At the Heart of it All

South Tyrolean photo bloggers Judith Niederwanger and Alexander Pichler tell the story behind one of their favourite photos

Before embarking on our hike up the Villanderer Berg mountain, we probably would have guessed that the geographical centre point of South Tyrol was located in some inconspicuous place near Bolzano/Bozen. How fantastic, then, to discover that it’s actually situated in the heart of the mountains – and, even better, that the hike up to it is full of stunning photo opportunities.

The 14.5 kilometre route (there and back), including 760 metres of elevation gain, demands a certain level of fitness, but the climb is definitely worth it. Starting at the Saltnerstein car park (1,756 m) near the Gasser Hütte mountain lodge, the hike takes you across the spectacular Villanderer Alm mountain pasture, which is among the highest in South Tyrol. The picture-perfect meadows are dotted with small wooden huts and the panoramic mountain views stretching all the way to the Dolomites are simply mesmerising. If you’re looking for an idyllic photo spot, they don’t come much better than this. At the end of hiking trail 6, you reach the Totenkirchl or Chapel of the Dead (2,186 m). From here, you turn left following the marker for trail 2A and continue uphill to the Totensee lake. Path number 2 then leads you to the summit of the Villanderer Berg (2,509 m), where finally – after walking for a total of around three hours – you reach the geographical centre point of South Tyrol.

The spot is marked by a huge granite globe positioned next to a wooden cross and telescope. After taking a well-deserved break to marvel at the breathtaking 360-degree mountain panorama, you can then retrace your steps back to the starting point.

Judith Niederwanger and Alexander Pichler run a successful hiking and photography blog called “Roter Rucksack” (German for “red backpack”). Their Facebook page of the same name has over 20,000 likes, and they have racked up 17,000 followers on Instagram. In 2023, they released their second German-language book (“Klick dein Wanderglück!” published by Raetia), which presents 45 new hikes and photo spots in South Tyrol.

roterrucksack.com

24–70 mm @ 24 mm f/3,5 1/1000 s

Taken on 2 July 2022 at 7:20pm