Stations of the Cross. Each station represents part of the story of Jesus Christ, our Savior, leading up to his Crucifixion. Made from bronze, they are all life-sized and quite impressive. The artist was an Italian sculptor named Rinaldo Olivieri, and it took him 10 YEARS to finish this special project. The thing I love most about this part of the trail is that each station helps prepare you spiritually to have a more meaningful experience while in the Sanctuary of Madonna della Corona.
Scott and me on the steps leading up to the Sanctuary . . .
(Click photos to enlarge) I'm sorry about the angle of the photos, but they were high above my short little stature and without a 12 foot ladder, I did the best that I could.
Even in the Temple, the Holy House of God, there are MANY symbolic things that we see and do. One is that through a series of instruction rooms, we ASCEND to the highest room by the end of the endowment session, a room that is symbolic of the Celestial Kingdom, or the place where God and His Son, Jesus Christ, reside. There has already been much preparation in advance before we ever step foot into this beautiful and sacred place.
Similarly, those who wish to ascend these Holy Steps in the Sanctuary of Madonna della Corona are asked to purify themselves and make sure they are fully ready and prepared to "go up" to a higher place, with Jesus Christ at the center of everything they do.
Video of a lady playing some sort of stringed instrument in the adjacent room, adding to the peaceful spirit of the place where we stood: (37 seconds) *Note - the music is very quiet and faint.
I really felt the spirit of God as I stood there at the top of the stairs, in that little alcove, in front of that statue. I felt a sense of belonging and inclusion, reminding me that all people, throughout the centuries of time, have yearned for this same sense of peace and contentment. There are many religions in the world, and even more churches. But we are One Family as far as God is concerned. And if we strive in the best ways that we can to follow His commandments, to become more like our Savior, even if we differ somewhat in the execution of this plan, He is mindful of our efforts. He is merciful with whatever we may lack. We do need to listen to the Holy Ghost in discerning what is truth and what is maybe just a nice effort. Our Father in Heaven does have expectations of us, and it's up to us to determine how committed we are to Him and to His Son.
But He does reward effort. And I felt in that moment, that He was appreciative and full of love for each person who has come to the bottom of those Holy Steps and who wanted to become something more than they currently were.
So many pilgrims have come to the Sanctuary, either with hope for a miracle, or to give thanks for one that has already taken place. They often bring a photo, a drawing, or something carefully crafted (like a cross-stitch) to express their thanks.
We hiked back up to the little town of Spiazzi above, and began driving to our next location: Malcesine.
Because it was a beautiful, sunny Saturday heading into the fall season, I think everyone wanted to be at Lake Garda that day. We were bogged up in traffic for a while before we could even enter Malcesine (pronounced - "Mal-cheh-SEEN-ay"), and where we had chosen to navigate to for parking was simply out of the question. Everything was packed beyond packed. We drove quite a bit further out than we had set on our GPS, looking for ANYWHERE to park, and finally found a place near a very cute restaurant. Happy Day!!
Video of the nicest bathroom I've ever had the privilege of using in Italy: (10 seconds) This was the restaurant bathroom, and because the owners have a little girl (they all live upstairs), they literally thought of everything!
Rich and Scott were often out in front of Andrea and me. Sometimes they would be so deep in their discussion of sports or whatever topic it was, that they may have even forgotten about us, LOL.
We learned a lot about the history of Lake Garda in the Castle's museum. There was a lot of fighting going on throughout the centuries here, everyone wanting to be in control of the lake and the ports and the shipping of goods. This next photo describes some of the items that were recovered from the Lake and what they were used for. (click photo to enlarge)
It is impossible to say when and who built the Castle, since there are no official documents which report the date of foundation. Nevertheless, we know that the rock on which the castle is situated, thanks to its high and isolated position, always represented an important refuge and the surest military bulwark for the inhabitants of Malcesine.
According to reliable historic sources, in 590 AD the local fortress in Malcesine was destroyed by the Francs: this means that a part of the castle already existed before that period. Then, when Malcesine passed under the rule of Charlemagne, the castle was very probably rebuilt or at least rearranged for military purposes.
Also, the tower (or Mastio) was built in different periods. At the very beginning, it was not higher than 15 meters, which results from the different workmanship of the cut stones on the outside walls and from other architectural elements. Some scholars maintain that this first part of the tower could date back to the Roman period. Others, however, do not believe this, since Romans never used a pentagonal base.
In the second period, i.e. 1131, the tower was raised further to the fourth floor. Some time later, the observatory was built, with the six arched windows with their lowered centre and a flat frame of bricks, typical characteristics of the Romanic style.
At present, the tower is 70 meters high on the lake level and 31 meters high on its base.
Continuing: An important date in the history of the castle is the year 1277 when it became part of the Scaliger dominions. Also the restoring of Malcesine's boundary walls, used as defense, was done during the Scaliger period.
In June 1387, the Castle was occupied by the troops of Galeazzo Visconti, that remained there until 1403. In 1405, Venice took over the castle. The dominion of the "Serenissima Venetian Republic" brought a long period of political stability and peace in the area (from 1405 to 1798).
During this period, Venetians introduced new elements of defense within the original structure of the castle in order to conform to the modern fire-arms.
It is certain that the lower palace (present Museum of Natural History) was modified in the first part of the 17th century. Then, when the seat of the lake captaincy was moved from here to "Palazzo Dei Capitani", in the center of Malcesine in 1618, some rooms were used for mainly military purposes from which the name "Casermetta" (Little Barracks) is still used for one of the buildings in the castle.
During the Austrian domination (1805-1868), important works were done: a new room used as a "powder warehouse" ("Sala Goethe"), was completely built and an official survey of the castle was carried out for the first time.
Consequently, maps of the entire building were printed, which had fundamental importance and understanding of historic and architectural events in the castle.
In 1902, the Ministry of Education declared the Castle of Malcesine as a "National Monument."
A short time later, they came over to the castle for a few more photos, close to where I was standing.
This map shows where we went next: up the cable car to the top of Monte Baldo.
A group of alpacas live at the top . . . and what a fabulous life they get to have!!
While the guys forged ahead, Andrea and I decided to investigate a little boutique on top of the mountain with dozens of products made from the alpaca wool. I ended up getting these darling and super-soft booties for Maisie, while Andrea was oh-so-happy with a very colorful alpaca-shaped keychain.
As is the custom in Italy, when you make a purchase, they wrap it all up with love and make it look oh-so-special. I took a picture of the girl as she selected some ribbon, fashioned it into a little bow, and then stapled it onto the bag.
Video #1 as we approached the cows: (23 seconds)
Video #2 of the cows with the clangy bells around their necks: (11 seconds)
A series of videos that I'm gonna make into a reel for Instagram and Facebook:
When life doesn't seem to offer any wind that could help you: (7 seconds)
Or you're just "bobbing along" and nothing makes a whole lot of sense: (6 seconds)
Or when life throws in some twists and turns that cause you to fall flat: (18 seconds)
Or when it's a serious struggle to keep your feet firmly planted on solid ground: (20 seconds)
Or when you've crashed too many times to count: (4 seconds)
Or when it seems like you're the only one struggling and others seem to gracefully glide along: (34 seconds)
Never, ever give up! Keep those feet firmly planted on solid ground. Untangle yourself, and point yourself in the right direction. Keep trying. And eventually, you'll get there! (1 minute, 3 seconds)
And if you can, have a little fun along the way: (20 seconds)
The wind was brisk and the temperatures were getting colder as we made our way back to the cable car station to head down the mountain. My hands had almost turned into popsicles as I stood there videoing all those paragliders for so long!
Video of the last stretch of the descent into Malcesine: (16 seconds)
Little whispers of pink cotton candy were starting to crop up in the sky as we pulled into Riva del Garda.
Video of the ducks, the lake, and the sunset: (11 seconds)
Our hotel was located in San Lorenzo, high above Trento, in a very tiny town (population roughly 1,600). Our building was slightly down the street from the main hotel and the check-in desk, but it definitely had that WOW factor!!
Our room even had space for all of our grandchildren upstairs in the loft, ha ha. I just wish they could have been there with us. While we only needed the one bed down below, Scott discovered 3 more beds upstairs!
We had a balcony, too, so we sat outside to eat our almost-cold dinner before going to bed. :)
After a great night of sleep in that cold mountain air of San Lorenzo, and after a delicious breakfast in the main hotel down the street, we got packed up and ready to drive down the mountain into Trento for church.
The morning view from our balcony . . .
I remember my mouth being as gaped open as it could get, panicking that we would be spotted, subsequently arrested, thrown into a French jail where no one spoke English, and that we would never be heard from again . . .
All turned out well, though, thank goodness. No one even noticed. She got the seeds through customs when we landed back in the U.S., and within a short time she planted them at our old Snider family home on Sanford Ranch Road in Ukiah, CA - where she was living at the time. They are still flourishing and blooming each year! Hollyhocks from Claude Monet's GARDEN are alive and well in Ukiah, California!! But SHHHH, don't tell anyone about this . . .
This shows the portion of what I think might have been an old barn - it's also attached to the hotel extension where we stayed.
A gorgeous painting hanging in the hotel corridor, showing women from yester-year doing their wash in the public water source out on the street in front of the hotel . . .
Short video as seen from our balcony: (10 seconds)
Video of us attempting to sing the opening song in Italian (sorry for the wobbly start of the video as I tried to get my phone & the book situated): (46 seconds) "We Thank Thee, Oh God, For a Prophet"
The closing hymn was "Love One Another" . . .
After church, we drove to a nearby spot that Rich had found online. We were excited to see a waterfall just 10 minutes from the church building, but when we got there we learned that you can only participate by joining a tour group, and it would be about 45 minutes to one hour in total. As soon as they said guided tour, Scott was like, "I'm out." ha ha
However, we were under-impressed with Bolzano. We visited the Duomo in the historic downtown area, and we walked around a bit, but other than the cute photo spot with the pink flowers (above), we just didn't like it. The streets were dirty, there were a lot of homeless people, there was a ton of construction going on everywhere, and we weren't feeling enamored. So we left.
After our tummies were happy and our bladders were emptied (it's always a good idea to use the toilet inside the restaurant so you don't have to pay 1.50 somewhere else), we started off on the short hike up to the Santa Maddalena Church. This 15 minute walk has some spectacular views of the Odle Mountain range (part of the Dolomites).
Below: You can see the church on the left, and the Odle Mountains on the right . . .
Scott, Me, Andrea, and Rich . . .
On our way back down to the car, I saw this adorable little fluffy dog, and I asked his owners if I could take a picture of him. They happily obliged, and even helped to get him to pose by getting his attention behind me so he would look my way. XOXO
After I took his photo (he's SOOO photogenic), I held my hand out so he could sniff me and know that I'm a nice person. Ever so gently, and ever so slightly, he gave my hand the most polite, tiny, and shortest little lick I've ever received. XOXO
Santa Maddalena has a man-made river that flows right through the center of town. It cascades and flows along in a straight line, with soothing and striking sounds as the water plummets and gushes along.
Prepare yourself to see a whole slew of mountainous majesty photos, as seen from the passenger seat of the car between Santa Maddalena and Alleghe, a distance of about 2.5 hours (86 km). Many sections of this road should NOT have been for two-way traffic. It was hair-raising much of the way, and we lost count of how many times we all went into the fetal-position while trying to find a spot to pull over so a car could fit through going the other way. There was even one time where Rich and I could have easily touched the rocky cliff face right outside our window where we squeezed over to let someone pass by. It was maybe 5 inches from my door . . .
Looking down toward Santa Maddalena below . . . and if you click the photo to enlarge it, you can see the Church that we hiked to earlier.
This was a super cute town called Corvara that we passed through. It sits in a very scenic spot among all of the ginormous mountains that it's surrounded by.
Video showing how high up we truly were: (8 seconds)
We finally made it into Alleghe, where we could stop for the night. It sits far, far down below the church that I just pointed out. A river flows alongside the road and meanders through Alleghe and on toward Alleghe Lake. Our hotel was right across the street from the river and we could hear it from our upstairs balcony.
There is a paved walking trail that follows the river, so of course we ventured over to it . . .
We found a restaurant a little further down the path of the river, which was lucky because with the tiny size of this town, there aren't a lot of options. I ordered the schnitzel, fries, and salad. It was very good!
We "enjoyed" several more curvy roads over the mountain passes, to get from Alleghe to Baita Bai de Dones (the location of the chairlift to take us up to our hike). In the photo below, you can just barely make out the craggy jutty-uppy cliff that we would be seeing later.
Before I dive into the details of our hike, I would like to give a huge shout-out to our car: "THANK YOU FOR GETTING US UP THE MOUNTAIN SO WE COULD ENJOY THIS SPECTACULAR DAY!!!" I'm so glad we got it fixed a few weeks ago and that everything went smoothly this time.
Technically, Baita Bai de Dones is a restaurant. But this is the best address to put into your GPS, and there is a chairlift next to it that will whisk you up the mountain to the actual trailhead for Cinque Torri. (pronounced: cheen-quay torrey)
This is the view from the top of the chairlift, where we got dropped off . . .
Cinque Torri is a hike that includes epic views for miles and miles, PLUS it's an open-air museum with WWI bunkers, trenches, and artillery, along with plenty of signs that share the history of what happened up here a little over 100 years ago.
One of several maps placed along the various trails that off-shoot in every direction, so that you can continue to keep your bearings . . .
#2: A description of the various military "fronts" (German, Austrian, Russian, Serbian, Italian, etc.)
#3: Journal entries describing the war in 1915 . . .
Steep steps descending down to an old bunker . . .
#4: A description of the equipment that was hauled up into these cliffs for the soldiers . . .
#5: A description of the artillery shelters . . .
Video of the breathtaking panorama: (14 seconds)
Walking through the trenches was kind of mind-blowing, considering all the action that took place up here 100+ years ago.
#9: A list of the various batteries, battalions, etc. at Cinque Torri . . .
I'm not sure if this was OLD or not, but Andrea pointed out a metal stake in the ground on a section of the trail . . .
In one of the trenches, Scott set up his drone for some incredible footage. As soon as it's ready, I will share a link to his video in a future blog.
There she goes . . .
Wow. Just wow.
#12: The hustle and bustle as an attack is pending . . .
#13: A diary account of a soldier having to run through an "endless whistle of bullets" while under attack . . .
#14: A description of the materials used to form huts and chapels in the trenches . . .
A map we referred to several times - let's just say that it really helps to take a picture on your phone so you can refer back to it again and again . . .
Video as we trudged along the narrow trail (with no railings): (13 seconds)
If you look closely at this next photo, you'll see a handful of very brave rock climbers . . .
We prefer to "not to" when it comes to climbing 90 degree cliff-faces . . . ha ha
#17: A description of the types of artillery that were used up here. How they got Howitzers up here, is a marvel and a mystery . . .
Video of me picking my way down the stone steps on part of the trail: (16 seconds)
Rich, Scott, and Andrea discussing something important . . .
Scott and me . . .
So, onward we went. We circled around the tallest "Torri" (on the left in the photo below), to make our way back to the chairlift.
Scott kept saying how much he wanted to TOUCH the rock wall, mumbling something like, "if there was only a way to get up there . . ."
We would have to be quick, though, because there was a storm a-brewing and we did NOT want to be caught in that.
After much begging and pleading, I said okay to blazing our own trail up the mountainside so my best friend could touch the rock wall. I wish you could have seen the joy on his face when I agreed to do this. I was the slowest one in the group, on account of my childhood asthma, but everyone voted to make me the leader of our expedition so we could go at my pace. I had already used my inhaler, and I'm sure it did help somewhat, but when you're up at this kind of altitude, it's a whole other level to be able to breathe properly.
I picked my way over rocks and bushes, asking for input from time to time from Scott who was right behind me. When you're "in the trenches" of bushwhacking, it helps to get perspective from someone else who is a little further back in order to choose the next directional push.
And he did it!! He was like a little kid in a candy store. Or a little boy splashing in the mud. It made me so happy to see him so happy.
Meanwhile, he was the best coach and friend and support for me as I slowly made it all the way up there, as well. He kept saying things like, "I'm so proud of you, honey!" and "I love you SO MUCH!!" and "You're doing awesome, hon." and "You make me SO happy!" and "You're a beast! Look at you - you're doing it!"
I was pretty proud of myself, too. We CAN do hard things in this life. We really can.
While we sat on the rocks, resting, we found a super old tin can amongst the rocks. I wondered just how old it really is . . . could it have been a part of the rations belonging to those brave soldiers 100+ years ago?
The views from the Cinque Torri trail will never get old . . .
Behind me on the final stretch of the trail: Scott, Andrea, and Rich . . . The hills are alive . . .
Rich had a theme throughout their 8 days with us: Take photos of him with his disc golf disc in various scenarios. Yes, I know, "disc golf disc" is repetitive, but I don't know how else to define it, ha ha. Anyway, he had a lot of fun staging a "putt" from the top of a castle, over a lake, in a Basilica, and yes, on Cinque Torri. He packed it around everywhere in his cinch-sack, always ready for a great photo opportunity.
His final "putt" shot actually ticked the sign post, so he made his target basket in just 3 shots!! Wowzers.
I bet they'll use this picture on their upcoming Christmas cards . . . XOXO
Next to the chairlift is a restaurant and resting spot, with a variety of foods, drinks, and lots of alcohol. Andrea and I ordered an Italian hot chocolate, which they serve up with a spoon because it's so thick. Yummm...
And the vegetable soup was absolutely 100% the best I've ever had!! And I don't think it had to do with the fact that I was hungry and had just finished a lengthy hike. It was truly spectacular. A flavorful broth with lots of chopped carrots, celery, zucchini, herbs, onions, and a sparse amount of little potato bits. My mouth would like some more of that soup, now that I'm thinking about it . . .
The restaurant and top of the chairlift sit at 2255 meters. That's equal to 7398 feet in elevation. Nice.
Alas, all good things must come to an end. It was time to descend back down to the parking lot below and begin the long drive home to Vicenza. In all, we spent about 4 hours on the Cinque Torri Trail. On the EarthTrekkers blog, they suggest that you'll spend about 1 hour on this hike. But we did a lot more exploring, I think, plus we needed time to fly the drone 3 separate times. Plus we added on the extra leg over to the Refugio - the one that ended up being closed. So all of these things added additional time to our day.
We drove down the curvy mountain road into Trento to attend church there. It's always so interesting to me to see what kind of places are being used as a church building outside of the U.S. This was an older commercial building tucked behind a few other shops on the main street, with the tiniest parking lot ever. We got there early enough to grab one of the 4 parking spots. Otherwise, we would have been cruising up and down and all around trying to find an available opening.
This particular congregation was so tiny, that they are organized into a "Branch" instead of a "Ward". A branch can be as small as a handful of members, while a ward can be up into the 100's of members. I think the biggest ward we've ever been a part of (in the U.S.) had roughly 700 members at one time, shortly before they split it into 2 wards, which helps it to be more manageable.
This branch, if I could venture a guess, had maybe 25-30 people in all. And guess how many primary children? TWO. Both were sisters and were from somewhere in Africa. They were super cute. This is their tiny little primary room . . .
The Sacrament Hymn - "We'll Sing All Hail"
Video of us singing the closing hymn: (1 min, 2 seconds)
*Note: I tried to sing the alto part a little further down, but I got lost in trying to read the foreign words and keep a decent tune!! LOL It's a good thing Scott always drowns me out, anyway . . . :)
So, after regrouping, we decided to continue on by heading to Bolzano next. Bolzano has an amazing Christmas Market in December, and I was supposed to go with the "Wednesdays in Italy Group" last year, but I was too sick to join them. I was excited to see Bolzano this time with our friends, because I had heard that the river was especially beautiful and that the town was very cute.
We drove to Santa Maddalena - a truly charming village approximately one hour to the northeast of Bolzano. Scott and I stayed here last September when he hiked in the Dolomites over Labor Day weekend and we have very fond memories of this darling little town.
First, we stopped to eat lunch at a place where Scott and I had eaten last fall: it's called Hotel & Restaurant Fines. I ordered this platter that looked too pretty to eat!!
It consisted of flatbread, thinly sliced ham, goat cheese and burrata cheese, herbs, chopped pistachios, and edible flowers!! Wowzers. It was delicious. :)
On our way back down to the car, I saw this adorable little fluffy dog, and I asked his owners if I could take a picture of him. They happily obliged, and even helped to get him to pose by getting his attention behind me so he would look my way. XOXO
Flowers on our way back to the car . . .
Video while we navigated some "tornantes" (switchback turns): (11 seconds)
*You might hear Rich say "car" at the end of the video. We were all helping to keep a watch out for oncoming cars while Scott focused on staying on the road and getting through all those sharp turns.
Video going through Corvara: (17 seconds)
Another small town that we passed through: (26 seconds)
Below: (click to enlarge) See if you can find the church that sits high above the valley below. How do the patrons even get up there on Sunday??
Day Three (of 3): Cinque Torri Hike, near Cortina d'Ampezzo
After a good night of sleep, and a good breakfast (mine consisted of 2 flapjacks with Nutella, slices of ham and cheese, a boiled egg, and some fruity herbal tea), we were ready to start the day.
Video as we rode up the chairlift, getting a closer look at the Cinque (5) Torri (Towers): (29 seconds)
https://photos.app.goo.gl/7msBKGxBm8ajcwpdARich, Andrea, Me, and Scottie . . .
The family travel blog that I use the most when I'm doing research is the EarthTrekkers Blog. They are the ones that described this hike and we knew we wanted to try it ourselves.
Here is the link to their blog:
*You are welcome to click on any photo - such as the historical markers (with red) - to read more about WWI in the Italian Alps and what life was like at that time. Or you can skip past all the words and just enjoy the scenic views.
#1: A letter from the mayor, encouraging everyone to remain calm . . .
#6: An explanation of the artillery rationing and how each shot needed to be justifiable . . .
#7: A firsthand account of a medic who experienced the effects of a cannon fire . . .
Video as we entered a long trench and bunker: (21 seconds)
#8: Issues with using barbed wire and how to stop raids from foreign militia on SKIS . . .
#10: The title says it all: "How many men in the trenches?"
Video of Scott landing the drone on top of the trench embankment wall: (15 seconds)
#11: "Life on the front line" - dealing with bugs, lice, wet clothing that wouldn't dry, etc.
#15: A description of how well the soldiers were being fed . . .
#16: Using what nature gives you as a shelter . . .
Video of another drone take-off site: (14 seconds)
*Note: Even though we were UP THERE already, Scott sent the drone up to its MAXIMUM height of 90 meters, and it still could not get to the top of that giant cliff behind us!! That thing is SO TALL.
A rifugio is a mountain hut for hikers and skiers: for a hot meal, for shelter, and to rest. Rifugio could essentially be translated as "refuge". We made it to Rifugio Cinque Torri, excited to have a bathroom break and maybe a snack. But it was CLOSED. How disappointing . . . Someone had set out several mattresses to air out in the sun, though.
About 90% of the way up, I had to pause to catch my breath for a bit, so Scott clambored up ahead of me, eager and excited to go touch that rock wall . . .
Video of him touching that giant rock wall and the sheer height of where we were: (20 seconds)
One more lap with the drone . . .
In this case, however, he wanted to actually "drive" his disc across a section of the trail toward a sign post as his "basket" (or target).
Watch how well he did here: (11 seconds)
Below: he is about to throw the second "approach" shot, from where it landed on the first drive. His target is the sign up above him on the left.
Andrea and me - celebrating our victorious hike, our tasty food, and 28 years of friendship . . .
Behind us, through the plexi-glass, is a trail that leads up to another refugio hut. It didn't look that hard, and I wouldn't mind trying it again someday. :)
Alas, all good things must come to an end. It was time to descend back down to the parking lot below and begin the long drive home to Vicenza. In all, we spent about 4 hours on the Cinque Torri Trail. On the EarthTrekkers blog, they suggest that you'll spend about 1 hour on this hike. But we did a lot more exploring, I think, plus we needed time to fly the drone 3 separate times. Plus we added on the extra leg over to the Refugio - the one that ended up being closed. So all of these things added additional time to our day.
Video as we rode the lift down: (5 seconds)
*You'll hear Andrea and Rich on a video call with their kids back in the U.S. Andrea is afraid of heights, so she was not very enamored with the chairlift, bless her heart. She's also fallen off one before - not from a substantial height, but still, it messes with your mind when you're already deathly afraid of what might happen.
So you'll hear her saying in the video clip something like, "I haven't fallen off yet . . ."
We were very proud of her and how she worked through her fears to accomplish something magnificent. What an amazing day, on an amazing mountain, with some amazing people to share it all with.
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