The Yellow Trail (Stages B1-B40)

Dear reader:

Please click on the hyperlink of the relevant Stage – you will be diverted to the original page in the Via Alpina website in English. It will open in a new page. If you wish to look for the stage the other way round, just click on the box “reverse direction” on the relevant page.

You can enlarge the small pictures by clicking with the left side of the computer mouse: it will open in a new page. Click on the arrow in the upper bar pointing to the left to return to the page in the Paulinehikes website. You can check the source from which I took the picture by clicking on the hyperlinked text underneath the picture. An external page will open. This also serves a purpose as to copyright issues.

Additional information has been provided to the stages which I have already hiked or I am about to hike. This information can refer to a blog. It can also give explanations about a person, a place or an interesting event, mentioned in the text of the original page of the Via Alpina website in question.

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B1: Muggia (Trieste)–Rifugio Premuda

Difficulty I     Walking time 5h00     Distance 14,1 km     ↑ 138m     ↓ 46m

Additional information on this stage:

Emilio Comici (* Trieste 1901 ‒ † Selva 1940) was an Italian mountaineer and caver. See for more information Wikipedia.

Vincenzo (“Enzo”) Cozzolino, (* Trieste 1948 – † Torre di Babele 1972), was one of the most famous mountaineers. See for more information Wikipedia (in Italian) and summitpost.org.

The area Illyria was situated along the Adriatic shore from the former Yugoslavia to Albania. See for further information Wikipedia.

Stage R1 of the Red Trail also starts in Muggia.

Please also read the blogs on Trieste (May 7th 2018, May 10th 2018 and April 27th 2019) and its surroundings (April 28th 2019 and May 1st 2019), on Muggia, the surroundings and this stage (May 8th 2018 and May 11th 2018)

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B2: Rifugio Premuda–Villa Opicina (Sella di Opicina)/Opčine

Difficulty II     Walking time 3h40     Distance 13 km     ↑ 275m     ↓ 74m

Additonal information on this Stage:

The Trieste–Opicina tramway is an unusual hybrid tramway and funicular railway in the city of Trieste, Italy. It links Piazza Oberdan, on the northern edge of the city centre, with the village of Villa Opicina in the hills above. The line has a total length of 5.2 km (3.2 mi), and climbs from just 3 metres (9.8 ft) above sea level in Trieste to a height of 329 metres (1,079 ft) in Opicina. See for further information Wikipedia.

Pinus nigra, the Austrian pine or black pine, is a moderately variable species of pine, occurring across southern Mediterranean Europe from Spain to the eastern Mediterranean on Anatolian peninsula of Turkey and on Corsica/Cyprus, including Crimea, and in the high mountains of the Maghreb in North Africa. See for further information Wikipedia.

Quercus cerris, the Turkey oak or Austrian oak is an oak native to south-eastern Europe and Asia Minor. It is the type species of Quercus sect. Cerris, a section of the genus characterised by shoot buds surrounded by soft bristles, bristle-tipped leaf lobes, and acorns that usually mature in 18 months. See for further information Wikipedia.

The wallcreeper (Tichodroma muraria) is a small passerine bird found throughout the high mountains of Eurasia from southern Europe to central China. The wallcreeper is a 15.5–17-centimetre (6.1–6.7 in) long bird, with a mass of 17–19 grams (0.60–0.67 oz). Its plumage is primarily blue-grey, with darker flight and tail feathers. Its most striking plumage feature, though, are its extraordinary crimson wings. Largely hidden when the wings are folded, this bright colouring covers most of the covert feathers, and the basal half of the primaries and secondaries. See for further information Wikipedia.

The starting point of this stage is also the starting point of Stage R2 of the Red Trail.

Please also read the blog on this stage: May 12th 2018

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B3: Villa Opicina (Sella di Opicina)/Opčine–Sistiana /Sesljan

Difficulty II     Walking time 6h40     Distance 22,5 km     ↑8m     ↓ 204m

Additional information on this stage:

The Temple of Monte Grisa (Italian: Santuario Nazionale a Maria Madre e Regina) is a Roman-Catholic church north of the city of Trieste. Located at an altitude of 300 metres on the edge of the Karst Plateau it is a conspicuous landmark. It was built at the initiative of the Bishop of Trieste and Koper; on 30 April 1945 he made a vow to erect a church, if Trieste was saved from total destruction. The city was saved and therefore the Bishop asked Pope John XXIII permission to build a church, devoted to Holy Mary. Building started in 1959; the inauguration was in 1966. The church is an example of the “Brutalist architecture”, inspired by the Swiss architect Le Corbusier – the term “Brutalism” being derived from the favourite building material raw concrete, “béton brut” in French.

The Monte Grappa (1.775 m) is a mountain of the Venetian Prealps in Veneto. It lies between the Venetian plain to the south and the central alpine areas to the North. Some of the events of World War I and World War II took place on Monte Grappa, and a memorial monument, the statue of the Madonna del Grappa (ruined during World War I but restored in the following years), and a World War Museum lie on the mountain. The remains of Italian and Austro-Hungarian soldiers who died in war are kept here. The monument is composed of five concentric circles laid on top of each other to form a pyramid. On the top there is the little sanctuary of the Madonnina del Grappa.

The Grotta Gigante tiltmeters monitor Earth movements. The tiltmeters are horizontal pendulums installed in 1959. The instruments are sensitive to deviations of the vertical, to rotations and shearing of the cave. Some movements are aperiodic, others regular, as the Earth Tides caused by the lunar and solar gravitational field. The movements of the pendulums has contributed to identify the free oscillations of the Earth. The Grotta Gigante tiltmeters are the only existing instruments to have recorded four out of five greatest earthquakes in the recent 50 years, i.a. the tsunami-generating event of the Sumatra-Andaman islands of 2004 and the event of Japan 2011, allowing an absolute-amplitude comparison between these events.

The “Sage Trail” (“Sentiero della Salvia”) is named after the smell of the sage that grows alongside the trail. The trail is also called the Tiziana Weiss trail: she was a mountaineer from Trieste who died in 1978 in a climbing accident in the Himalayans, aged 26.

Please also read the blogs on this stage: May 13th 2018 and May 15th 2018

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B4: Sistiana /Sesljan–Gorizia

Difficulty I     Walking time 7h10     Distance 33,7 km     ↑ 224m     ↓ 208m

Additional information on this stage:

The peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus), also known as the peregrine, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-grey back, barred white underparts, and a black head. As is typical of bird-eating raptors, peregrine falcons are sexually dimorphic, with females being considerably larger than males. The peregrine is renowned for its speed, reaching over 320 km/h (200 mph) during its characteristic hunting stoop (high speed dive), making it the fastest member of the animal kingdom. The peregrine’s breeding range includes land regions from the Arctic tundra to the tropics. The peregrine is a highly successful example of urban wildlife in much of its range, taking advantage of tall buildings as nest sites and an abundance of prey such as pigeons and ducks. Experts recognize 17 to 19 subspecies, which vary in appearance and range. The peregrine falcon is a well-respected falconry bird due to its strong hunting ability, high trainability, versatility, and in recent years availability via captive breeding. It is effective on most game bird species from small to large.

Rainer Maria Rilke (* December 4^th 1875 in Prague – † December 29^th 1926 in Montreux, Switzerland) was a Bohemian-Austrian poet and novelist, “widely recognized as one of the most lyrically intense German-language poets” writing in both verse and highly lyrical prose. Several critics have described Rilke’s work as inherently “mystical”. His writings include one novel, several collections of poetry and several volumes of correspondence in which he invokes haunting images that focus on the difficulty of communion with the ineffable in an age of disbelief, solitude and profound anxiety. These deeply existential themes tend to position him as a transitional figure between the traditional and the modernist writers.

The “Collegio del Mondo Unito dell’Adriatico” (United World College of the Adriatic ‒ UWC Adriatic or UWCAd) is a part of the United World Colleges, a global educational movement that brings together students from all over the world with the aim to foster peace and international understanding. The school is attended by around 200 mixed-gender students aged between 16 and 19, mostly on full scholarship, from around 90 countries of the world, who study the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, a two-year internationally recognized pre-university program. The school is hosted in the village of Duino, between Trieste and Monfalcone, in North-Eastern Italy in the Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, less than 5 km from the Slovenian border. It was founded in 1982, by the Region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, with the support of the Italian Government (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), who are still the major financial supporters of the College.

The Lake Doberdò is the name of a sinkhole in the Province of Gorizia, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy. It is located on the westernmost edge of the Karst (Italian: Carso) plateau, close to the border with Slovenia. It is named after the village of Doberdò (Slovene: Doberdob). Since World War I the rhythm of the Lake’s flooding and emptying has changed. A probable explanation could be that the vibrations by the explosions and artillery fire, have caused damage to the rock bedding of the lake. The aircraft bombing during World War II on the nearby shipyard at Monfalcone might have had a comparable impact (Wikipedia in German).

The Patriarchate of Aquileia was an episcopal see in north-eastern Italy, centred on the ancient city of Aquileia situated at the head of the Adriatic, on what is now the Italian seacoast. For many centuries it played an important part in history, particularly in that of the Holy See and northern Italy, and a number of church councils were held there. No longer a residential bishopric, it is today classified as a archiepiscopal titular see. Ancient tradition asserts that the see was founded by St. Mark, sent there by St. Peter, previous to his mission to Alexandria. In time, part of western Illyria, and to the north, Noricum and Rhaetia, came under the jurisdiction of Aquileia.

The manna ash (Fraxinus ornus) or South European flowering ash, is a species of Fraxinus native to southern Europe and southwestern Asia, from Spain and Italy north to Austria, Poland and the Czech Republic, and east through the Balkans, Turkey, and western Syria to Lebanon and Armenia. The manna ash is a medium-sized deciduous tree growing to 15–25 m (49–82 ft) tall with a trunk up to 1 m diameter. The bark is dark grey, remaining smooth even on old trees. A sugary extract from the sap is extracted by making a cut in the bark. The sugar mannose and the sugar alcohol mannitol both derive their name from the extract.

An open air museum has been arranged at the Monte San Michele, where many aspects of warfare in the Karst hills during the Great War are displayed.

Graziadio Isaia Ascoli (* July 16th 1829 – † January 21st 1907) was an Italian linguist. Ascoli was born in an Italian-speaking Jewish family in the multi-ethnic town of Gorizia, then part of the Austrian Empire (now in Italy). Already as a boy, he learned some of the other languages traditionally spoken in the town, German, Friulian, Slovene and Venetian. An autodidact, he published his first important work on the languages of the orient in 1854. In 1860, he was appointed professor of linguistics at the Accademia scientifico-letteraria in Milan and introduced the study of comparative philology, Romance studies, and Sanskrit. He made an important contribution to the study of the relationship between Indo-European and Semitic and was pioneer in the fields of Romani language and Celtic languages. In Italy, he is above all known for his studies of Italian dialects, which he was first to classify systematically. In the periodical he founded (“Archivio glottologico italiano”) he published an important study on the Rhaetian-roman languages: “Saggi ladini”, in which he analysed all Rhaetian-roman dialects in the area from Grisons in Switzerland to the Friaul in Italy. It was for the first time that the particularities of the alpine-lombard dialects in Italian speaking Switzerland, which are related to the Rhaetian-roman language family, had been treated on a scientific level. See for further information the Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz (in German).

Nicolò Pacassi (* March 5th 1716 – † November 11th 1790), also known as Nikolaus Pacassi, was an Italian-Austrian architect. He was born in Wiener Neustadt in Lower Austria in a family of merchants from Gorizia. In 1753, he was appointed court architect to Maria Theresa of Austria. He was commissioned many works throughout the Austrian Empire, mainly in Vienna, Prague, Innsbruck, Buda and his native Gorizia and Gradisca. He died in Vienna. See for further information Deutsche Biographie (in German).

Carlo Michelstaedter or Michelstädter (* June 3rd 1887 – † October 17th 1910) was an Italian writer, philosopher, and man of letters. He was the youngest of four children of an Italian-speaking upper middle class Jewish family of Ashkenazi origin. By the end of high school (completed in Gorizia), he developed into a brilliant, athletic, intelligent youth. He enrolled in the department of mathematics at the University of Vienna, but soon moved to Florence, a city he savoured for its arts and language. He majored in Greek and Latin, and selected for his laurea thesis a philosophical study of persuasion and rhetoric in ancient philosophy. In 1909 he returned to Gorizia and set himself to work on the thesis. By about the fall of 1910, he completed his work, finishing the appendices by 17 October. After a fight with his parents he committed suicide. In his philosophical theories he considered common life as an absence of life, narrow and deluded as it is by the god of pleasure, which deceives man, promising pleasures and results that are not real, although he thinks they are. Only by living in the present as if every moment were the last can man free himself from the fear of death, and thus achieve self-possession. Resignation and adapting oneself to the world, for Michelstaedter, is the true death.

Max Fabiani (*April 29th 1865 – † August 12th 1962) was a cosmopolitan trilingual Slovenian Italian architect and town planner of mixed Italian-Austrian ancestry, born in the village of Kobdilj near Štanjel on the Karst Plateau, County of Gorizia and Gradisca, in present-day Slovenia. Together with two other architects he introduced the Vienna Secession style of architecture (a type of Art Nouveau) in Slovenia. He grew up in a cosmopolitan trilingual environment: besides Italian, the language of his family, and Slovene, the language of his social environment, he learned German at a very young age. He came from a wealthy family that could afford to provide a good education. He attended the German- and Slovene-language Realschule in Ljubljana. He later moved to Vienna, where he attended architecture courses at the Vienna University of Technology. After earning his degree in 1889, a scholarship enabled him to travel for three years (1892–1894) to Asia Minor and through most of Europe. Upon returning to Vienna, he joined the studio of the architect Otto Wagner on Wagner’s personal invitation, and stayed there until the end of the century. During this period he did not only concentrate his interests on design, but also cultivated his vocation as town planner and passionately devoted himself to teaching. Fabiani’s first large-scale architectural project was the urban plan for the Carniolan capital Ljubljana, which was badly damaged by the April 1895 Ljubljana earthquake. Fabiani won a competition and was chosen by the Ljubljana Town Council as the main urban planner. In late 1935, Fabiani accepted the nomination for mayor of his native Štanjel by the Fascist regime, for the National Fascist Party. He remained mayor during World War II, using his knowledge of German language and his cultural acquaintances to convince the German troops to spare the village from destruction. Nevertheless, the monumental fortifications part of the village, which he himself had renovated during the 1930s, were eventually destroyed in the fight between the Wehrmacht and the Slovene partisans. His house and archive also burnt down. In 1944, Fabiani relocated back to Gorizia, where he lived until his death on August 12, 1962.

Antonio Morassi (* January 10th 1893 in Gorizia ‒ † November 30th 1976 in Milan) was internationally renowned art historian. He was of great importance for the cultural advancement and the conservation of historical buildings in Gorizia and its surroundings.

The Duino Elegies are intensely religious, mystical poems that weigh beauty and existential suffering. The poems employ a rich symbolism of angels and salvation but not in keeping with typical Christian interpretations. Rilke begins the first elegy in an invocation of philosophical despair, asking: “Who, if I cried out, would hear me among the hierarchies of angels?” (Wer, wenn ich schriee, hörte mich denn aus der Engel Ordnungen?) and later declares that “every angel is terrifying” (Ein jeder Engel ist schrecklich). After their publication in 1923 and Rilke’s death in 1926, the Duino Elegies were quickly recognized by critics and scholars as his most important work. Rilke’s poetry, and the Duino Elegies in particular, influenced many of the poets and writers of the twentieth century. Rilke wrote the first two elegies while staying at Castle Duino. While walking along the cliffs overlooking the Adriatic Sea near the castle, Rilke claimed to hear a voice calling to him speaking the words of the first line, Wer, wenn ich schriee, hörte mich denn aus der Engel Ordnungen?, which he quickly wrote in his notebook. Within days, he produced drafts of the first two elegies in the series and drafted passages and fragments that would later be incorporated into later elegies—including the opening passage of the tenth elegy.

Mitra is the reconstructed Proto-Indo-Iranian name of an Indo-Iranian divinity. The name could be derived from an Indo-Iranian common noun *mitra-, generally reconstructed to have meant “covenant, treaty, agreement, promise”. In Sanskrit and modern Indo-Aryan languages, mitra means “friend”, one of the aspects of bonding and alliance. The name Mithra was adopted by the Greeks and Romans as Mithras, chief figure in the mystery religion of Mithraism. At first identified with the Sun-god Helios by the Greeks, the syncretic Mithra-Helios was transformed into the figure Mithras during the 2nd century BC. This new cult was taken to Rome around the 1st century BC and was dispersed throughout the Roman Empire. Popular among the Roman military, Mithraism was spread as far north as Hadrian’s Wall and the Germanic Limes.

Please, also read the blogs on Gorizia: May 16th 2018, May 18th 2018 and May 3rd 2019.

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B5: Gorizia–Castelmonte/Stara Gora

Difficulty I     Walking time 7h30     Distance 15,5 km     ↑ 669m     ↓ 201m

Additional information on this Stage:

In 1983 a group of enthusiastic winemakers started the World’s Vineyard, a symbol of human brotherhood. By now the World’s Vineyard turns out to be one of the most beautiful varietal collections in the world. Because of its natural connotation but especially its intrinsic message, this wine, the Wine of Peace, the Vino della Pace, is definitely unique. It is a symbol of human brotherhood, just as the vines coming from each and every continent join during the harvest, pressing and fermentation, giving rise to one single wine. In 1985 the first harvest took place ‒ the Wine of Peace was born. Thus began the story of the World’s Vineyard and the Wine of Peace, with their message of brotherhood and peace that is renewed every year.

The Gorizia Hills (Italian: Collio Goriziano or Collio; Slovene: Goriška brda or Brda) is a hilly microregion in western Slovenia and north-eastern Italy. It lies on the right bank of the Soča (Isonzo) river, north and west of the Italian town of Gorizia, after which it is named. The name Collio is taken from the Italian word Colli, which means “hillsides” and describes the terrain of the Collio Goriziano region. The Slovene name Brda has the same meaning. The Gorizia Hills extend from the Judrio river in the west where it borders the Colli Orientali del Friuli DOC to the Slovene border on the east. The region continues into Slovenia, where it is entirely included in the Municipality of Brda, which extends from the Italian border to the Soča (Isonzo) River. To the south is the Isonzo del Friuli DOC, also in the Gorizia province. Most of the region’s vineyards are centred on the municipality of Cormòns. The soil of the region is composed of calcareous marl and flysch sandstone.

Sauvignon vert is the Italian wine grape known as Friulano in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. Originally Friulano from Friuli-Venezia Giulia was known as “Tocai” Friulano until March 31, 2007 when the European Court of Justice of Luxembourg set the prohibition of using the name “Tocai” in the name of the wine (as stipulated in a 1993 agreement between the European Union and Hungary). Since 2007 Tocai Friulano is merely known as “Friulano” in Friuli and is labeled as such.

The Ribolla Gialla is a white Italian wine grape grown most prominently in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of northeast Italy. The grape is also found in Slovenia where it is known as Rebula. In Friuli, the grape thrives in the region around Rosazzo and Gorizia. In Slovenia, the grape is grown prominently in the Brda region. The grape is believed to have originated in Greece and made its way to the Friuli-Venezia Giulia by way of Slovenia. The first written documentation of the grape was in a 1289 notarial contract on vineyard land in the Friuli region. The white wine made from the Ribolla grape is typically a deep coloured, light bodied wine with high acidity and floral notes.

The trail passing through these places is part of a pilgrimage: the Iter Aquileiense or also Cammino Celeste, The Heavenly Way, starting in Grado at the Adriatic Sea via Aquileia and Cormòns to Castelmonte (210 km). The website is i.e. in Italian, English and German.

The Castelmonte Abbey (in Slovene Stara Gora) is a Capuchin monastery and a pilgrimage site in the Julian Alps near Prepetto. It is situated on a mountain top at 618 meters. The religious site dedicated to Holy Mary dates back to 1175. An antique tile floor could lead to the conclusion that the pilgrimage site has its origins before the 6^th century, so it might be one of the oldest Mary pilgrimage sites worldwide. The monastery has known a very moving past, with many damages through wars and earthquakes – after the earthquake in Friuli in 1976 the friars organised a pilgrimage to Castelmonte, which since then takes place every year on September 8th.

Cividale del Friuli is a town in the Province of Udine, part of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of northern Italy, 15 kilometres (9 mi) from the city of Udine and close to the Slovenian border. It is situated on the river Natisone, which forms a picturesque ravine here. Archaeological findings reveal that the area was first settled by Veneti and Celts. However, in 50 BC, Cividale was founded as a Roman municipium by Julius Caesar with the name of Forum Iulii. Not long afterward, its citizens were inscribed in the Roman tribe Scaptia. The municipium was strategically located to defend Roman Italy’s north-eastern frontier. In 568 the city was the first major centre occupied by the Lombard invasion of Italy, then part of the Byzantine Empire. The city was chosen as first capital of the newly formed Lombard Kingdom. After the Lombards were defeated by the Franks (774) following the last Lombard resistance (776) Forum Julii changed its name to Civitas Austriae, Charlemagne’s Italian “City of the East”.

The Lombards or Longobards were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the Historia Langobardorum that the Lombards descended from a small tribe who dwelt in southern Scandinavia (Scadanan) before migrating to seek new lands. In the 1st century AD, they formed part of the Suebi, in northwestern Germany. By the end of the 5th century, they had moved into the area roughly coinciding with modern Austria and Slovakia north of the Danube river. By late 569 they had conquered all north of Italy and the principal cities north of the Po River except Pavia, which fell in 572. At the same time, they occupied areas in central Italy and southern Italy. They established a Lombard Kingdom in north and central Italy, later named Regnum Italicum (“Kingdom of Italy”). In 774, the Kingdom was conquered by the Frankish King Charlemagne and integrated into his Empire.

Paolo Diacono (Paul the Deacon) was born in the 720s and died 13 April 799 AD. He was a Benedictine monk, scribe and historian of the Lombards. Paul received an exceptionally good education, probably at the court of the Lombard king Ratchis in Pavia. Before 782 he had become a resident at the great Benedictine house of Monte Cassino, where he made the acquaintance of Charlemagne. About 776 Paul successfully wrote to the King of Francia on behalf of his brother, taken captive by the Franks. His literary achievements attracted the notice of Charlemagne, and Paul became a potent factor in the Carolingian Renaissance. The chief work of Paul is his Historia Langobardorum, written after 787. It covers the story of the Lombards from their legendary origins in the north in “Scadinavia” and their subsequent migrations, notably to Italy.

The Gubana, a traditional Easter Italian bread hails from the Natisone Valleys north of Venice (right near the Austrian and Slovenian borders). Brioche-like (but less rich), cake-like (but more bready), and filled with a wonderfully rich combination of nuts, raisins, chocolate and sweet wine, gubana also makes an appearance at Christmas time and to celebrate weddings.

Please also read the blog on the first part of this stage: May 17th 2018

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B6: Castelmonte/Stara Gora–Rifugio Casoni Solarie

Difficulty I     Walking time 5h30     Distance 19.5 km      ↑ 461m     ↓ 94m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B7: Rifugio Casoni Solarie–Rifugio G. Pelizzo

Difficulty I     Walking time 5h20     Distance 16.5 km      ↑ 658m     ↓ 325m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B8: Rifugio G. Pelizzo–Montemaggiore

Difficulty I     Walking time 7h00     Distance 22.6 km      ↑ 262m     ↓ 915m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B9: Montemaggiore–Passo di Tanamea

Difficulty II     Walking time 4h30     Distance 15.0 km      ↑ 471m     ↓ 470m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B10: Passo di Tanamea–Resiutta

Difficulty II     Walking time 13h15     Distance 48.0 km      ↑ 1403m     ↓ 1996m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B11: Resiutta–Rifugio Grauzaria

Difficulty II     Walking time 9h20     Distance 28.5 km      ↑ 3373m     ↓ 2440m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B12: Rifugio Grauzaria–Tolmezzo

Difficulty II     Walking time 6h30     Distance 19.5 km      ↑ 187m     ↓ 1244m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B13: Tolmezzo–Ovaro

Difficulty I     Walking time 14h10     Distance 38.0 km      ↑ 1316m     ↓ 1050m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B14: Ovaro–Sauris di Sotto

Difficulty I     Walking time 6h15     Distance 22.0 km      ↑ 1295m     ↓ 395m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B15: Sauris di Sotto–Forni di Sopra

Difficulty I     Walking time 7h00     Distance 23.0 km      ↑ 332m     ↓ 705m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B16: Forni di Sopra–Rifugio Pordenone

Difficulty II     Walking time 6h30     Distance 14.0 km      ↑ 1599m     ↓ 1244m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B17: Rifugio Pordenone–Rifugio Padova

Difficulty III     Walking time 4h50     Distance 8.0 km      ↑ 1165m     ↓ 1127m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B18: Rifugio Padova–Rifugio P. Galassi

Difficulty I     Walking time 7h00     Distance 21.3 km      ↑ 1892m     ↓ 1162m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B19: Rifugio P. Galassi–Rifugio Città di Fiume

Difficulty II     Walking time 6h40     Distance 17.3 km      ↑ 2250m     ↓ 2351m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B20: Rifugio Città di Fiume–Pieve di Livinallongo

Difficulty I     Walking time 8h00     Distance 22.2 km      ↑ 309m     ↓ 786m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B21: Pieve di Livinallongo–Passo di Pordoi

Difficulty I     Walking time 5h30     Distance 12.6 km      ↑ 4146m     ↓ 3356m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B22: Passo di Pordoi–Rifugio Contrin

Difficulty II     Walking time 7h10     Distance 17.5 km      ↑ 1867m     ↓ 2091m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B23: Rifugio Contrin–Fontanazzo 

Difficulty II     Walking time 6h10     Distance 13.6 km      ↑ 1655m     ↓ 2275

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B24: Fontanazzo–Rifugio Antermoia

Difficulty II     Walking time 3h50     Distance 8,4 km      ↑ 880m     ↓ 0m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B25: Rifugio Antermoia–Schlernhaus/Rifugio Bolzano 

Difficulty III     Walking time 3h25     Distance 11.3 km      ↑ 961m     ↓ 998m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B26: Schlernhaus/Rifugio Bolzano–Bozen/Bolzano

Difficulty I     Walking time 4h05     Distance 24.4 km      ↑ 543m     ↓ 2727m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B27: Bozen/Bolzano–Meraner Hütte/Refugio Merano 

Difficulty I     Walking time 6h55     Distance 27.5 km      ↑ 3250m     ↓ 1556m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B28: Meraner Hütte/Rifugio Merano–Hochganghaus/Rifugio di Valico

Difficulty III     Walking time 2h45     Distance 19.6 km      ↑ 2886m     ↓ 3007m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B29: Hochganghaus/Rifugio di Valico–Jausenstation Patleid

Difficulty III     Walking time 3h50     Distance 16.0 km      ↑ 2037m     ↓ 2490m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B30: Jausenstation Patleid–Karthaus/Certosa

Difficulty I     Walking time 3h15     Distance 11.0 km      ↑ 2339m     ↓ 000m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B31: Karthaus/Certosa–Similaun Hütte/Rifugio di Similaun

Difficulty II     Walking time 6h10     Distance 12.5 km      ↑ 2342m     ↓ 667m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B32: Similaun Hütte/Rifugio di Similaun–Vent

Difficulty II     Walking time 3h35     Distance 14.9 km      ↑ 23m     ↓ 1125m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B33: Vent–Zwieselstein

Difficulty II     Walking time 8h10     Distance 24.6 km      ↑ 926m     ↓ 1417m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B34: Zwieselstein–Braunzweiger Hütte

Difficulty II     Walking time 6h35     Distance 20.2 km      ↑ 1570m     ↓ 277m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B35: Braunzweiger Hütte–Wenns

Difficulty II     Walking time 9h05     Distance 37.0 km      ↑ 352m     ↓ 2098m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B36: Wenns–Zams am Inn

Difficulty II     Walking time 8h50     Distance 23.5 km      ↑ 1514m     ↓ 1751m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B37: Zams am Inn–Memminger Hütte

Difficulty II     Walking time 7h10     Distance 17.1 km      ↑ 1832m     ↓ 361m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B38: Memminger Hütte–Holzgau

Difficulty II     Walking time 5h15     Distance 19.9 km      ↑ 200m     ↓ 1331m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B39: Holzgau–Kemptner Hütte 

Difficulty II     Walking time 3h35     Distance 9.0 km      ↑ 888m     ↓ 149m

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒

Stage B40: Kemptner Hütte–Oberstdorf

Difficulty II     Walking time 3h50     Distance 15.0 km      ↑ 53m     ↓ 1063m

At Oberstdorf three Trails meet. Not only this is the final destination of the Yellow Trail (with Stage B40), but also of the Purple Trail (with Stage A66). Stage R50 of the Red Trail ends here and Stage R51 starts here.

‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒