15 September '05, Thursday.
You know there are days when I feel like I'm getting a little older...then, I meet someone (well, not exactly meet) that has really been around for a long time...like 5,200 years. What a story, there were these men that were hiking a glacier here in Nothern Italy, and then all of a sudden they thought they had come across another "mountainier" that had come to his death by falling into a galcier. Little did they know, until they discovered an ice axe and some of the clothes from this fallen man, that he was really someone from long ago. They had practically finished removing him from the ice when they came across those items and then they know they had discovered someone special. They only thought he was someone who had died an unfortunate death while hiking not hunting. This morning we had mixed feelings about leaving the Lake Garda area, but we have a lot of Italy to see yet. After reading about "Otzi the 5,200 year old Ice Man", and finding that he was just a few more miles north, we knew we just had to make the trip. Our distination was Bolzano to see "Otzi", visit the town, have lunch, and then move into the mountains to Castelrotto. We found "Otzi" laying there behind glass, completely naked, and still frozen, his clothes, hunting equipment, and a couple of baskets also in refregerated glass containers...5,200 years old...hard to believe...the way his clothing and boots were stitched together...all made out of skins with the fur still there. His boots were something like a sock with lots of straw for insulation, all tied together with strips of hide, and then covered with a "slipper type" of over cover that was also stitched with hide. His leggings were attached to a "belt" with a strip of hide. He also wore a "loin cloth", that could be easily removed for washing...this is amazing to me, thinking of the "thought process" that it took to make all of this and survive in that atmosphere... Well, "Bumble Bee" had her work cut out for her on the trip going up to Castelroto. I don't know what the grade was, but we didn't get out of 2nd gear but twice, and then we had to move into 1st gear. I know we weren't able to go any faster than 25km the whole 12 km ( 6 miles ) climb. I've mentioned many times about the winding and twisting of roads, but this one was in the top 1 percent of twists, and they were all very steep. Saying all that, she came through without a hitch. As we pulled into Castelrotto, we decided to continue a little further...Mount Mikeal...then a U turn and we headed back to Castelrotto. Our new campground is there and we were ready to settle down for the night. We are right in the middle of the Dolomites, and are visiting the highest alpine meadow in Europe. From there, the rock croppings jut straight up into the air, leaving the trees and brush way behind. What a sight... In setting up our table and chairs for our "Tea Time"...we are over-looking the valleys below and the Dolomites above...great campsite. Early tomorrow morning we plan to take the cable car to the top of some of those Dolomite peaks. Then catch the "Friday Market" in Castelrotto before heading south to Verona.
You know there are days when I feel like I'm getting a little older...then, I meet someone (well, not exactly meet) that has really been around for a long time...like 5,200 years. What a story, there were these men that were hiking a glacier here in Nothern Italy, and then all of a sudden they thought they had come across another "mountainier" that had come to his death by falling into a galcier. Little did they know, until they discovered an ice axe and some of the clothes from this fallen man, that he was really someone from long ago. They had practically finished removing him from the ice when they came across those items and then they know they had discovered someone special. They only thought he was someone who had died an unfortunate death while hiking not hunting. This morning we had mixed feelings about leaving the Lake Garda area, but we have a lot of Italy to see yet. After reading about "Otzi the 5,200 year old Ice Man", and finding that he was just a few more miles north, we knew we just had to make the trip. Our distination was Bolzano to see "Otzi", visit the town, have lunch, and then move into the mountains to Castelrotto. We found "Otzi" laying there behind glass, completely naked, and still frozen, his clothes, hunting equipment, and a couple of baskets also in refregerated glass containers...5,200 years old...hard to believe...the way his clothing and boots were stitched together...all made out of skins with the fur still there. His boots were something like a sock with lots of straw for insulation, all tied together with strips of hide, and then covered with a "slipper type" of over cover that was also stitched with hide. His leggings were attached to a "belt" with a strip of hide. He also wore a "loin cloth", that could be easily removed for washing...this is amazing to me, thinking of the "thought process" that it took to make all of this and survive in that atmosphere... Well, "Bumble Bee" had her work cut out for her on the trip going up to Castelroto. I don't know what the grade was, but we didn't get out of 2nd gear but twice, and then we had to move into 1st gear. I know we weren't able to go any faster than 25km the whole 12 km ( 6 miles ) climb. I've mentioned many times about the winding and twisting of roads, but this one was in the top 1 percent of twists, and they were all very steep. Saying all that, she came through without a hitch. As we pulled into Castelrotto, we decided to continue a little further...Mount Mikeal...then a U turn and we headed back to Castelrotto. Our new campground is there and we were ready to settle down for the night. We are right in the middle of the Dolomites, and are visiting the highest alpine meadow in Europe. From there, the rock croppings jut straight up into the air, leaving the trees and brush way behind. What a sight... In setting up our table and chairs for our "Tea Time"...we are over-looking the valleys below and the Dolomites above...great campsite. Early tomorrow morning we plan to take the cable car to the top of some of those Dolomite peaks. Then catch the "Friday Market" in Castelrotto before heading south to Verona.