The Alpini were out in full force traveling on bicycles and the train, most likely trying to reach Trento (a big venue for celebration) and many towns in between. That was the backdrop as I walked 26 km (16 mi) from Borgo Valsugana to Primolano.

Not sure yet what I’ll do for tomorrow. My two options are to take the train back, walk to here, and stay here a second night or just keep walking, assuming I can find lodging in the next scheduled place.

last pic is from Hotel al Castello where I’m staying. Have decided to walk on—have lodging for tomorrow night—yeah!

Last night I stayed at one of the best “Pilgrim” luxury spots one could imagine, but at pilgrim prices, $79. I booked one of the former Habsburg Royalty summer places ( it opened back in 1900) the Imperial Grand Hotel now still a four-star adventure with full use of pools, spa, breakfast and enough to make a lunch, too. I truly fell into this one. Thank you—thank you. In comparison, I have a picture of the hostel where I‘m staying tonight—and the bed is just as good!

Met some true Alpini along the way. Also met my first three pilgrims: a Dutch fellow and two Austrian ladies.

Getting back to Alpini, the ANA (Associazione Nazionale Alpini or National Alpini Association) is a registered society representing the "Veci" or former members of the Alpini corps. As the "Veci" see themselves as merely "on leave" rather than veterans, the ANA is colloquially known to be the 10th Alpini Regiment. Since 1920 every year ANA organizes a national reunion the "Veci". Hundreds of thousands of Alpini congregate with family and friends to an Italian city for a weekend—and this is the weekend! I have a few pictures.

Today was a quasi rest day, or even a splurge day. The walk was only about 3 miles (5 km) but it was nearly mystical with low fog/clouds hovering on the hillsides. I arrived at the Imperial Grand Hotel before 11:00 and the room wasn’t ready yet, so I dropped off my backpack and poles and went exploring.

First stop, the Parish Church where I asked about getting my pilgrim’s stamp (that made me find the parish office, with eventual success—the priest spoke German). Then I walked one end to the other—the whole town, in fact, the whole Alpine Region starts heavy-duty celebrations this weekend of the end of WW I—it’s 100 years, but the celebrations are only in their 91st year. Flags are everywhere.

Now, my decadent act was booking here, a classy spa hotel actually having been a summer getaway for the Habsburg Royalty at around 1900 when they still had claim to this region. When it opened it did so around its natural mineral spring sources (arsenic and other good minerals). I couldn’t resist taking advantage of their Wellness facilities: indoor thermal pool, jacuzzi, etc., all for $79 including breakfast!

Today was a “suck-it-up, Buttercup“ day. Coming out of the Trento basin, I found myself climbing some 2400 ft within about 3 miles. University students were passing me right and left going to their campus along my way. I guess there was a reason to build the University on the hillside. My challenge was simply to find a nice rhythm mixed with breaks so I wouldn’t burn out—and I did it. More to come, for sure. The downhill was very rugged and took me nearly as long as going up. The variety of surfaces I walked on today was astounding—I tried to capture some in pictures.

My euphoria came as I saw the destination lake, Lake Caldonazzo, but only the north beach. Even had a Dutch fellow snap a photo. Still had to go to the south side. A nice boardwalk around a fourth of the lake took me part of the way and then followed with more climbing—oh well.

23 km (14 mi) along the Adige River with an early start of 7:30 made for a perfect day. And before I got into my rhythm, I noticed the town of Mezzacorona which was also one of the Pinot Grigios we did at our last wine tasting (can’t remember if they made it into the finals—we ore-tasted several dozen Pinot Grigios). That already gave me a warm, fuzzy connection to the area. Trent with more than 100,000 people is the capital of the autonomous province by the same name, but historically has played a huge role in the 1500’s, to wit the Catholic Church’s Council of Trent.

With Luther’s posting of his 95 theses in 1517, he launched the Reformation of the Catholic Church, and as we all know, really stirred up the pot. The eventual upshot was the convocation of the Council of Trent from 1545 to 1568. Trent, at the time, belonged to the Habsburg Empire, which then implied that a favorable anti-reformation result would be coming out of a German-speaking venue! Anyhow, lots went on here at that time.  Visiting the Romanesque Cathedral against that historical backdrop made me appreciate it even more.

The pictures: 1. Inside the Cathedral where one of the three naves were undergoing renovation.
2. Dom Plaza with Cathedral in background
3. Where were these toities when I needed one just 5 minutes earlier??
4. I wasn’t alone on the Plaza.
5. This coming weekend is the 91st celebration since ending of WW I—the cities in the north rotate who hosts—this year in Trent and it’s 100 years since the war ended—BIG CELEBRATION!

Perfect day for walking 25 km (15 mi) with some climbing in the first part to the quaint town of Tramin (yes, you guessed it: the home of Gewürztraminer). Although I was tempted to try their Gewürztraminer, it was just too early and I had a long haul. On entering the town, I noted an oversized pergola to tell you that locals had used these for grapes in about 500 BC—cool find! The Romans picked up the use of wooden barrels from the locals later on.

After Tramin I descended back to the Adage River and followed it to the village of Cadino where I’m staying. Maybe 3 or 4 miles before turning off to Cadino, I left the autonomous state of Bolzano and entered the autonomous state of Trento, also the demarcation of where German stops. The receptionist here speaks only Italian with a German word thrown in here and there. So this is where my basic Italian gets tested—ha, ha.

Covered 15 miles with 800 ft climb, a few short stretches with sideway steps, but generally a nice day until the temperatures went up to 83 deg F (28 deg C). Leaving Bolzano, I saw hundreds of cyclists on the path—they were everywhere. The paths were a mix of everything and lots of forks in the forest, exactly where you don’t want to lose GPS , which I did for several miles—I nearly panicked (but there’s always plan B.

The town of Caltrer See is very small but big on tourists staying at any of the  10 or so hotels. And what do folks do who come to these small towns: they cycle or take walks.

A newcomer on the scene was the many vineyards and the baby bunches of grapes. I even took one break overlooking a vineyard. The one pic that looks like a vineyard is in fact a fruit orchard with trees planted every yard and its canopy very well managed. Another surprise was the appearance of the stations of the cross on the very path I was walking on—stations were every 75 ft or so. And, the big glass of wine at my destination hotel (Seeperle) at the Kalterer See was in keeping a promise to a Camino Friend, Gerhard Treiber; he asked me to have two glasses one for him and one for me, but I opted for the “BIG”one instead—ha, ha!

Celebrated my first rest day in this city of about 100,000–it’s an amazingly interesting place. I started with a visit to Ötzi, the 5000 year old man found in the nearby Ötz Area from the copper era. He underwent extensive analysis in Innsbruck and now rests in a special ice cold, humidity controlled  chamber that allows viewing. The archeological museum was specially created for him.

Next stop was the WW I Victory Monument with a permanent exhibit underneath. What makes it so unique is that it was started by the Germans to honor their fallen soldiers before the war even ended. Well, after the tide turned and the Allies won, Mussolini some 10 years later built on the same spot a monument honoring the Italy’s victory. The politics was amazing because of the autonomous nature given to South Tirol Province (Bolzano). My grandfather fought here on the Austria-Hungarian side—saw lots of pictures, but none popped out as being of him!

Lots if people at their Saturday Market on Victory Square around the Monument. Still want to visit the Bolzano City Museum.

Othet pics include what appears as Ötzi‘s first aid kit with description, and  some avocados costing $3.40 a piece—they‘re from New Zealand (European demand has skyrocketed and so its price as well).

BTW, next time we celebrate our anniversary, we‘ll toast to Ötzi—he was discovered just a few months before we were married!

Another great day: 14 miles and constant descent of about 700 ft. Felt a few raindrops—overreacted by dawning my poncho, then packed it away again in an hour!

The entire 14 miles, I spent off and on pondering that I was walking in a narrow valley where Kaisers and other noblemen, then later artists like Albrecht Dürer and Göthe, traveled when they went to Rome. It was the only way to go to Rome from the north. They all had to go through the gates of where I stayed last night!

Here are some impressions from along the way: an artistic bike path for miles on end north of Bolzano (Bozen, in German)—had a rest stop in front of the cat; an elevation scare that showed I was climbing 400 ft and down over a very short distance—it was a tunnel I went through; and thankful I wasn’t walking down on the highway where there was no shoulder and trucks barely had enough room to pass each other.

Covered 15 some miles, nearly all of it downhill (with the usual uphills in between) and in a light drizzle. I decided to wear only my jacket and not the pancho—dumb idea. The good news is that I didn’t have to walk through any mud—my real nemesis! Didn’t get to stay where I wanted to, but managed to get a hotel in town.

So while all my things are drying (everything in my backpack is wrapped in a plastic bag—hence little “water damage”), I worked on a reservation 2 days down the road for Bolzano—BAD outlook. Hostel was booked as were the cheapies, so I blew the budget (a little).

From the pic you can see how everything gets an aura of mysticism—kind of fun walking in the rain. The other picture is the entrance into the old part of Bressanone—quaint town with lots of tourists.

Same as my Facebook Post, except more pictures.

Pilgrims, All—hear ye, hear ye. Today was the bar for my pilgrimage: great weather; gentle downhill for 12 miles on a bike/walker path next to a roaring stream (the Eisack River fast and big enough for hydro power); the path meandering through small villages some with farmers markets plus; then ending in the town of Colma (1 day short of Bolzano, Italy) with my lodging being in a former archduke’s residence dating to 1482 (and used them as a toll station); and last but not least featuring a Bierstube (Beer Hall) within 150ft. And being in South Tirol, everyone speaks Italian and German (the Austrian type)—works for me! It’s the bar.

Great day that started with a biting cold 38 deg and lots of windchill to make it feel even colder. It was the first day I put on my light jacket over two other layers, but only for a few hours as I descended from the 4500 ft elevation. After walking some 14 miles, I’m now at 3850 ft.

Great landscapes along the way, and I always pick one where I can eat the to-go sandwich I make at breakfast. Streams and small waterfalls are everywhere to hasten away the melting  snow.

I was duly impressed as I walked through a cycle/pedestrian tunnel bored through the side of the mountain. Then about three miles before my destination I was walking through a jewel of a town Vipiteno. I could have spent hours there.

I pretty much followed the Sill River and made it over the Brenner Pass into Italy. Yeahhhh!

But I had a challenging day not only because of 13 miles and over 2,000 feet of climbing, but some small parts of which were so steep that I had to side step up the hill. The weather was gorgeous except for some gusts of heavy winds. But, NO rain. Then during  one very steep forest climb, the foresters blocked about 200 feet of the path with newly cut tree branches—couldn’t go around because it was too steep and I didn’t want to go back. So thanks to Pam (fellow mission walker), I invoked her mantra: “Suck it up, buttercup.” And 30 min later I made it through and without a fall. Interestingly, as I came out of this section there was a “Forbidden Entry Sign due to forestry activities,” but not when I entered at the bottom of the hill. Oh well.

Still gorgeous scenery. Am now at 4503 feet and the snow is still a bit higher.

The quad picture just shows a sampling of the types of trails. And, of course, there’s the “Do not enter” sign.

On my second day, I walked an easy 9 miles from Patsch to Matrei am Brenner—and still in the Austrian State of Tirol. Beautiful weather and breathtaking scenery all around me. Learned (or, refreshed) two lessons today: (1) when you think the path has ended, it surprises you and keeps going, and (2) stop to smell the roses!

The picture of the path says it all. Then I came across a miniature scene in front of a secluded house on a huge slope. He had an inviting bench for visitors to appreciate his miniature  scene as well as the grand scene all around. I stopped and truly  smelled the roses.

First day of hiking from Innsbruck to Rome—only 10 km, but 1500 ft climb. The symbols were clear: (1) The smaller the sign (2” x 3”), the more brutal the climb, and (2) barely 10 min into my first brutal climb, I met a life-sized crucifix telling me “to suck it up, because I suffered much, much more”!

Am now at the small town of Patsch, at an elevation of 3326 ft with breathing just a little bit harder than it was yesterday, but I’m quickly acclimatizing. Staying at the Bär Hotel and into my routine to be repeated 47 more times: arrive, check-in, shower, do laundry, nap, eat, and sleep—pretty simple.

The views all around are breathtaking.

Tomorrow, April 28th, I actually start walking from Innsbruck, Austria on the Via Roma toward Rome. On the 17th of May, I’ll take a train from Padua, Italy over to Florence and walk the Via Francigena to Assisi and on to Rome. Am I excited or what! Innsbruck is so beautiful and its old town is so quaint—I could spend a week here. It’s like a homecoming! Situated in a valley and surrounded by mountains, Innsbruck is the perfect place to start for me, and where else but at its St James Cathedral!

(1) St James (on right side of the main altar) (2) Old Town Innsbruck, (3) St James Cathedral

Started in Stockholm, Sweden today then flew to Munich and having a 6-minute Connection from Munich Airport train to train to Innsbruck, I made it. All this after three travel days, but what scenery there’s here in Innsbruck, Austria at the foot of the Alps. All in all, it went pretty well. I love Google Maps now that they keep the route you googled and it updates your location (all in airplane mode without using anyone’s WiFi). That allows me to use the route and walk without getting lost as in from train stations to hostels.

Plan to rest here tomorrow and look around and get myself a pilgrim’s credential for the first part (pre-Florence).

Had to attach the awesome snow-packed alps all around.

With only four days to go, I finished my last week of training. On Monday, April 16th, I met my goal of climbing 3000 ft and a round trip of 15 miles. The pics above were taken at my high point. On Wednesday, Belle Cook (one of my two hiking buddies) was my “trainer”—-who pushed me to finish our 16.4 mile hike from Ventura to Carpinteria (and that was with my backpack). Geoff (also our hiking compadre) met us near the end and treated for beer and snacks.

Had an exhausting training session of 10 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 2100 ft at my favorite area behind St Thomas Aquinas in Sisar Canyon. This area still shows the charred landscape caused by the fire that can be seen in the pictures.