ALPE Summer 2017

Summer 2017

ALPE Alpe di Siusi Magazine

CASTELROTTO · SIUSI ALLO SCILIAR · FIÈ ALLO SCILIAR · ALPE DI SIUSI · TIRES AL CATINACCIO

Günther Karbon Sport climbing

Water, a precious resource 500 years of the Fiè Water Letter

Beekeeping No life without bees

SouthTyrol Tyrol seeks South seeks explorers who like to discover new terrain.

nature lovers.

South Tyrol seeks you.

South Tyrol seeks you.

Enjoy South Tyrol’s unique lifestyle. www.suedtirol.info/storiesfromsouthtyrol

Photo: Helmuth Rier

Editorial & Contents

Dear guests!

Page 4

Giro d’Italia 2016 Page 6

The hay bath Page 12

Action, adventure, Alpine living: whether hiking, climbing, running and biking, paragliding, swimming, enjoying a typical snack or taking a relaxing hay bath, in the holiday area Alpe di Siusi vacation ideas are endless.

Join us on a tour of the fascinating facets of history of art around the Alpe di Siusi and make your way to Fiè allo Sciliar in “Water courses over time” to share in the 2017 celebrations as the village commemorates the 500th jubilee of the Water Letter.

The highlight feature of this issue is the traditional hay bath, from its rustic origins to the delicate spa treatment we enjoy today. And while the herbs for the hay bath grow on the Alpe di Siusi, the mountain apples are ripening on the slopes; when the apple trees are in blossom the bees, industrious helpers that they are, swarm out from their hives - particularly brightly-hued in the Tires al Catinaccio area.

Naturally, a recipe for apple fritters is in attendance for our sweet-toothed readers.

ALPE wishes to be your daily guide through your Alpe di Siusi holidays. Apart from important information regarding public services and interesting events, it gives much advice regarding the best restaurants, inns and clubs as well as many attractive shopping possibilities in the villages of the plateau and its surrounding areas. This magazine also contains the highlights in our events calendar. Should you decide to participate, your holiday album will be full of unforgettable happy moments.

From food and health to thrills and spills: Günther Karbon, one of the best sport climbers in Italy, talks passionately about his love for the creativity and freedom of sport climbing. The same joy for life can also be found in travel, and the story of how the mountain lands of South Tyrol came to become a popular tourist destination is revealed in “The joy of travelling”.

We wish you a happy and relaxing holiday of wellness und unforgettable moments.

Helmut Stampfer: Treasures of art history Page 18

The Fiè Water Letter Page 20

Leonardo of Fiè Page 24

No life without bees Page 30

Sport climbing Page 36

Mouthwatering mountain apples Page 40

Apfelkiachl: A recipe to enjoy Page 42

Children’s book Page 44

Summer highlights 2017 Page 48

Winter preview 2017/18 Page 50

Eduard Tröbinger Scherlin – President for Alpe di Siusi Marketing and the Tourist offices of Castelrotto, Siusi allo Sciliar, Fiè allo Sciliar, Alpe di Siusi and Tires al Catinaccio

Around & about

Sommer Summer | ALPE 3

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Alpe di Siusi in pink The Alpe di Siusi, Giro d’Italia stage of 2009, once again hosted a route stage of the Giro in 2016. Castelrotto and Europe’s largest mountain plateau provided the spectacular setting for the mammoth sporting event. On May 22nd 2016, around 200 cycling pros cycled the 15th stage from Castelrotto to Compatsch on the 10.8 kilometre stretch, with an average gradient of 8%, never dropping below a 750 m elevation difference. The victory of the day went to 24 year-old Alexander Foliforov from Russia. “Winning this stage was a dream,” he exulted, sharing his joy with the countless Giro fans who witnessed the event.

Text: Elisabeth Augustin Photo: Helmuth Rier

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Herbs and flowers: the hay comes from the unfertilised meadows around the Marmotte hut on the Alpe di Siusi.

“ Good humour and renewed joy in life” ... these, as an observant chronicler noted 100 years ago, are the “first appreciable results” of a hay bath. In its origins, this practice of lying in hay was a rustic affair indeed, and bore no resemblance to the modern-day aesthetics of wellness as a gentle, meditative therapy.

Whatever the case, even as far back as 200 years ago, people were resolutely convinced of the usefulness of this unusual spa treatment.

M Many places in the Alpine region claim to have discovered the hay bath; most of these forms of the treatment involve bathing in a decoction of hay blossom or similar variants on the original, extremely natural spa treatment, which consisted of a full “packing” of the patient in freshly cut hay.

Only very few communities, and all of them in the Alpine region, can reliably prove that they have used and offered this treatment for centuries on end. And of these original hay bath places of its inception, only one has remained true to the original: the Hotel Heubad in Fiè allo Sciliar, which also has the distinction of having brought this archaic restorative spectacle to its modern-day form in therapeutic and tourism terms. The procedure has been reworked a number of times here, customised to more stringent hygienic demands and, additionally, offered year-round.

Back to the roots. In far-back 1826, a literary-documentary style travel report mentions the practice of “burying in hay” as one of the peculiarities of the Dolomites. In its early days this thermal

therapy was born of necessity, as during the hay harvest on the high mountain pastures, the farmers had no option but to sleep in the fresh haystacks. The following morning, so the florid tales go, they were magnificently revivified and all tiredness had melted from their work-weary bones as if by magic. Word of this wonders of hay-healing cure began to spread, and before long the first wine and valley farmers in the region began to make their way to the Sciliar mountain for a spot of restorative therapy at harvest time. In the middle of the 19th century, a veritable hay-bath tourist industry began to take shape on the iconic mountain of South Tyrol. Whole families made their way up from Bolzano to enjoy some fresh summer air along with a hay treatment. With the growing popularity of this early health culture, it made sense to bring some order to the practice, not least to spare the truly ill the arduous walk up the footpaths of the Sciliar and to improve the economic return. Thenceforth, the freshly-cut hay from the Sciliar was transported down into the valley, and when the route through »

Text: Sabine Funk Photos: Helmuth Rier

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The high coumarin content gives the hay its distinctive perfume and healing powers.

The works of painter Hubert Mumelter immortalise the era of the hay bath as a group treatment.

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the Sciliar gully was devastated in the 1880s, the conveyance took on epic proportions. The hay was packed into sacks, attached to wire ropes and lowered down in two stages - firstly across the gully and then down to Peter Frag. From here, it was carted to Fiè, where the baths were organised in rotation: each year, one sole hotelier received the hay and, along with it, the concession for the season, from the Kreuzwirt to the Rose Wenzer and so on.

The methods of those times seem positively archaic: stone chambers were filled with hay and a hole was dug out in which to “bury” the eager bather up to the neck. After roughly 30-minutes in the hay, he was disentombed and taken to a dormitory style room to sweat and rest. The faces dripping with sweat and peering out from the hay were reminiscent of wretched souls in purgatory, according to one chronicler. Nevertheless, the bath was “enjoyed with copious amounts of wine“, and records tell of the “7 hay baths and 9 wine baths” which were taken by one bathing guest in 1900. While the guests were immersed in the hay, the “bath muller” would dash from one guest to the next to administer the “noble nectar”. And with this winning, sweaty blend “good humour and renewed joy in life” were ensured.

Explanations of the efficacy of this hay-therapy vary according to medical orientation, but all agree that it is a form of heat-pack. Owing to the fungal spores and micro-organisms, the hay ferments when it comes into contact with oxygen, and the temperature rises considerably. This “burning”, a well-known process which is notoriously difficult to control, has been the cause of many a barn fire. Freshly cut, damp hay can reach temperatures of between 40 and even up to 60 degrees relatively quickly and from a medicinal point of view it is this uniform humidity which is primarily responsible for its therapeutic effects. The composition of the hay from high-lying, rough grassland and pastures and the biodiversity of the calcareous terrain of the Dolomites also play their part. Bitter gentian, artemisia, lamb’s lettuce, brunella, edelweiss, alpine yarrow, mountain camomile, aremeria alpina and veronica all form part of the mysterious healing brew of the hay bath. As we are now treading in

the territory of natural healing assertions should be considered with prudence, but it would seem probable that the essential oils, and particularly the high level of coumarin in the exclusive blend of herbs, will provide a further beneficial effect.

Coumarin also accounts for the distinctive smell of hay.

Sebastian Kneipp was also a believer in the healing powers of the hay bath. In South Tyrol, the first doctor who worked with hay on a medicinal level was Dr Josef Clara, widely respected in his own lifetime. Having tried it out on his own ailing brother, he was soon confident that it held great therapeutic promise. He also believed, however, that the hygienic shortcomings had to be dealt with before the treatment could reach its full potential. It takes no great leap of imagination to envisage the unappetising side of the original hay bath, with a succession of sweating, ill people “buried” in the same hay.

At the beginning of the 1920s, Dr Clara persuaded the farmers from Merlhof to build a modern bathing facility with two floors, separate sweating, resting and bathing rooms for women and men, where massages and physiotherapy treatments would also be on offer and where the guests would be covered up to their necks in a clean linen cloth during their hay treatment. The doctor also lent the farmers the money to finance the bathing facilities and guest house. Thus the Hotel Heubad in Fiè came into being - and ever since, it has been the first port of call for hay baths in the Sciliar region.

Much has changed since the pioneering days of the hay bath. Popularity never waned, even during the post-war years, and the infrastructure of the guest house and bathing facilities were modernised and developed constantly over the years. Be that as it may, even the “modern” form of hay-bathing was wanting in terms of hygiene and practicalities, not least because the treatment was only available from June to September. Putting the benefit of her many years of experience and knowledge of the treatment to good use, Maria Kompatscher, the landlady at the time, began to experiment with new ideas. In the 1990s, she formulated an innovative proce- »

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At the Hotel Heubad, up to 4 kg of hay are used for a full-body treatment.

dure which is used to this day at the Hotel Heubad. For a modern hay bath, three to four kilos of dried Alpine hay are steeped for an hour and then placed in a sheetlined tub, in which the bather then lies.

After the guest’s whole body has been cocooned in hay (except for the head, naturally), he reclines on a warm water bed, which keeps the temperature at a constant 42 degrees. The session lasts for 20 minutes, after which the patient retires for the traditional resting phase.

Today, the hay bath as a group treatment lives on only through the paintings of Hubert Mumelter, on display in the spa area.

The painter was a great fan of the treatment and depicted his visits to the Fiè hay baths in humorous imagery.

One thing that has remained unaltered over time is the almost magical composition of the hay. The hotel no longer receives the precious therapy substance from the Sciliar, but from the Alpine meadows around the Marmotte Hut on the Alpe di Siusi, which lies at a similar elevation to the meadows of the Sciliar.

An uncommon wealth of herbs still grows here on the unfertilised, calcareous rough lands and meadows, which are becoming ever rarer even on the Alpe di Siusi. When it is brought to the hotel, the hay is stored in a barn, from where it is taken directly for the treatments. While the treatment was previously only practicable in the summer months from the end of June to the end of September, the new technique means that hay baths can be offered year-round as the dried hay is only “activated” after it has been steeped in water.

This therapy can be used to treat numerous ailments, and has an excellent effect on joint pains, arthritis and rheumatic pains. Given that the dust and pollen stick to the damp hay, it is also an excellent remedy for hay fever and can be enjoyed without cause for worry. «

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Your real estate agency in the Sciliar region Immobilien Immobiliare Real estate

Immobilien · Immobiliare · Real estate

Via O. v. Wolkenstein 14 /1

I - 39040 CASTELROTTO (BZ)

info@agentur-profanter.com T. +39 0471 707248

+39 348 3832788

www.agentur - profanter.com

Profanter Immobilien

Office hours: Monday to Friday from 8 to12.30 a.m. and from 2 to 5 p.m.

Armin Rag. Profanter Summer | ALPE 11

The vibrant accounts of Helmut Stampfer, former Director of the Regional Cultural Heritage Office in Bolzano, bring history to life.

Treasures of art history Art historian Helmut Stampfer tells ALPE about the most significant cultural landmarks to be found between Tires al Catinaccio and Castelrotto. With a little expert background knowledge behind you, your tour of discovery will be even more fun.

I If you’re looking for tips and advice on the best art and history landmarks to visit in the Sciliar area, Helmut Stampfer is your man. Art historian, heritage conservationist and resident of Fiè, he is the former director of the regional cultural heritage office, the author of numerous publications on the artistic and cultural history of South Tyrol and honorary professor at the University of Innsbruck.

Text: Rosa Maria Erlacher Photos: Helmuth Rier

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Villa Felseck in Castelrotto. On the outskirts of the village of Castelrotto, a lavishly painted building catches your eye. This is the house where Castelrotto artist Eduard Burgauner lived with his family until 1913, when a stomach disease brought about his untimely death at the age of just 40. Burgauner left a magnificent legacy behind him: as a young graduate from the Vienna School of Arts and Crafts, he set himself no less a purpose than to transform his entire hometown of Castelrotto into a work of art. A number of buildings painted by Burgauner still shape the face of the village to this day, including the erstwhile Hotel Lupo, his parents’ home of the Burgauner bakery, the Mendel House and his own family home of Villa Felseck.

What Helmut Stampfer finds particularly interesting about Burgauner’s art is the “interesting blend of art nouveau and certain aspects of regional art.” Burgauner painted every inch of all four

outer walls of the detached villa – only the southern side is concealed, as an extension was added in later years. In the annual cycle which is illustrated, every month is depicted with what he considered to be a typical event, some with Castelrotto or the Sciliar in the background. “The artist succeeded in embedding the modern art which he had brought back with him from Vienna into the local context,” adds the former cultural heritage director.

Castelvecchio above Siusi. Helmut Stampfer considers the ruins of Castelvecchio, located above Siusi allo Sciliar in the middle of the wood below the Santner peak, to be an extremely noteworthy spot. The castle was - off and on, at least - home to Oswald von Wolkenstein (1377 – 1445), one of the most celebrated poets and composers of the Middle Ages. This cosmopolitan, widely-travelled knight and diplomat gifted numerous songs to posterity, among which the Hauensteiner Lied (The Song of Castelvecchio), in which he sets his discontent at the constraints of castle life to rhyme. The Lords of Castelvecchio built the castle on a colossal mass of rock which had fallen from the Sciliar, and decades later it passed into the hands of Oswald and his large offspring after a bitter dispute over inheritance. Today, an easy path leads up to the castle ruins. “The old » The brightly coloured frescoes adorning the façade of the Villa Felseck are just one of the artistic treasures painted

by Eduard Burgauner in the village of Castelrotto.

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The Roman cross in Fiè allo Sciliar is exceptional in both its size and simplicity.

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The frescoes illustrating the legend of Santa Caterina in Aica di Fiè remain virtually unchanged from when they were first painted in 1420.

walls, fallen into ruin, are not so important in themselves, but the view is incredible,” art historian Helmut Stampfer tells us. A few years ago, the remains of a prehistoric settlement were unearthed. During fortification works, a room with fragments of frescoes was discovered in the cas-

tle ruins. “It was extremely unusual for such a small castle to be decorated with wall-art in the 15th century,” Stampfer emphasises.

The Roman Crucifix in Fiè. This is the most noteworthy piece of artwork that remains in the Fiè parish church. The cross dates back to the end of the 12th or early 13th century – between 1190 and 1210 – and was most probably a triumphal cross for the Novacella Abbey church in Bressanone. Fiè fell under the parish of Novacella, and most likely a canon from Novacella brought the cross to Fiè.

“Its size alone is a good indication that it was not built for the Fiè parish church,” explains the art historian. The arms of the crucifix were removed at a later date and the figure on the cross was used to represent the body of Jesus in the tomb, in Baroque style. This cross, an extremely valuable Roman crucifix as Helmut Stampfer emphasises, was

only rediscovered in 1938, in a store room. The crucifix was restored and has been conserved at the San Michele Chapel in Fiè ever since. Unfortunately, the crucifix and the figure bore only small traces of colour, from which we can deduce, says the art expert, that it was painted at one time.

The frescoes at the Santa Caterina church. The small church is located in the small hamlet of Breien, just below the road to Tires. The frescoes on the southern wall of the Santa Caterina church are, according to art historian Helmut Stampfer, worthy of note for a number of reasons:

The ruins of Castelvecchio above Siusi allo Sciliar, erstwhile home to Oswald von Wolkenstein, poet and knight.

1. The frescoes have never been painted over. This is a rarity in itself, as most middle-age frescoes in South Tyrol were whitewashed over and restored to their original glory at a later date, a process which always leads to some form of loss. These frescoes, on the other hand, remain, as far as we know, exactly as they were when painted in 1420.

2.

The frescoes are exceptionally high quality, painted in the Bolzano-school style, a gothic art movement with local features, which counted the most important painters from Bolzano and »

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plains Helmut Stampfer. Fortunately, the frescoes are covered over by an awning; otherwise they would not have stood up to the weatherings of time. Catherine was the patron saint of waggoneers and wainwrights, particularly the former. Given that the church was built beside an old link road which led to the Southern Alps, the waggoneers very likely stopped off here to rest, pray, make offerings and admire the frescoes in the process. The outer frescoes, then, also had an educational purpose, Stampfer believes.

The three frescoes decorating the ceiling vaults of the Tires al Catinaccio parish church are particularly impressive.

the surrounding area among its members. No specific names are known, but stylistically the frescoes are typical of those times and of this particular “school”.

3. The outer walls of the church are generally decorated with only a St Christopher or occasionally a patron saint, while the cycle of frescoes on the southern wall of the Santa Caterina church depicts the entire life of the patron saint in 11 scenes. The images show the legend of the king’s daughter who converted to the Christian faith and whose body was taken to Sinai following her martyrdom.

4. Why on the outer walls? Usually, the inner walls of the church are painted so that the congregation can see them and as an aid to prayer, ex-

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The Tires parish church. The red, bulb-shaped dome of the Tires parish church can be seen from far and wide but the most impressive feature of this church, Helmut Stampfer tells us, is the frescoed ceiling. Not the vaulted ceiling in itself, but rather the three frescoes which decorate it. High above the altar, we see a scapular Virgin Mary. This form of imagery, where we see the Virgin Mary dispensing amulets, was common of the Baroque period. Above the nave and the organ, two scenes of the legend of St George, to whom the church is consecrated, are illustrated. In the centre, we see St George standing before the judge, while the other painting shows St George slaying the dragon, eternal symbol of evil. St George was a 3rd century knight who lived in the Far East and whose martyrdom legend spread through Europe only after the crusades. From this time onwards, numerous castle chapels were devoted to St George, patron saint of knights and warriors. Evil is one of the fundamental themes which has always occupied humanity, and particularly so in the Baroque period.

During the last restoration works of the church interior in the second half of the 18th century, an eminent artist was brought to Tires for the ceiling work. “Not just the village painter,” art expert Helmut Stampfer points out, “but the best painter in Bolzano at that time.” Karl Henrici (born in Silesia in 1737, died 1823 in Bolzano) moved to Bolzano after having studied for two years in Verona, where he made a name for himself as a Baroque artist and portrait painter. Amongst other works, he painted the Heart of Jesus in Bolzano Cathedral. The Tires parish church was renovated in 1771, and the paintings were signed in 1772. «

Foto: SAM/Helmuth Rier

The fascinating landscape of the Dolomites is particularly suggestive thanks to the strange rock formations and the unmistakeable colours.

The myth of the Dolomites In South Tyrolean extreme mountaineer Reinhold Messner’s words, they are “the most beautiful mountains in the world“. The incomparable beauty of the Dolomites is widely renowned and for many they are synonymous with excellence in summer holidays.

The mountains of the Dolomites can be thought of as a fossilised coral reef arching up into the sky in spectacular fashion. Thanks to their monumental beauty as well as their geological and geomorphologic significance, the so-called Pale Mountains were awarded UNESCO World Heritage status in 2009. Divided into nine areas and forming part of the Sciliar-Catinaccio Natural Park, the

Euringer peaks, stands out as one of the signature landmarks of South Tyrol. The Catinaccio massif, with its numerous peaks, is also known far beyond the country’s borders. The most striking part of the massif is the Catinaccio D’Antermoia peak, which stands at a height of 3,002 metres.

The natural park also includes the mountain forests around Siusi, Fiè and Tires, and the Ciamin Valley. «

Dolomites are considered one of the most beautiful natural landscapes in the world.

Sciliar-Catinaccio Nature Park: South Tyrol’s oldest natural reserve, a 7,291-hectare park, is situated in the western Dolomites and was founded in 1974. The Sciliar is an impressive mountain range whose emblematic outline, that includes the Santner and

Bruneck Brunico

Südtirol Brixen Bressanone

Meran Merano

Lienz Toblach Dobbiaco

St. Vigil S. Vigilio

5 St. Ulrich

Kastelruth Ortisei Castelrotto Seis am Schlern Seiser Alm Siusi allo Sciliar Alpe di Siusi Völs am Schlern

Dolomites World Heritage UNESCO 1

Pelmo, Croda da Lago

2 Marmolada 3 Pale San Martino, San Lucano Dolomiti Bellunesi, Vette Feltrine 4 Friulian and d’Oltre Piave Dolomites

6

Auronzo Corvara

Cortina d’Ampezzo

Fiè allo Sciliar

Bozen Bolzano

Tiers/Tires

7

Canazei

2

8

Alleghe

Pieve di Cadore

1

4

Zoldo

Cavalese

Agordo

3

Longarone

Cimolais

Pordenone

Madonna di Campiglio Fiera di Primiero

9 Trento

Belluno

Udine

Belluno Feltre

Trentino

Ampezzo

Pordenone

5 Northern Dolomites 6 Puez-Odle 7 Sciliar Catinaccio, Latemar 8 Bletterbach 9 Brenta Dolomites

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The 500 year-old “Water Letter� is astoundingly meticulous: elegant Gothic cursive and a finely crafted sketch.

Water courses over time Water has always been an important topic for Fiè allo Sciliar.

2017 is the 500th jubilee of the “Water Letter”, celebrating a long-documented history of this invaluable element, and most of all, the innovative spirit of the legendary Leonardo of Fiè.

2017 is an important jubilee for the community of Fiè allo Sciliar, whose history is so intertwined with that of Leonardo of Fiè. Leonardo the Elder (1458-1530), never to be forgotten Governor of the Adige and Burgrave of Tyrol, was an uncommonly energetic, resolute and successful individual who made his mark not only in the history of Fiè, but the entire lands and mountains of the Adige.

While 2006 was the year that Fiè allo Sciliar commemorated the ignoble Fiè witch trials of 1506 and 1510, this year marks the achievements of Leonardo and the completion of the Prösels Castle renovations, which were commissioned by Leonardo and came to a close in 1517 with all the deco­ rous splendour of a Renaissance castle. At that time (around 1520), gothic renovations of the parish church also began; in Leonardo’s day, a great deal of ecclesiastical construction took place in the lands around Fiè, and it is also estimated that the Laghetto di Fiè lake, along with other water reservoirs, was also created in the first quarter of the 16th century.

The main cause for celebration is that this was the year of the historic “Water Letter”: Governor of Tyrol, Leonardo of Fiè was a man of great vision and foresight. This was unequivocally confirmed in farback 1517, when he drafted a document unique for those times with plans for the regulation of the entire drinking water supply in the community of Fiè. The “Fountain Letter”, complete with sketches of the supply system and the fountain, survives to this day - right down to the wax seal – and is held in the Fiè parish archives. No other document dating to as far back in time exists. In elegant Gothic cursive, Leonardo outlines his intention to enlarge the existing fountain in the village square

with the addition of a new one; wooden pipelines, with a number of ramifications, were to convey the spring water from the Alpe Tuff at the foot of the Sciliar to the village square, with peripheral fountains to supply the outlying farms.

The Fountain Letter. It was half a millennium ago that Leonardo planned the water supply line from Tuff down to Fiè village centre. This means that the village of Fiè has been furnished with a regulated supply and the very best of Sciliar water since 1517. In the centuries preceding, people could access water only from underground springs known as Ziggel and very few farms could boast their own spring and a fountain. During periods of drought, therefore, water was often in short supply in Fiè while at the foot of the Sciliar water was overflowing from the copious springs.

An early-modern Lord of the Manor, Leonardo, member of the lesser nobility and later elevated to the station of Baron, was no newcomer to waterways. From 1491 to 1501, he was governor of the salt mines in Tyrol, where kilometre-long wooden brine pipes led to the saltpans in the pan house.

The Hall salt mines were a lucrative business indeed, primarily for Emperor Maximilian but also for Leonardo and the town itself.

The lack of good drinking water for people and animals in lower and upper Fiè, but also and especially the prospect of securing of the majority of the incoming water to both his family’s residence (today the Hotel Turm) and the planned manor house in the village centre would certainly have figured in Leonardo’s considerations in his decision to exploit his expertise from Hall in Tirol and begin works on a modern aqueduct to Fiè. As »

Text: Elisabeth Augustin Photos: Helmuth Rier

(cont. on page 22) Summer | ALPE 19

WHO WAS LEONARDO OF FIÈ?

The Lords of Fiè are first mentioned in documents dating back to the 12th century. The northern tower of the parish church in the village centre is the oldest castle of the main line of the Lords of Fiè, while the most recent is the CASTRUM PRESIL (Prösels Castle), first referenced in documents dated 1279. The Lords of Fiè enjoyed almost exclusive feudal dominion in the mountains of Fiè and were responsible for a great deal of settlement expansion in the High Middle Ages.

500 years ago, Leonardo the Elder of Fiè was Governor of the Adige and Burgrave of Tyrol.

In Leonardo the Elder of Fiè, the Lords of Fiè reached the heights of the power and wealth, and the name of this indefatigable, multi-talented man will ever be linked with the town of Fiè.

Driven by his own ambition, he was at time and a hard and ruthless taskmaster of his subjects, such that during the Peasants’ War of 1525, he was considered to be the main adversary of the farmers in his judicial district.

Leonardo was also a diplomat and a soldier, and in 1487 he fought against the Venetians at Calliano.

The Fiè aristocrat was wellknown to Maximilian I, King and Emperor of the German Empire.

The Habsburgs often called on the services of the South Tyrolean nobleman, entrusting him with military and diplomatic responsibilities in northern Italy, in conflicts with the Republic of Venice, in Bavaria and in Tyrol.

In 1498, Leonardo was declared State Governor and Burgrave of

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Tyrol, and thus the highest-ranking nobleman in the land. In 1499, he was temporary Commander in Chief against the Swiss Confederacy in Val Monastero and Val Venosta; in 1504 he fought in the Bavarian War of Succession, in 1508 in the war against Venice, and again in 1516 against Milan. The stone crest above the first tower door, dated 1517, suggests that Leonardo of Fiè inaugurated the newly renovated Prösels Castle, converted into a fortress with its two towers, in that year or in any case, would have been using a substantial part of it. In 1518, he was Head of the Commission for the repurchase of the mines in Tyrol.

Leonardo was ever mindful to elevate his own status throughout the land, and to this end he expanded and augmented his estate through involvement in all and any enterprises. Leonardo’s three marriages to extremely wealthy noblewomen - Regina of Thun, Katharina of Firmian and Ursula of Montfort - were no doubt advantageous to these aims.

A not inconsiderable share of the estate and the Prösels Castle grounds remained in the hands of the Lords of Fiè until the lineage died out in 1804, having suffered significant financial losses through unprofitable sales, dowries for the women of the family on marriage or entry into the Holy Order and, last but not least, donations to religious orders. The well-kept Prösels Castle is today

managed by a board of trustees and is well-known as a cultural centre far beyond regional borders.

In 1520, Leonardo the Elder of Fiè was elevated to the title of Baron. Although evidence is scant, it appears that at around this time he received a letter of affiliation from the Roman admiral Marcantonio Colonna, thus entering the declining Colonna lineage, which allowed him to adopt their title and add the Colonna pillar to his coat of arms.

The incredible heritage which Leonardo left to the local community is not without its darker side: one particularly bleak chapter in the annals of local history were the Fiè witch trials of 1506 and 1510. Leonardo’s ruthlessness is well-documented in the “Grievance Articles” submitted to the State Parliament of Merano by the farmers from Fiè in May 1525. They state that he had expropriated plots of land from farmers without lowering their rent, while in other cases he had raised rents with equally no justification. The farmers felt cheated in many ways and demanded the dismissal of the State Governor. Today, the residents of Fiè consider themselves fortunate in that the “Water Letter” was not destroyed during the many-week siege of Prösels Castle unlike so many other documents, and that this remarkable testimony to the history of the community remains with us to this day.

Leonardo of Fiè made his mark on PrÜsels Castle.

The historic Water Letter with its 500 year-old wax seal.

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SOURCES Franz Huter, “Völs am Schlern 888-1988”, Ein Gemeindebuch, 1988 (Fiè allo Sciliar 888-1988”, a community volume, 1988) Elmar Perkmann, “Völser Zeitung” newspaper, 1/2017 Drinking Water Cooperative of Fiè allo Sciliar, “Der Völser Wasserbrief von 1517” (The Water Letter of Fiè, 1517) Helmut Stampfer, Lecture “Die Herren von Völs und ihre Wappen” (The Lords of Fiè and their Coat of Arms), 2017

we can read in the “Fountain Letter” dated 1517: “… and I have made a personal commitment, together with the assistance of the entire judicial community, that good spring water shall be conducted from the mountains of Tuffrain over the lake above Woff to Upper Fiè and towards Lower Fiè to an orderly, abundant fountain, by means of wooden piping …”

The Fiè allo Sciliar village square and the fountain, commemorated this year, which has been dispensing fresh water for 500 years.

The fountain itself is divided in two shares: the right hand side was commandeered by Leonardo for the private manorial fountain as the “herschaffts prun”

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The “Fountain Letter” is, in several passages, astoundingly detailed, and the accompanying sketches of a fountain with two painstakingly drawn columns, replete with banners and two spouts with water shooting out are testimony to the artistic talents of a nameless scribe in Leonardo’s service. Across the reservoir of the fountain, we read the words “Gemain prunne auff dem platz unter Vels” (communal fountain in the square below Fiè).

(manor share), while the new, left-hand side of the fountain was allotted to the public.

The “Water Letter” referred to a spring below Alpe Tuff which “at source, in a goodly trough” would be covered over with stone slabs and the water stocked in an orderly reservoir which would be sheltered from rainwater and dirt and, at the same time, ensure that dirt and sand would settle to the bottom and thus not pass through the pipelines.

The water flowed along wooden pipelines from Tuff to the village centre, a distance of 3,200 metres in today’s measurements. Along the route, a few farms were also connected to Leonardo’s water supply network. In neighbourly spirit, the letter stated that any surplus water could be used for irrigation purposes by all those resident in the catchment area.

And 500 years later, the people of Fiè and their numerous holiday guests greatly value the fact that the Fiè water still meets the most stringent of drinking water criteria. «

HEALTH-CONSCIOUS SPA TREATMENT IN HARMONY WITH NATURE Our rural ancestors were acutely aware of just how potent mountain hay from the Dolomites can be. Rich in herbs and flowers, it gives off an incomparable aroma, recognizable only as a freshly mown meadow in full bloom.

In combination with our knowledge the health benefits of natural mountain hay, based on three pillars: detox, relax and construct, come to fruition.

The Original Völser Heubad® combines tradition and progress. Experience perspiring while immersed in hay as a whole body treatment, and discover the skin care line Trehs® Orignal Bergheu, with its one-of-akind mountain hay extract from the alkaline grasslands of Seiser Alm. Book your own hay bath by calling +39 0471 725020.

Our bath department is open Mondays to Saturdays from 7:00 a.m. to noon and from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Closed on Sundays.

Hay baths, massages and cosmetics are also available to those not staying at the hotel.

INFO@HOTELHEUBAD.COM WWW.HOTELHEUBAD.COM

HOTEL HEUBAD · SPA · RESTAURANT 39050 HOTEL FIÈHEUBAD ALLO SCILIAR · SPA (BZ) · RESTAURANT · VIA SCILIAR 12 39050 FIÈ ALLO SCILIAR (BZ) · VIA SCILIAR 12 SOUTH TYROL - ITALY · TEL. + 39 0471 725 020

Beekeeper Markus Pfeifer proudly shows his hive in Tires.

No life without bees In times gone by when people were still self-sufficient, practically every farm kept bees as before the days of mass sugar production honey was the main, and often the only, sweetener available.

T

Text: Katja Sanin Photos: Helmuth Rier

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There are currently around three thousand registered beekeepers in South Tyrol, 15 of whom are from Tires, where the most common style of hives are the traditional Hinterbehandlungsbeuten (rear access hive). A beehive is home to one single colony of bees, and there are many and varied styles of beehive, which differ in building style, material and handling technique. A Hinterbehandlungsbeute hive consists of two layers, the brood chamber and the honey super on the upper level, with wooden frames and wax honeycombs, whose cells are filled by the bees with larvae, honey and pollen. A mesh divider known as the ‘queen ex-

cluder’ sits between them to separate the queen from the honey super. As the name suggests, beekeepers access these hives from the rear; this kind of hive is traditionally popular in German-speaking countries, while most of the beekeepers in the rest of the world – and the region – prefer top-access hives, the modern style of storage hive which we often see dotting the countryside. “I use the rear-access model, as I’m used to working with this traditional style. I took the hive over from my father, who died in 2016 at the age of 101 and I » find it practical: I have all my equipment to hand and don’t have to pack everything up and carry it

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The Tires Beekeeping Association wants to raise public awareness on the importance of bees in order to safeguard their future.

around. I also like keeping an old tradition alive and I’m always happy when walkers are interested in the hive,” says Markus Pfeifer, chairman of the Tires Beekeeping Association.

Bees and the economy. The Tires Beekeeping Association was first referenced in a document dated 1897. Markus Pfeifer has been the chairman of the association for ten years, and tells us that there are an estimated twenty thousand species of bees around the world, of which only around ten species produce honey. Bees play an important role in the food chain as, according to UN reports, 71% of the 100 most important grain, fruit and vegetable crops, 90% of which are food crops, are pollinated by bees. This small insect is, therefore, an enormous factor for the economy and extremely important for agriculture. Bees are remarkably hard-working animals with a short life span: in summer, when they collect nectar, they live for only six weeks. They flit industriously from flower to flower, collecting pollen in the corbiculae ‘baskets’ in their hind legs, and transferring it to the other flowers in their area. Each year, a colony of bees needs around 20 to 40 kg of pollen, 60 to 70 kg of honey and, especially in spring and summer, roughly 200 grams of water each day. To yield one kg of honey, a bee has to fly out from the hive one hundred and fifty thousand times and visit up to six million flowers, covering a distance of forty thousand to one hundred and twenty thousand kilometres: that equates to around one to three times the Earth’s circumference. Pretty impressive, considering the honey bee only flies out from the hive to gather nectar in the last two weeks of its 6-week long existence.

In the Sciliar-Catinaccio area, the blossoming season is over by the end of July as a rule, and this is when the beekeepers extract the honey. And this marks the start of the beekeeper’s year: they feed the colony of bees with liquid food throughout the winter months. During this season, the hive is colonised by winter bees, which live on until spring. A single winter colony consists of a few thousand bees, while the summer months count tens of thousands. The winter bees fill up all the cracks and crevices with propolis, and then winter peace reigns. The ‘bee glue’, as propolis is also

known, serves as preventative healthcare: the bees make this natural disinfectant from the sap of poplar, birch, willow or beech trees and use it to protect their hive from pathogens, as it inhibits the spread of bacteria, viruses and fungi. Even dead bees which are found in the hive are covered over with propolis disinfectant. A colony of bees will produce from 100 to 300 grams of propolis per year. Ancient Egyptians already knew of the preservative properties of propolis, and used it to embalm mummies.

Queen bee, worker bees and drones. In spring, towards the end of February and beginning of March, when the days are drawing out and the first hazel, willow and heather blossom begins to appear, the queen bee starts to lay eggs. The winter bees gradually die off and as nature awakens, the colony transforms into its summer colony. As soon as dandelions and meadow flowers blossom and enough nectar is at hand, the young bees begin to build honeycombs. With the rapid increase in the size of the colony, the hives – especially rear-access hives – become too small and the bees begin to swarm. At this time, the old queen leaves the hive with a proportion of the colony and they settle on a branch or somewhere out in the open, where the beekeeper captures them. And this is how a new colony is created. There is only ever one queen for every hive, and she can live up to five years. She is the only fertile female of the colony, and her sole task is to reproduce. She can be identified by her long, thin abdomen and by the paint which beekeepers dot on her back in order to recognise her more easily and to keep track of her age, as they change queens every two to three years in order to maintain a high level of productivity. The queen comes from the same type of egg as every other bee, but is fed with royal jelly which the worker bees secrete into the queen cup. Unlike the considerably smaller cells of working bee larvae, the queen cup, or cell, is two to three centimetres long.

The queen bee emerges after sixteen days, and is fertilised by a number of drones on what is known as the ‘nuptial flight’, after which she lays up to two thousand eggs a day. Drone bees are the product of unfertilised eggs, and their role in the hive is to mate with the queen, while bees emerge from the fertilised eggs after 21 days, begin work in the hive immediately, and continue with this task for »

Summer | ALPE 27

the first four weeks of their lives. They feed the young bees, clean the hive and produce wax for honeycombs, and only collect nectar in the last two weeks of their lives.

Beekeeper by passion: Markus Pfeifer dedicates a great deal of care and time to his bees.

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Making life better for bees. The UN is concerned about the worldwide bee mortality rate, which researchers have been studying with apprehension for years. In 2015 at the “Feeding the Planet” international expo in Milan, the United Kingdom‘s theme was dedicated to bees. The pavilion, a metal beehive-type structure, was accessed via a blossoming meadow. Causes of bee deaths are attributable, amongst other factors, to the Asian varroa mite, the use of poisonous pesticides in agriculture and gardens, and the decreasing number of flower meadows. Many beekeepers are actively involved in combating bee mortality. The Tires Beekeeping Association, together with the education board, designated 2016 the “Year of the Bee” and established a series of public awareness projects which included talks, workshops, visits to beehives and nature tours to illustrate the connections in the ecological circle and to show that everybody can do something to make life better for bees. Cooking and painting workshops were held on the theme of honey, a workshop on honey as ‘liquid gold’ for health and cosmetics, and another workshop for primary and secondary school pupils which involved building insect hotels which can be fixed to garden or balcony walls: by using cane, sunflower stalks or blackberry stems placed horizontally, these ‘hotels’ provide a natural nesting aid for bees. Another nesting aid comes in the form of the bee tree or Zeidler-tree, seldom seen these days, but a technique which is making a definite comeback. The term Zeidlerei refers to the Middle Age profession of gathering honey from wild or semi-wild colonies, whereby the Zeidler (tree beekeeper) hollowed out cavities in tree trunks to house the bees. This tradition has been preserved in the Ural Mountains in Russia, which means that today’s beekeepers and foresters can once again learn the age-old craft. The Zeidlerei profession disappeared gradually with the introduction of sugar cane, although even in the 17th century sugar was still so expensive that it was beyond the means of most. It only became affordable in the 19th century as a result of sugar beet cultivation, which supplanted honey as a sweetener. «

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30 ALPE | Summer

Adventurous escapades Günther Karbon, native of Castelrotto, has proven his standing as one of the best sport climbers in Italy in international competitions.

S Sport climbing has soared in popularity over the past few years; all age groups come together in the open-air and climbing centres, from children to senior citizens. The attraction of the sport lies first and foremost in the challenge of overcoming vertical obstacles with one’s own strength alone.

In sport climbing, it’s not the height of the wall so much as the difficulty that counts, Günther tells us as he explains the fundamental concepts behind the free-climbing style. The Castelrotto climber began climbing when he was twenty years old: “Relatively late, but when I started I made up for lost time,” he recalls.

Climbing centre. A great deal of strength training features on his program, and likewise, a great deal of technique training in the climbing centre.

The climbing centres, which are springing up like mushrooms the length and breadth of the city and region, provide an excellent opportunity for athletes to hone their skills. With a variety of grips and steps and a range of wall inclinations, the artificial walls offer all imaginable difficulty levels.

Conquering them, and getting up a wall as quickly as possible, is the aim of the game at world-level events. Günther has put himself to the test in numerous national and international competitions, including a number of events held in South Tyrol.

Today, Günther is one of the best sport climbers »

Text: Rosa Maria Erlacher Photos: Helmuth Rier

Summer | ALPE 31

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in South Tyrol, and has made a name for himself on the climbing scene far beyond the regional borders.

Lo spreco 8c+. At 27 years old he reached the height of his career when he tackled an exceptionally testing Dolomite face. Such was the dif-

ficulty of “Lo Spreco” on Pian Schiavaneis in the Val di Fassa, graded 8c+, that only three climbers before him had succeeded. “It took me a few attempts, but I got to the top of the 25 m face in the end,” says Günther, not without a touch of pride.

It’s worth mentioning here that a rating of 8c+ is a level that very few sport climbers ever reach. After »

Sport climber Günther Karbon has made a name for himself on the climbing scene far beyond the borders of South Tyrol.

Bouldering Hall at Telfen Sports Centre Bouldering is, basically, climbing without the aid of a rope or belt.

The aim of the climb is to get to the topmost point in as short a time as possible. At Telfen Sports Centre, between Castelrotto and Siusi, bouldering fans can enjoy 210 square metres of surface area with a maximum height of 4 metres, 1,500 grips of varying diffi-

culty and more than enough room for 70 people. The floor of the bouldering hall is covered with thick mattresses. Admission costs are paid at the bar, and all visitors must sign a visitors’ list. Climbs are undertaken at one’s own risk; all under-18s must be accompanied by an adult or bring written permission from a parent.

Information: Telfen Sports Centre, Tel. +39 0471 705 090 Opening times: Daily from 10 am to 9 pm (closed on Tuesdays)

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For the ambitious sport climber, it’s not the peak that’s the goal, but the triumphing over difficulties.

this achievement, Günther left the international scene - for the time being, at least. “My job and my responsibilities in the family company don’t leave me enough free time to keep in training for international events,” he says. Unfortunately, it must be said, as sport climbing is soon to become an Olympic sport. In three years’ time, sport climbers from all corners of the earth will compete in Tokyo at the 2020 Olympic Games. A novelty for many, a gratification for sport climbers, and a validation for hobby climbers.

A way of life. Above all, Günther associates sport climbing with competitive events, while most people who practice this sport do it alone and for their own pleasure. It’s a way of life which reaches far beyond physical condition and technique, a style of life which embraces values like creativity and freedom, they say. “You look at a wall and tackle

34 ALPE | Summer

it head on. You combine your grips and steps and climb the wall in your head before you even begin,” says Günther. It’s not the peak that’s the goal, but the triumphing over difficulties.

Safety on the rope. Günther is also a fan of classic Alpine climbing, but sport climbing is a good deal less risky, in part because the routes are so short.

Apart from jump-height boulders, sport climbing is also, generally speaking, secured with ropes and hooks and so forth. These are, however, only for safety purposes, says Günther, and do not facilitate the climb in any way. Climbing is generally a two-rope party: one person stands at ground level or in a fixed position and secures the rope while the other person climbs, minimising the risk of falling. Many routes are christened with the name of the first person to conquer them, who also establishes the difficulty grading. «

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Apple farmers below the Sciliar: Anton and Daniel Fill from the Simmele Müller Hof farm in San Vigilio.

Mouthwatering mountain apples A spring dream: the snow-capped Dolomite peaks soaring above, while down below on the sun kissed, wind-sheltered slopes, the apple trees are in full bloom.

T The Simmele Müller Hof lies at an altitude of around 800 m: in springtime, when the apple trees blossom against the backdrop of the snow-blanketed Sciliar massif, it’s an out-and-out paradise.

Daniel is a young farmer who knows everything there is to know about apples, from seedling to bottle. His father was the first to grow apples on a large scale in this area. A pioneer, so to speak, as at that time, farmers devoted their labours exclusively to dairy farming. Only the miller from Simmele, ‘Simmele Müller’ as Daniel’s grandfather was known, had a different trade. As time went on, however, and cornfields became ever scarcer, work at the mill began to dwindle. So when a large, sunny meadow orchard came up for sale beside his house and farm, he seized the opportunity.

Text: Rosa Maria Erlacher Photos: Helmuth Rier

36 ALPE | Summer

Apple farming yesterday and today. At one time, the fruit orchards of the area were characterised by tall trees with large crowns laden with small fruit. They were intensely flavoured apples – Canada, Champagne, Caldaro, Steinpeppele, Gravenstein – but unfortunately, they spoiled quickly.

Daniels’ grandfather sold dried pears, the main ingredient for Castelrotto Krapfen (doughnuts), and he pressed the apples into must, a thirst-quenching drink which he sold to the local farmers and landlords.

His son Anton took over the estate, carrying on the tradition, and replaced the tall, old trees with short-stemmed varieties. The narrow walls of fruit, set out in hedge like manner, absorbed a great deal of the sun’s warmth and were considerably less labour-intensive. High-lying fruit orchards require special care, says Daniel, the third generation of apple farmers. Mountain apples are much more crunchy and tasty than those grown down in the valley or in hill orchards, however, so the additional labour which they entail is balanced out by a higher economic return.

Sometimes the apples which are cultivated on the slopes of the Isarco valley, or even in the villages of Fiè allo Sciliar and Castelrotto, are sold at auction, sometimes to the cooperatives and sometimes transformed into juice and vinegar.

Diligent natural care. “We mountain-apple farmers benefit from the fact that we can, generally speaking, still run our estates independently,” Daniel tells us. All around, there are swathes of meadows, scrubland, grassland; this untouched natural environment is home to numerous pest-controllers, including field mice and the songbirds that nest here and eat the many caterpillars in the area, promoting a natural balance. At the edge of his ap- »

Summer | ALPE 37

38 ALPE | Summer

ple orchards, a beekeeper has set out his hives. The long, cold winters also kill off a great deal of para­ sites. However, the watchful farmer has to pitch in and do his bit to keep the orchards healthy. First and foremost, he has to select robust varieties to ensure that the tree is strong and resistant. “We cut off excess shoots in late winter and remove some of the flowers, thin the fruit clusters later in the season, and mulch the soil, to ensure that the

tree can focus all its energies on the quality of the fruit. We also check the trees regularly for pest infestation, which we remove manually and burn,” says Daniel, when telling us about his work.

Apple juice and apple vinegar. The assiduous care of the mountain farmers likewise bears fruit.

Mountain apples are distinguished by their beautiful colour, crunchy bite and intense taste, and command a higher price at auction than apples cultivated in the valleys. The quality of the apple

also makes an enormous difference in the preparation of apple juice.

The Simmele Müller is not the only apple farmer at the foot of the Sciliar to produce apple juice which can be bought in the farm shop, the village shops or at farmers’ markets. Daniel wants to achieve more, though. His products, which include apple vinegar, have won a number of awards, and he expands his

product range every year. His assortment includes popular time-tested juice blends of Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, Jonagold and Gala, and interesting blends of apple juice with other juices including raspberry, blackcurrant, elder, apricot and so on. Daniel also sets great store by the fact that the starter bacteria for his apple vinegar remains, to this day, the one used by his grandfather: the precious mother of vinegar, then, is also making its way down the line from one gene­ration to the next. «

Mountain apples are rich in flavour and are a prized ingredient for apple juice and vinegar.

Summer | ALPE 39

TREATS FROM THE APPLE ORCHARD With over 18,000 continuous hectares of apple orchards, South Tyrol is the largest apple-growing region in Europe.

The apple loves the South Tyrolean climate: the warm, sunny days and cool nights provide the ideal conditions for succulently tasty fruit. Apple trees have been planted around farms as a subsistence crop for centuries, hence the wealth of apple-based recipes which abound in a farmhouse kitchen.

The Apfelkiachln have a long tradition in the South Tyrolean cuisine: easy to make, juicy and delicious

APFELKIACHL (APPLE FRITTERS) Ingredients

Method

3 - 4 strongly-flavoured apples Sugar, rum, lemon juice For the batter: 125 g flour, sieved 1/8 l white wine 2 tablespoons melted butter 1 pinch salt 1 dash spirits 2 eggs Oil for frying Cinnamon, sugar

Mix the flour and wine to a smooth batter. Add the butter, salt, spirits and egg yolk and leave to rest in a warm place for 1-2 hours.

40 ALPE | Summer

Peel and core the apples. Cut into finger-thick slices. Sprinkle with sugar, drizzle with rum and lemon juice, cover with a plate and leave to rest for half an hour.

Dry the apple slices. Whisk egg whites to stiff peaks and fold into the batter. Dip the apple slices in the batter, fry in hot oil, drain and serve with a dusting of cinnamon and sugar.

Recipe taken from “La Cucina nelle Dolomiti�

by Anneliese Kompatscher.

photo: Helmuth Rier

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The new supermarket Coop in the heart of Castelrotto offers you a wide range of first quality products. In the specialities‘ corner you will find unique culinary delights from local farmers, from biological origin and from fair trade. At the selling desk there is the famous butcher Heinz of the renowned Butcher Shop Silbernagl offering you typical Speck from Castelrotto and Helga, the soul of the Bakery and Confectionery Shop Burgauner, who will contribute with the “Schüttelbrot”. Why don‘t you come around?

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Food - Butcher - Bakery - Confectionery - Hardware - Gardening - Agriculture articles Famiglia Cooperativa di Castelrotto · via Panider, 24 · phone 0471 706 330 · www.konsummarkt.com Opening hours: From Monday to Saturday from 7.30 to 12.30 a.m. and from 3.00 to 7.00 p.m.

THE JOY OF TRAVELLING The fascinating tale of how the mountainous lands of South Tyrol came to be a popular holiday destination is narrated in the illustrated book “Reisen, das ist ein Vergnügen” (“The joy of travelling”). Author Waltraud Holzner and Evi Gasser, illustrator from Castelrotto, tell the tale of the arduous journey by stagecoach over the Alps, followed by the rather more comfortable train journey from the large city to the peaceful spa town of Merano. The book also describes how, over the years, a rustic mountain farm developed into a stately hotel which now attracts visitors from all corners of the world.

The picture book was commissioned by the Touriseum. Located beside the Castle Trauttmansdorff gardens in Merano, the museum depicts the history of tourism in South Tyrol through a variety of interesting exhibits. On an enjoyable tour around the Touriseum, visitors old and young can embark on a journey through the remarkable story of tourism and travel in the Alps.

The joy of travelling 36 pages, 1st edition 2017 Publisher: Touriseum - South Tyrol Regional Museum of Tourism, Merano Illustrations and layout: Evi Gasser Text: Waltraud Holzner

42 ALPE | Summer

DOLOMITES - UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE HHH

HOTEL VILLA MADONNA

Restaurant

H O T E L V I L L A MADONNA RESTAURANT & BAR

authenticity and refinement: on this easy recipe we base our success! also gluten free and lactose free.

Via Ibsen 29 39040 Siusi allo Sciliar (Bz) T +39 0471 70 88 60 info@villamadonna.it www.villamadonna.it

Summer | ALPE 43

Photo: OvW-Ritt/Helmuth Rier

Photo: Half Marathon/Armin Indio Mayr

Photo: SAM/Helmuth Rier

Summer Highlights 2017

> 2 May – 28 June

> 9 to 11 June

> 2 July

> 3 July

Alto Adige Balance

Oswald von Wolkenstein Riding Tournament

Alpe di Siusi Half Marathon

Jazzfestival Alto Adige: Jazz&Herbs

3 days, 4 locations and 36 teams: in tribute to knight and minstrel Oswald von Wolkenstein, the three villages of Castelrotto, Siusi and Fiè allo Sciliar organise a historical riding tournament at its very finest.

From 9 to 11 June 2017, visitors to the Oswald von Wolkenstein Riding Tournament can leap back in time to the 14th century and experience life in the Middle Ages, admire the masterly horsemanship and feel the hospitality in South Tyrol. No other riding tournament has the good fortune to be able to offer this kind of culture, tradition, history, sport and folklore all rolled into one single event. www.ovwritt.com

21 kilometres, 601 metres of elevation gain and 700 participants: these are the characteristic numbers of the Alpe di Siusi Half Marathon on 2 July 2017. Surrounded by the Dolomites UNESCO World Heritage, the Alpe di Siusi Half Marathon is a unique experience and sporting challenge for both professional and amateur athletes.

The starter’s gun for the running event with start and finish in Compatsch is fired at 10.00 am. running.seiseralm.it

Mountains, agriculture, food and drinks: the Jazzfestival Alto Adige is deeply connected to the gourmet and relaxation paradise. One highlight is the concert of the Euregio Jazzwerkstatt at the Pflegerhof farm, a bountiful paradise bursting with colours, aromas, and scents.

Incidentally: even when it comes to scents and perfumes we can find duets, harmonies, and dissonances.

Just like in music. And, just like in music, scents can spark an onslaught of memories and emotions. On the farm you can experience the interplay between music and scents: listen to the musicians performing in different ensembles against the backdrop of this colourful floral universe while farmers serve up local dishes made with the herbs of the Pflegerhof farm. www.suedtiroljazzfestival.com

As the countryside awakens in spring, the urge to get out into the open air gets ever stronger and draws us out into the great outdoors and the spring air. “Active and healthy in spring” is the order of the day in South Tyrol. A variety of training sessions and workshops on the theme of health, balance, nutritious diet, optimal training techniques and equipment will ensure you have all the basics you need to get the fresh air and hiking and running season off to a good start. www.seiseralm.it/balance > May – July

Hikes for Flower Lovers Approximately 790 flowering plants and ferns of highly varied appearance and origin can be seen around Sciliar mountain over the course of the year. Typical Alpine flowers but also botanical rarities flourish on the alp mats, in meadows and wheelbarrows. The nature reserve authorities organize about 20 guided hikes every year in cooperation with the tourism associations of the nature reserve communities with experienced nature reserve hiking guide Riccardo Insam.

44 ALPE | Summer

> 19 June

Hiking and mountain talks with Reinhold Messner Discovering the Dolomites, the “most beautiful mountains in the world” with Reinhold Messner: on this group tour, the extreme mountaineer tells of his tours and of his passion that has its origins in the Dolomites, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The walk leads from the Passo Nigra to the Messnerjoch mountain hut and a “round table” lunch.

Photo: Schloss Prösels/Mike Meyer

Photo: TV Kastelruth/Helmuth Rier

Photo: SMIF/Fotolia

> 5 – 24 July

> 8 July

> 10 July – 4 September

> 26 July

Semper Music International Festival

Catinaccio-Sciliar Sky Marathon

Summer Classics in Siusi allo Sciliar

Krausen Banquet

Well-known names including Polina Osetinskaya, Olga Makarina, Boris Kuschnir and Alexander Rudin will be taking the stage at the 15th Semper Music International Festival.

This year’s edition – like the previous ones – provides a unique opportunity to experience concerts by well-known and famous musicians in the Alpe di Siusi holiday area. On the festival program, besides the international competitions, master classes and workshops, there are about 20 concerts with renowned music professors and young artists from North and South America, Asia and Europe participating. All concerts, master classes and workshops are open free of charge for guests and locals.

Admission fees apply only for the star concerts. www.schlernmusicfestival.eu

Right in the very heart of the unique UNESCO World Heritage Dolomites, an Alpine Mountain Marathon with a length of 45 km and around 3,000 m of elevation difference will be setting off from Tires al Catinaccio: the Catinaccio-Sciliar Sky Marathon. The challenging mountain race will begin in Tires, lead round the Catinaccio Massif, over the Sciliar, past the Monte Cavone Hut and back to Tires.

The highest point of the Sky Marathon is the Principe Pass at 2,630 m. www.skymarathontiers.it

For lovers of classical music, Siusi offers an extraordinary series of concerts. Artists will perform the works of great composers. The „Summer Classics“ of Siusi represent a high level of musical talent and have long since become an integral component of our summer cultural program. Both locals and visitors will be enchanted.

Concerts: 10, 17 and 24 July, 21 and 28 August and 4 September 2017

On 26 July 2017, Castelrotto will be welcoming its guests to a culinary event steeped in history: the Krausen banquet. The venue is the Calvary Hill, which, in modern dress, will be infused with the spirit of the Krausen nobility for the day. The Lords of Castelrotto will be greeting guests at the archway which leads to the hill. Herald trumpeters will lead the way up to the hill, where a succulent meal will be served under the open skies. Musical entertainment will add the crowning touch to this gourmet summer’s evening.

Summer | ALPE 45

Photo: IDM/Uwe

Photo: SAM/Helmuth Rier

Photo: IDM/Frieder Blickle

Summer Highlights 2017

> 31 July – 2 August

> 29 September – 10 November

> 1 - 31 October

> 6 to 8 October

Castel Prösels Summer Festival

Authentic Törggelen

The Kuchlkastl - Culinary Festival in Fiè allo Sciliar

Kastelruther Spatzen Music Festival

The Kuchlkastl Culinary Festival has been the culinary highlight of autumn in the Alpe di Siusi holiday area for over 40 years now. Gourmets and lovers of traditional cooking are in for a treat from 1 to 31 October, when the restaurants in Fiè allo Sciliar open their doors for the “Gastronomic October” festival.

The chefs will be serving up traditional recipes with a modern flair.

The theme: old recipes reinterpreted and served with love. www.voelserkuchlkastl.com

Celebrating, spending pleasant evenings together, experiencing the “Kastelruther Spatzen” live: the Spatzen-Festival in Castelrotto is a must for every fan. Surrounded by the unique scenery of the Dolomites the seven “Spatzen” enchant all friends of traditional music.

In the atmospheric ambient of Prösels Castle, so steeped in history, a festival weekend will be taking place for the second year running with thrilling performers and unusual arrangements. The three concerts range from Brazilian jazz through to Klezmer. Bass clarinettist, saxophonist and drummer Christoph Pepe Auer will be taking the stage, the “new voice of Brazilian jazz” Viviane de Farias and Klezmer band Yxalag. schloss-proesels.seiseralm.it

46 ALPE | Summer

Living culture and culinary delights: take the opportunity and recharge your batteries on a hike through the coloured landscape in the autumn sun and taste the fruits of the harvest. The guided hike, which takes place every Friday, leads through old farmsteads and mountain restaurants, through sloping vineyards, chestnut groves and orchards. You will have the possibility to learn more about typical farms and the winegrowing during a wine tasting.

The lunch with traditional dishes at the farm inn is not only a culinary pleasure, it helps you to recharge your batteries for the hike back to the starting point.

Information and registration at the tourist offices

Komma Graphik - photo: Helmuth Rier

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Valid for 14 days (after first use)

> 3 times to the Alpe di Siusi and back, with the Alpe di Siusi Aerial Cableway or the Alpe di Siusi Express (route 10) > unrestricted use of the Shuttle Bus Service (routes 2, 3, 3A, 4, 5, 13, 15), the Almbus (route 11) and the Bus Piz (route 14)

> unrestricted use of the Alpe di Siusi Aerial Cableway and the Alpe di Siusi Express (route 10) > unrestricted use of the Shuttle Bus Service (routes 2, 3, 3A, 4, 5, 13, 15), the Almbus (route 11) and the Bus Piz (route 14)

> unrestricted use of the Alpe di Siusi Aerial Cableway and the Alpe di Siusi Express (route 10) > unrestricted use of the Shuttle Bus Service (routes 2, 3, 3A, 4, 5, 13, 15), the Almbus (route 11) and the Bus Piz (route 14)

The Combi Card and the Seiser Alm Card Gold are not transferable! Children (born after 01/06/2009) and persons on wheelchairs ride free of charge. Juniors (born after 01/06/2001) pay only half fare. *The Holiday area Alpe di Siusi Live Card, which is not available for purchase and is issued free of charge to the guests by the participating accomodation, includes a price reduction for the Combi Card and the Seiser Alm Card Gold.

Multi-storey car park in the package with purchase of a Combi Card or Seiser Alm Card Gold: 1 day: 3.00 Euro, 3 days: 8.00 Euro, 7 days: 11.00 Euro, 14 days: 17.00 Euro

Alpe di Siusi Aerial Cableway 39040 Siusi allo Sciliar · Via Sciliar, 39 Tel. 0471 704 270 · Fax 0471 704 269 www.seiseralmbahn.it · info@seiseralmbahn.it

Photo: Moonlight/Armin Indio Mayr

Photo: SAM/Laurin Moser

Photo: SAM/Laurin Moser

Winter preview 2017/18

> 6 December – 8 April

> December

> 21 January

> 31 January

Skiing for bon vivants

Christmas in the mountains in Castelrotto

Traditional country wedding of Castelrotto

South Tyrol Moonlight Classic Alpe di Siusi

When the fragrant scent of gingerbread, cinnamon and mulled wine waft through the air, you know it’s Advent time at the foot of the Sciliar.

The Castelrotto Christmas market welcomes everybody to come and enjoy a sociable get-together over a glass of mulled wine and a touch of Christmas spirit. The inhabitants of Castelrotto will unveil the secrets of their Christmas traditions and allow others to participate in them. Beside the little Christmas market, local farmers’ wives will offer their cookies, Christmas logs, pastries, and other authentic goodies for sale. On 15 and 16 December, the well-known „Kastelruther Spatzen“ folks music group will present songs and tunes in keeping with the „Feast of Love“.

The Country Wedding in Castelrotto has already become a tradition. It’s the authentic reproduction of a historical farmer’s wedding like those celebrated since time immemorial at the foot of the Alpe di Siusi. The throngs of participants wear their traditional garments with great pride – one of the reasons why the event has developed into one of South Tyrol’s most spectacular pageants.

A sporting event illuminated by the glow of flickering torchlight, the chance to put your skills to the test at international level, and the spectacular winter backdrop of the Alpe di Siusi: in 2018, the Moonlight Classic will once again be offering numerous athletes and cross-country fans the chance to spend a sensational evening on the Alpe di Siusi by night. Participants can opt to take part in either the 30km or the 15 km variant of the loop route. Both variants begin and end in Compatsch and are raced exclusively in classic diagonal style. The starting pistol for this cross-country spectacle will be fired at 8pm. At the start/finish area, spectators will already have gathered en-masse to enjoy the atmospheric display when the alphorn players and whip crackers take to the floor to set the scene for the evenin. www.moonlightclassic.info

Skiing at its best is a guarantee with ski adventures on the Alpe di Siusi.

Winter fans can alternate skiing on the sunny slopes of Europe’s largest mountain plateau with a break in a mountain hut to savour the outstanding regional cuisine. A variety of tasting sessions, special delicacies and gourmet events ensure that a skiing holiday will be an absolutely unforgettable experience and show visitors the tastiest, most dynamic side of the Alpe di Siusi.

> December

Children’s Winter Festival with Nix the Witch The 2017-18 winter season will be getting off to a sparkling start with the second Kids’ Winter Festival on the Alpe di Siusi with Nix the Witch. Nix is calling all kids to join in the party, and will be transforming them into witches and wizards for the occasion. It will be an entire day of entertainment, games and winter fun, where children can also ski or learn to ski in a playful manner.

48 ALPE | Summer

8 to 10 December 2017 15 to 17 December 2017 22 to 24 December 2017 26 to 28 December 2017

Photo: SAM/Helmuth Rier

Photo: SAM/Helmuth Rier

Photo: IDM/Helmuth Rier

> 4 February

> March

> 18 – 25 March

> March

Winter Golf Tournament

FIS World Cup Slopestyle Snowboard & Freeski

Swing on Snow Winter Music Festival

Children’s Winter Festival with Nix the Witch

Jazz in the mountain huts, soul on the slopes and traditional tunes in the restaurants in the evenings: musicians from all over the Alpine region will be performing from morning to night in the Alpe di Siusi holiday area for the Swing on Snow festival. Bands and singers will be setting the tone on the slopes and getting old and young, winter sports visitors and music lovers alike, into the party mood. The modern interpretation of traditional folk music with jazz, soul and pop reflect the musical culture of the Alps; listeners can swerve in time to the beats and rhythms, and weave their way downhill to the sounds of the tuba, bass, dulcimer and accordion. Concerts will be played on the slopes of the Alpe di Siusi in the mornings, afternoons in the huts and evenings in the villages of Castelrotto, Siusi, Fiè allo Sciliar and Tires al Catinaccio. www.swingonsnow.com

In March, Nix the Witch is calling all kids to join in the party, and will be transforming them into witches and wizards for the occasion. The festival is guaranteed to be fun: games, an arts and crafts corner, a treasure hunt, good music and masses of surprises to bring a shine to the eyes of every child. And, of course, the chance to learn how to ski or improve your technique. Nix the Witch also has a whole lot of tricks to teach for safety on the snow.

Why does a green have to be… well, green? At the winter golf tournament, the greens give way to the white snows of the Alpe di Siusi, and golfers are treated to spectacular views as they ski or snowboard their way from one hole to the next.

The 9 holes range from 61 to 150 m in length and are played with brightly-coloured golf balls, so much easier to spot against the snowy fairways.

The tour starts in Compatsch, leads on to the Bullaccia, to the Laurin and Panorama lift and back towards the set-off point. Excellent catering and musical entertainment are provided along the golf course.

In March, the world’s best freestylers will be taking to their boards and skis in a gravity-defying display of choreography. The two Slopestyle World Cups will be taking place at the Alpe di Siusi Snow Park.

Slopestyle, first introduced at Sochi 2014, is the most recent extreme-discipline on the Olympic scene, and sees athletes competing on a course which features a variety of jumps and obstacles. Six judges rate tricks on creativity, difficulty and execution or style, while jumps are evaluated on height, range and landing. > March

Dolovino on Snow Dolovino on Snow invites you to celebrate the theme of “Top Alto Adige wines at the foot of the Dolomites” on a wine-tour across the Alpe di Siusi. South Tyrol is not just a paradise for skiers and hikers, but also an internationally renowned wine-growing area. Connoisseurs can sample outstanding wines from the local area in numerous bars and restaurants around the area, while the Alpine huts on the Alpe di Siusi will be serving culinary delights to round off the event to mouth-watering perfection.

Summer | ALPE 49

Photo: Helmuth Rier

Around & about

Peter Fill has claimed the downhill crystal globe once again. This winter, we were on the edge of our seats right up until the very last race of the downhill World Cup. Having claimed second place at the season finale in Aspen, Peter Fill went on to defend his title, winning the crystal globe for the second year running. In December the successful skier from Castelrotto, his cousin, former ski racer Denise Karbon, and luge champion Patrick Pigneter were immortalised in the form of wooden statues at the Alpe di Siusi Valley Station.

Alpe di Siusi ALPIN

Art and photography in focus

“Alpe di Siusi ALPIN” is a book packed with absorbing stories of war and peace, innovation and tradition, taking the reader on a literary excursion through 120-odd years of skiing on the Alpe di Siusi: in the beginning, there was the spectacular mountain plateau of the Alpe di Siusi. The first winter sports enthusiasts arrived around 1900, and farms became bases for excursionists, mountain huts and cabins sprung up, modest lodgings transformed into guest houses and hotels… The book is available in German and Italian.

Although the new Nature Reserve Centre in Siusi allo Sciliar will not be officially opened until 2019, this summer it is already putting on a variety-packed program focussing on nature and countryside photography around the Dolomites and the SciliarCatinaccio nature reserve. The works of local artists round off the series of exhibitions, open every day (except Monday) from 4pm to 7pm.

IMPRINT. ALPE: Reg. Court Bolzano / Bolzano, n. 9/2002 R.St. Published by: Alpe di Siusi Marketing, 39050 Fiè allo Sciliar, Via del Paese, 15, Tel. +39 0471 709 600, Fax +39 0471 704 199, info@alpedisiusi.info, www.seiseralm.it. Legally responsible for the editorial content: Elisabeth Augustin Editorial Team: Elisabeth Augustin, Rosa Maria Erlacher, Sabine Funk, Barbara Pichler Rier, Katja Sanin, Michaela Baur, Daniela Kremer, Romina Glira; Translations: Studio Bonetti & Peroni. Advertising: Sabine Demetz, Christoph Trocker. Graphicdesign: Komma Graphik. Printing: Druckhaus Kaufmann.

50 ALPE | Summer

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