We first set off to take a walk through Livigno and actually find tourist information. In reality, we had come because we were interested in going to the National Park there, so we were hoping that there would be some information like there usually is at American National Parks. Unfortunately, Livigno only marketed itself with its winter wonderland and skiing opportunities. So we decided to turn back and walk back to the car. The weather was crisp and chilly yet very sunny and comfortable. It was nice to be in the mountains and feeling the brisk air.
Livigno is a tax-free area. It's separate from the rest of Italy, and this played to our advantage unknowingly. We decided to re-fuel in Livigno and were able to do so at an astonishingly cheap 87cents a litre. (3.8litres = 1 US Gallon). That's about half of what gas usually costs. We then drove through the mountains to the a point on the map that looked interesting to me.
Usually when there is water within a national park and a dead end road leading to it, that usually spells beauty to me. Something my dad most likely taught me through all our car journeys. I persuaded everyone that we she go to Lake Concano. Everyone agreed. Upon the way, we stopped at a small town called Valdidrento. There we ate lunch, albeit it was a very odd time for Italians and most things in the town were closed for 'siesta'. Clearly we were in Italy and not Austria or Switzerland. It's amazing how stark the cultures can differ by just a couple of miles.
After lunch, we piled all back into the car and drove according to Holly to Lake Concano. Unfortunately, Holly led us through some really back roads and we had to pass between two buildings that were so close together that we hardly fit through with our "giant for Italian standards" Opel. If you've ever watched Chevy Chase and National Lampoons European Vacation, you remember the scene where they are driving in their French car and trying to outrun some guy. They drive into a tight street and actually get stuck in between the two buildings. This was the same sort of situation. For us though, we stopped in the nick-of-time before we damaged the sides of our car. However, the Carabinieri (Italian Police) driving in a Land Rover Defender we driving between the same two buildings and looked on to us struggle to get our vehicle out, now that they were blocking our path forward. Finally we did get through, and it was one of those "you had to be there to get it" experiences. Anyways, the road was steep and windy and our front-wheel drive car with gear and five people wasn't making it up the road. At first we though the car was actually broken, but it turned out the incline was so extreme that the wheels didn't have traction. So we changed our route.
Finally we make it on to the serpentine road that takes us up to the plateau where Lake Concano is. The road is quite treacherous and it's hard to see vehicles coming down the opposite way. It took us about 30 minutes to actually drive up, going really slowly. There were about 16 hairpin turns. (See picture)
Lake Cancano however, turned out to be spectacular. The water was a strange hue of blue, most likely somehow affected by the dams, but the scenery was amazing. In the foreground was a glacier visible, and the rock formations from the mountains were also clearly visible. The lake reminded me of the fjords in Norway.
We decided to go hike around, and we actually went along the lake's edge from one end to the other. The whole hike took actually much longer than we had expected. The going was touch with areas without any footholds. The weather was getting cooler, and it was always imminently about to rain. The hike in all was about 3 hours, and 7 miles.
After hiking and getting some scrapes and bruises it was time for us to leave Italy and start making our way back home. It was probably a 5 hour journey, and we still needed to eat our Fondue. One of our goals of this trip. We drove down the serpentine road and made it to a junction which let us choose our way back into Switzerland. The road we choose took us through the Umbrail Pass, which is one of Europe's tallest. In fact, the road leading up it is featured in one of Top Gear's episodes. The road also was quite frightening, as much of it was in tunnels that were only 1 car wide, but meant for two way traffic. The sign at the beginning of the pass said that the border closes at 8pm, and knowing our luck we were determined this time to make it. We had one hour, and according to Holly's calculations, were supposed to have enough time.
The journey was tough and we made it to the border with just 15 minutes to spare. After crossing back into Switzerland, we were one of the last people on top of the pass since it had closed. We took some pictures and realized what the brown things were in the grass from the day before in the Fuela Pass. It happened to be cow excrement, and it was literally everywhere. We could hear the cows in the meadow though. It amazed me that these animals had enough to eat so far above the tree line. They were a distance off as their cowbells echoed in the valley below.
The road going down was perfect. We were alone on the road and had no-one to worry about. The pass was closed and we were the last car to descend. The scenery was amazing and we noted that some people lived here. There was even a house that was perched on the mountain side. It had no driveway, and we wondered how it's owner made it home. I was also surprised that the cows had no barn, or at least no one visible barn. The meadow in which they were grazing was enormous, and I wondered how the farmer gathered his cattle for milking. Swiss cows really do exist.
At the bottom of the pass in Mustair, we planned on eating our Fondue. We were directed to the neighboring town which is famous for some very old Monastery (get it, with the name?) There we had fondue. A real budget breaker. At 20 CHF a person, it was one of the most expensive meals. It actually was a disappointment. The innkeeper that was serving us said it was the traditional recipe, but it was strongly alcoholic that it was hardly edible. Apparently Fondue has 80cL (almost one full bottle of white wine) in it. The flavor of the alcohol was so pungent that we ate it just tolerably. However, Patrick being a disliker of cheese, was lucky. He also was our designated driver, as all of the rest of us had eaten the fondue and become quite "happy" from the side affects of our meal.
By the time we left Munstair, it was past 8pm. The drive was going to be a long one and a hard one. We had to pass through the same roads where we had driven the night previously. However, we made it back into Radolfzell at 2am, and were all in one piece.
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