Tips for Hiking the Alta Via 1 in the Italian Dolomites (Plus My Full Packing List!)

Have you heard of Chronos vs. Kairos Time? Chronos and kairos are two Greek words for time, but they mean two different things:

1. Chronos is chronological, numeric time. It’s the clock we look at a bajillion times a day. Hours and seconds. Scheduling the dentist appointment. Being late. In Greek mythology, Chronos was a wise old man with a long beard.

2. Kairos is a qualitative kind of time, not quantitative. It’s metaphysical and divine. Felt rather than measured. Translated as “the right or opportune moment,” it’s about the experience of a present moment, not an order of events. In mythology, Kairos was a young, handsome, mischievous dude. Hot.

Time warped for me so much the past few weeks that I was lucky to experience kairos time. 🤩 In these unique moments rarely felt at home, I found myself so in the moment, so unattached to any clock or date, that I felt like I am the right or opportune moment myself.

It’s hard to explain in words. But at least I can show some photos/videos. 📷 Here’s a link to my Instagram Highlights of my trip (which includes the Germany/France/Austria part of the trip) and my grid has the 8 day-by-day AV1 trek videos.

And to accompany the videos, let’s recap in one of my favorite formats… LISTS.

🎒 Everything (yes, everything) I packed for 6 days in Germany/France/Austria plus 8 days on trail in Italy plus 2 more days in Italy:

• PACKS: 30L daypack, tiny fanny pack, 3 packing cubes for organization, 1 garbage bag in case of rain

• HIKE TOPS: 2 sun hoodies, 1 tank top, 1 light jacket, 1 puffy, 1 light rain shell

• HIKE BOTTOMS: 1 pair hiking pants, 1 pair leggings, 1 pair shorts

• UNDERNEATH: 3 pairs of wool socks, 1 pair of cotton; 2 sports bras, 1 normal bra; 8 pairs of undies

• HUT: 1 pair sweatpants, 1 t-shirt, charging cord with power adapter, inflatable pillow, wool sleeping sheet, earplugs, backup instant coffee, headlamp, travel towel

• ACCESSORIES: light gloves, sun hat, sunglasses, beanie, GPS watch with charger

• SHOES: 1 pair trailrunners, 1 pair Birkenstocks

• GEAR: 1L soft water flask with built-in filter, 0.5L Nalgene, small first aid kit

• TOILETRIES: sunscreen, lip balm, toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, facewash bottle, a few wet wipes, nail clippers, a razor, menstrual cup

• FUN: a birthday card, the legendary Hut Smut book, headphones, some euros, my passport in a Ziplock

^^ This was the most minimal I’ve packed for a trip like this and as much as it sucked (and smelled) to wear the same outfits day after day, it was so worth it for the ease of only having a small bag.

Only thing I didn’t use: inflatable pillow. What I wish I had: a second tank top. What I was surprised to absolutely love: my merino wool sleep sack.

🥾 Trail tips:

1. Most people will want poles. (I opted for no poles since I usually find them a hassle and I have good joints still.) The terrain was at times very rocky and loose/unstable, and at other times slippery from mud or water.

2. There was a disturbing amount of toilet paper litter. Bring a Kula Cloth!!! Most women in the group had one and they were so helpful.

3. It’s not an easy hike! I’m a sucker for tough endurance days so I enjoyed it… but I know that a lot of the population would find it HARD to do the full trek in 8 days. 1 or 2 days we broke 4,000’ of elevation gain. The last day was supposed to have 7,000’ of elevation loss before weather changed our plans!

4. The only time the trail felt “crowded” was on the weekend days closer to the small cities. Otherwise, we saw plenty of people each day, but didn’t get clogged up much.

🥘 Food/water tips:

1. Many rifugios will sell you a bagged lunch for 10-15 euros… Not worth it to me, especially as a vegetarian (it would’ve been cheese and bread, which I’d already had plenty of). I opted for rationing snacks and having big breakfasts and dinners. And a couple times, buying a hot lunch at a rifugio we passed.

2. I have a water flask that has a filter cap on it, so I was able to filter sink water from the rifugios labeled “non potable” (although word on Reddit is that some of the “non potable” spots are technically potable, just don’t have the government certificate). I never had to filter creek water, though a few friends did, and it was available most days. You can also purchase bottled water, though I rarely did.

3. Breakfast is buffet-style at all the huts we went to. Lots of bread/cheese/meat, good juices, yogurt and oats.

4. Dinner was typically a 3-course menu where you choose one of several options per course. And some of it was fantastic. Nothing was bad. Vegetarian options were usually decent, though fewer options.

😴 Rifugio/hut tips:

1. Bring alllll the sleep aids: earplugs, eye mask, white noise in headphones, whatever you need to try to deal with a noisy room full of humans. There was snoring present most nights, both from strangers and friends.

2. They aren’t kidding about mandatory sleep sheets and mandatory shoe-switching once you arrive at the hut. You keep your boots/sneakers in a room or on a shelf before you go to your room.

3. Every hut is so unique! One we went to even had a “spa” (indoor sauna). One of our favorites had a private hot tub that we managed to get ourselves. We also loved the one with a botanical garden. Some are on top of peaks, some are tucked into trees, some are big, some are small.

4. The huts that double as winter ski chalets were bougier — bigger, more food options, free and warm showers, drinkable faucet water, free and fast wifi. As we got further in and away from the ski huts, the spots were smaller and simpler, and you’d have to pay for showers and wifi (if available).

🌩️ Random quick tips:

1. There are 10 different Alta Vias and endless trails to create variations,

2. Only have a day in the area? Stop at the Lagazuoi tunnels!!! (See video 3.) Fascinating WW1 history and you can walk through the tunnels they mined for the war.

3. Bring a printed guidebook! I wish I did, since we had to remember to Google history, geology, and culture questions when we got back to wifi. Would’ve been fun to follow along as we hiked.

4. I hate this one as much as I get it: You’ll often need to pay for public restroom use at huts (or in urban stops along the way). Usually about 50 cents or so. You can just buy something from the establishment to become a customer with access. (This is common in much of Europe.)

😊 Memories I’ll always smile at:

1. Lugging the Hut Smut book around from hut to hut for nightly readalouds.

2. Jeni’s 40th birthday celebration dinner, when the hut owners blasted “YMCA” and burst into the dark room with sparklers and desserts.

3. Day 2, when the French group asked us how long we were trekking for, we said 8 days, and they said, “And you’re already partying?!” How else?

4. The 5 human pyramids we nailed in front of stunning vistas.

5. Looking up at high passes and saying, “Wait, we have to go up THAT?”

6. The windstorm-turned-rainbows-and-pink-sunset in the indoor-outdoor chalet that felt like a discotheque.

7. Every panna cotta.