Malghe trail around Meran 2000

We've been so many times to Meran/ Merano but only this year we've managed to explore a bit Meran 2000. What is Meran 2000 you'll ask. In winter you go there to ski or to try tobogganing. In summer it's great for hiking, Nordic walking, horse riding, mountain biking etc. In our case, we decided to combine walking with eating at the malghe. The malghe are mountain huts that in majority don't really look like huts, more like restaurants that serve  local, simple and traditional  food. We limited ourselves to two malghe only. I would have liked to see more but my lovely hubby was worried I wouldn't fit in the car afterwards! :) He didn't really say that but the look he gave me said it all.

Our adventure had its beginning in the middle of nowhere. We followed our sat nav but instead of going to Voeran/ Verano it led us to a Waldbichl Gasthof. We left our car at their car park and followed the indications, very clear as always in South Tyrol,  for our first malga: Leadner Alm, situated at 1530 m asl. It took us only 10 mins to get there. We crossed a field full of cows , then another with 2 horses and there we saw the malga. It was a busy Sunday lunch time but the staff were very efficient in finding us a table quickly and we didn't have to wait long for our food (which turned out to be very good but beware: the portions are huge). I would have liked to have my dessert here, they had very nice looking plum cake (Pflaum Datschi or dolce di prugne) but I had to pace myself since we wanted to go to the second malga as well. Malga Leadner has no playground but they have baby changing facilities. They also have deckchairs available for their guests.

 After lunch we followed the path nr 11 towards  Wurzel Alm/ Malga Wurz and it took us 1h 20 mins to get there. We followed the path through the woods which wasn't too good for buggies (there were plenty of tree roots on our way) but there is an alternative bridleway to the malga, suitable for pushchairs. We went back down using the bridleway as it was faster than the path through the woods. On our way back we had to turn left  and follow the indications, first for Leadner Alm and then for Waldbichl. On our way we saw some benches to have a picnic and we encountered more cows and horses. In fact, I've never seen as many cows and horses in the mountains in my life and we do go around quite a lot. The cows and horses had those Alpine bells so their sound was always accompanying us during our hike.

We were so glad we made it to Wurzer Alm. It's 1 hour away from anything else, you can't get there by car so the place had an authentic mountain feel to it.  There were plenty of benches to sit on outside but since it was a late afternoon already we went upstairs to sit inside. In a very small  room there were about 4-5 long tables, at one of them people were playing cards. We sat next to the hot stove and they had plenty of blankets as well but we didn't need them at all.  They didn't have any strauben but a very nice waitress  talked us into trying the Keiserschmarm. It's very similar to strauben, and looked like an omelette cut into  long stripes. They serve it with pear or wild berry mousse on the side, depending what you prefer.  We really liked it. You'll find Keiserschmarm in most of the malghe in Trentino and South Tyrol. We also tried a divine raspberry and mascarpone cake. We stopped outside to see the animals: they keep rabbits, goats, sheep and horses. Although there isn't any playground as such they have toys for children. To go back we used the same road.

How to get there by car: 

From Trento take the A22 towards Bozen/ Bolzano, come out at Bozen Sud, follow the indications for Meran/ Merano, exit at Meran Sud towards SS38, follow the indications for Voeran/ Verano and Haffling/ Avalengo . We wanted to get to Haffling but found ourselves in the middle of nowhere but very close to the malga we wanted to go anyway. You can follow the indications for Waldbichl and park there or go to Verano and follow the footpath nr16 from there.

Duration: 1 day trip

Level: easy, suitable for pushchairs

Refreshments and toilet facilities: at Leadner Alm and Wurzer Alm. They both have baby changing facilities.

Useful websites:

http://www.leadner-alm.com/       (the website doesn't open in Firefox)

Wurzer Alm hasn't got its website.

http://www.meran2000.net/uk/start.php (information about Meran 2000)

On our way to Voeran we passed by Terlan/ Terlano where we saw an adventure park with Tibetan bridges etc. It looked interesting. 

Below you'll find an official website of Terlan, with some very useful information, including the above mentioned adventure park Hight Ropes Challenge Course "Hetz".

http://www.terlan.info/tvterlan/index.php/content/blogsection/6/36/lang,en/

http://www.xsund.it/  (Adventure park's website)

The Malghe trail around Bletterbach near Aldein/ Aldino

This is a very nice walk through the forest  to see 3 Malghe and it is suitable for a buggy. You can visit Lahneralm/ Malga Lahner at 1583 m asl, Schmiederalm/ Malga Schmieder and Schoenrastalm/ Malga Bel Riposo at 1700 m asl.

The path is very well sign posted.

If you want to save your pocket and avoid too many calories in one day then you don't really have to stop at all the 3 malghe. In our case we went to the furthest one, the Schoenrastalm, and we passed by Schmiederalm and Lahneralm. It was a vey enjoyable walk without any difficulties.

We left our car at the Bletterbach Visitor's Centre (3 euros per day) but later discovered it was better to park free of charge near Schmiederalm/ Malga Schmieder. From the car park we followed the indications for Lahneralm. We walked through the forest and before getting to Lahneralm we turned left and followed the indications for Schoenrastalm.  Up to this point the road was wide and easy. After the sign for Schoenrastalm we turned right and we followed the white and red sign. Here the path gets narrower and is definitely not suitable for a buggy. We later discovered, however, that had we continued straight on we would have got out to the well signposted road that takes you to the car park of Schmiederalm and Schoenrastalm. It's an easier way, suitable for buggies.Our path through the forest  eventually joined the tarmac road leading to the Schmiederalm car park. We passed the car park and followed the sign to the Schoenrastalm, passing by a duck pond on our left. We soon reached Schoenrastalm, which was voted the most beautiful malga of 2008. Unfortunately it was very cloudy so we were unable to admire the views. The malga is famous for its cheese produced on the premises (indeed, we saw cows there).  They serve simple but wholesome food. It's got a playground, including swings and slides for bigger children and, like in all the malghe, deck chairs are available for guests as well. We went back to our car using the same path. We stopped at Lahneralm for dessert and some more warm tea since it was a cold day.We sat in a room with a stove and thawed. It was lovely and warm and the desserts (we took strauben and yogurt with fruit) were exquisite.

An easy path, suitable for pushchairs.

We met a lonely alpaca on the way.

Here the path gets more difficult.

If you have a pushchair, follow these signs for an alternative way.

Schoenrastalm

Warm soup on a cold day.

As you can see we didn't go to Schmiederalm. We were too full up but we will definitely go there next time.

For information about Bletterbach please see the corresponding post on my blog.

How to get there:  

By car it only takes 40 mins from Trento. Take the A22 towards Bolzano. Take the exit at Neumarkt/ Egna/Auer/ Ora. Follow the signs for Bletterbach. You can either park at the Bletterbach Visitors' Centre and pay 3 euros for the whole day or  just before getting to this car park follow the sign for Schmiederalm/ Schoenrastalm and turn left. Park there free of charge.

Duration: the trail around  the Malghe will take you 2 hours, longer if you plan to stay and eat at each of them. It took us an hour to walk to Schoenrastalm from the Bletterbach Visitors' Centre. It takes about 15-20 mins from the Bletterbach car park to Lahneralm.

Level: easy, suitable for buggies.

Refreshments and toilet facilities: available at the Bletterbach Visitors' Centre and at all the Malghe.

Useful websites:

http://www.lahneralm.com/en.html

Schoenrastalm doesn't have its website but here you have all the details:

Schönrastalm

Fam. Martina e Albert Matzneller
Lerch 43
39040 Aldino

Tel. 0471 886731
Cell. 348 0009751

http://www.schmiederalm.it/index_en.html

Kastelruth/ Castelrotto

Kastelruth like many towns in South Tyrol celebrates the return of cattle from the alpine pastures. We went there hoping to see a celebration similar to the one in Ruffre'.

The reminder that we are in the area full of stories about witches.

We were soon about to discover that it was a different affair altogether. There were no posters in town advertising it, no music band or stands with local food as it was advertised on one of the websites. We saw a group of people waiting at the crossroads so we asked them if they were waiting for the return of the cattle. It turned out they were. We waited with them for an hour, finally we could here those characteristic cow bells and soon we saw between 10 and 15 cows approaching the town's main street. There was no band and no festive atmosphere. The people from the carriage were offering schnapps and the local bread and that was about it. We heard other people were disappointed as well.  It was a big surprise because normally such events are very well organised in South Tyrol. Our top place to see the return of the cattle remains Ruffre'.

All was not lost. We decided to visit Kastelruth. It's a charming little town with little streets and great views of the surrounding mountains (if you happen to be here on a sunny day :) ) We discovered a nice playground for children (in Plattenstr/ via Platten), all fenced off and clean with lots to do for small  toddlers and bigger children.

There was a note on the playground's fence that children can use Cafe' Stella's toilet for free.

From here it's possible to do a trip to Seiser Alm / Alpe di Siusi or the lake of Fie'/ Woelser Weiher and Malga Tuff. 

For information on  Alpe di Siusi and the Lake of Fie' and Malga Tuff please go to the corresponding post on my blog.

How to get there:  by car take A22 towards Bozen/ Bolzano, take the exit Bozen Nord/ Bolzano Nord, follow the indications for Alpe di Siusi and then for Kastelruth/ Castelrotto. We parked at the .... where the first hour was free.

Duration: between 1-2 hours

Level: easy

Toilets and Refreshments: bars and the restaurants

Seiser Alm/ Alpe di Siusi

Here you will find only some of the many possible hike suggestions around Seiser Alm/ Alpe di Siusi. We've been there 4 times now, but the area is so vast that there is still plenty more for us  to discover.

Alpe di Siusi is the largest mountain plateau in Europe, very popular with tourists both, in summer and in winter. We've been there in winter on many occasions and we loved it because it's very well organised and they have great facilities for families.

Here is the list of my "pluses":

• no need for a car during your stay because it offers a system of  very well connected ski lifts, buses etc.
• very well maintained paths
• apart from the playground, the malghe (alpine places where you can eat) usually have some colouring pages and crayons etc provided for your children
• the views are breathtaking
• it's famous for stories about witches etc (search for Bullaccia)

During our stay there, apart from the obvious skiing, we went down the mountain with sledges. We started from the ski lift Florian. You have the option of either taking your own sledges/toboggan or renting them out when you buy your tickets (you can pay at the ski lift down in the valley station in Saltria and you get them on top of the Florian mountain (2100m above the sea level). Here's the website of the Florian ski lift in English with all the prices etc.  

We usually have a quick stop at Williamshuete and the playground. On our way down we stop at Zallinger and then at Tirler, which was voted the most beautiful Alpine hut of 2009. Don't be fooled about the name Alpine hut, it's much posher then that and the prices confirm it. But it's a nice place with a good playground for children. From here it's a short walk back to Saltria from were you can take a bus back to Seis am Schlern/ Susi allo Sciliar or to Kompatsch/Compaccio, the main area with the cable car that takes you down to the valley. 

At Tirler you will also find a beginning of a gentle 2 km walk, ideal for smaller and bigger children. It's called the Witches' Walk and indeed, instead of following signs you'll find a sculpture of a wooden witch called Curandina marking the way. This nature trail is designed to awaken all your 4 senses and will take you about 1.5 hrs.

Puflatsch/Bullaccia is famous for its Witches' Walk with the places where the witches used to meet. Take a Puflatsch chair-lift from Kompatsch/ Compaccio that takes you up to 2119m. Follow the signs for the Belvedere, from where you will get a splendid view of the surrounding mountains. Next, follow the signs for  the Hexenbaenke or the Witches' Benches, which are big stones where the witches used to meet. An easy walk but not suitable for strollers.

For refreshments and toilets go to Bergrestaurant Puflatsch/ Bullaccia Ristorante. , where your children will also find a playground.

Here's the alternative for the walk to the Witches' Benches from Kastelruth/ Castelrotto.

http://www.seiser-alm.it/en/mountains-and-hiking/from-castelrotto-to-the-witches-benches.html

How to get there:

Not having a car here is both a blessing and a curse. No cars obviously means cleaner air, little traffic, unspoilt landscapes. But getting here by cable car is quite expensive. You can, however, get a bus to Kompatsch or Saltria or you can come here by car but only within certain hours (before 9 a.m. or after 5p.m). If you are staying at one of the hotels in Seiser Alm, you'll get a speciall pass to allow you to drive up to Seiser Alm/ Aple di Siusi.

By car: From Trento follow A22 towards Bozen/ Bolzano, take the exit Bozen Nord, follow the indications for Seiseralm/ Alpe di Siusi.

By bus or train: For how to get there by bus or train please sea the link below.
http://www.seiseralm.it/en/service/arrival/

By bus and cablecar: For the link for timetable for bus connections and the cablecar from Seis am Schlern/ Siusi allo Sciliar to Seiseralm/ Alpe di Siusi please see the link below.
http://www.seiseralmbahn.it/en/arrival/

Level: easy

Refreshments and toilet facilities: in various malghe (alpine mountain huts). The famous one, the one everybody talks about is Malga Gostner Schwaige (tel.347 8368154)  with its unusual food, for example the creme of hay served on a home made bread.

You can get there on foot from the bus stop in Kompatsch (Compaccio). Follow the road to Saltria, then turn right in the direction of the hotel Stegar-Dellai (which lies half way between the bus stop and the malga). 
It's a very easy walk, suitable for buggies.
The toilets are also available at the cable car station.

Useful websites: 

http://www.seiseralm.it/en/

http://www.florianlift.it/en/chairlift-florian/