A group of 25 Members of Evesham Rambling Club flew out from Birmingham to Munich before being transferred by coach to the mountain resort of Selva. The village, at the head of the Gardena Valley, boasted an excellent network of chairlifts and cable cars that took the walkers up from the village at 1500 metres to the start of walks at well over 2000 metres. As a result the walkers never dropped below a height equivalent to the top of Ben Nevis during their stay.
The party was blessed with almost faultless late summer weather. Walks were organised and led in two groups by Paul and Hazel Jennings who were also responsible for making all the arrangements for the holiday. Members were able to choose just how high and how far they wished to walk each day. The more adventurous ones covered over 132 kilometres and 6200 metres of ascent over the 8 days.
The adventure into the mountains was not without incident. There were encounters with palomino horses, biting donkeys and Italian MAMILs (Middle Aged Men in Lycra) racing down the hillsides on their mountain bikes. There was also the challenge of riding in “coffins”, the name given by the locals to the small 2 person cabins on the Telecabina Sassolungo lift.
September 2016
