The Travelling Celts

How we ended up at the Dolomites

by Michael Cameron

The Dolomites (Dolomiti) are a mountain range located in northeastern Italy. They form a part of the Southern Limestone Alps and extend from the River Adige in the west to the Piave Valley (Pieve di Cadore) in the east. Also known as the "Pale Mountains", they take their name from the carbonate rock dolomite. This was named for 18th-century French mineralogist Déodat Gratet de Dolomieu (1750–1801), who was the first to describe the mineral.

As part of our "escorted" Shearings trip to Lake Garda, a day excursion to the Dolomites was on offer. As it happens it was a place on Denise's bucket list since childhood. She admired a photograph on a knitting pattern and dreamed of seeing the area for real. Not having the best head for geography, she had no idea exactly where they are located, but as soon as the opportunity arose, she was handing over the credit card.

It did take a while to get there on our Coach, but it was certainly worth it. Whilst most of the party went straight to a local restaurant, we caught the cable car to ascend Sass Pordoi Mountain (2239m or 7345ft). Once there we enjoyed a fantastic view of the Dolomites. We decided to stay for lunch, bagging an amazing window seat in the mountain-top restaurant (we had goulash). We couldn't resist the on-site souvenir shop (another thimble hooray)!

Click the links below for the Dolomite photos and/or videos