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+m4_navtable(← Preparation,../preparation,Alta Via 2,../,Day 2 →,../day2)
+
+# Day 1 - The Odles in the rain
+
+m4_caption({{{{{August 20, 2025}}}}})
+
+## Route of the day
+
+<details>
+<summary><strong>Click to see map</strong></summary>
+<img src="../img/20-0000-map.png">
+</details>
+
+*Download the [gpx file](../gpx/av2-day1.gpx) or see the route on
+[outdooractive.com](https://www.outdooractive.com/en/route/hiking-trail/eisacktal/-2025-alta-via-2-day-1/325540727/?share=%7E3zdmcd3i%244ossqbct).*
+
+## The road to Kreutztal
+
+Our first day starts quite early, as we wake up at 5:15. My uncle is
+giving us a car ride to Kreutztal, which will take a little more than
+3 hours. We leave at 5:55.
+
+We drive up the Cordevole valley, a road that reminds me of the
+many hikes I used to do in the Dolomites, usually starting from the
+[Falzarego pass](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falzarego_Pass),
+hiking around the [Tofane](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tofane),
+the [Cinque Torri](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinque_Torri),
+[Averau](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Averau) and others.
+But we are not going there this time.
+
+The road itself is quite scenic.  Sorry, I did not
+take any pictures pictures.  After we go North, we
+drive through famous turistic villages like Arabba and
+[Corvara](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corvara%2C_South_Tyrol).
+But these small towns leave a weird impression on me, as they consist
+mostly of hotels and a few restaurants and bars - all closed because
+it is too early for turists to wake up. Are these places just holiday
+resorts now?
+
+Just before we reach Kreutztal, our starting point, it starts raining.
+
+## The hike begins
+
+![My dad and I, ready to start hiking](../img/20-0924-kreutztal.jpg)
+
+m4_caption({{{{{My dad and I, ready to start hiking.}}}}})
+
+By the time we reach Kreutztal (2000m on sea level), park the car and
+put on our rain clothes, it is already 9:30. And this is going to be
+one of the longest days, at least according to our estimates.
+
+The Plosehütte (2447m) is not far, and we reach it pretty
+quickly. Unfortunately, it is closed for renovations, and we can't even
+get close enough to take a picture of our first checkpoint.
+
+At least the view from up there is... something.
+
+![The Odles, surrounded by clouds](../img/20-1033-odles-clouds.jpg)
+
+m4_caption({{{{{The
+<a href="https://www.val-gardena.com/en/dolomites/geisler-mountain-group">Odles</a>
+surrounded by clouds.}}}}})
+
+The clouds came and went, but this is pretty much the clearest the
+skies have been the whole morning. Besides the cold and the rain being
+unpleasant, the low visibility gave us some technical difficulties: right
+after passing by the hut, we found ourselves on a grassy slope and we
+lost the track. In normal conditions we would have been able to look
+out for the next trail marking, or just walk in the right direction, but
+with this thick fog we were forced to double check our GPS and our maps.
+
+## Down through the forest, then up again
+
+Luckily it did not take us long to find the right way, and we kept descending
+in a [larch](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larch) forest.
+
+![Trail in the forest](../img/20-1150-forest.jpg)
+
+m4_caption({{{{{A trail in a forest between Plosehütte and
+Schlüterhütte - Rifugio Genova.}}}}})
+
+The descent is pleasant. We even manage to catch some break from the
+heavy rain, and take a few more pictures of the Odles.
+
+![Another picture of the Odles](../img/20-1211-odles.jpg)
+
+We reach the Rodella Pass (1867m) at around 13:00, and from there we
+walk up to Schlüterhutte - Rifugio Genova (2297m). As the rain became
+heavier, I did not take many notes of this part of the route.
+
+As the trail is crossed by a stream of water, we have to pass a short
+challenging section, where we are forced to climb on the wet rock.
+The climb itself is not hard, but the trail is not clearly marked
+at that point, which left us wondering if we were doing the right thing.
+
+We are then blocked by a more difficult trail feature: cows.
+
+![Cows blocking the road](../img/20-1324-cows.jpg)
+
+m4_caption({{{{{Cows are blocking the road.
+Yes, that little gap is the only way forward.}}}}})
+
+After overcoming this zoological obstacle, we reached the
+Schlüterhütte - Rifugio Genova at 16:00 and we stop for a slice of
+[*Apfelstrudel*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_strudel).
+
+## The long descent to the village
+
+At 6 hours and 30 minutes of hiking, this would have been a good
+first day.  But unfortunately we cannot stop here. At 16:30 we begin
+the long descent towards Lungiarü (1398m).
+
+![Me pointing down towards the fog](../img/20-1703-descent.jpg)
+
+m4_caption({{{{{
+Down there, that's where we have to go. Do you see it? Me neither.}}}}})
+
+We walk for two hours in the rain and the fog before reaching the
+village. Two hours may not sound like much, but it felt like an
+eternity.
+
+The village of Lungiarü, in
+[Val Badia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Val_Badia), is quite nice, but
+we have no energy for sightseeing. All we can do before falling asleep
+is a shower, dinner, and trying to dry our clothes for the next day.
+
+m4_navtable(← Preparation,../preparation,Alta Via 2,../,Day 2 →,../day2)