Val di Zoldo opens in the Belluno Dolomites, following the Maè torrent. It's a real, working valley, far from fashionable tourism and proud of its roots. Life here was long shaped by hard graft, emigration, and mountain tradition, and that has made for a community with no airs and a deep tie to its land. This is the rougher, and maybe truer, face of the Dolomites.
Two giants dominate the view. There's the immense north-western face of Monte Civetta, which brushes 3,220 metres and counts as one of the greatest walls in the whole Alps, nicknamed "the wall of walls". And there's the unmistakable bulk of the Pelmo, which the people of Zoldo call the caregón del Padreterno, the Almighty's armchair. This rock amphitheatre, crossed by the Alta Via 1 long-distance route from Braies to Belluno, draws hikers and climbers alike.
The valley is famous the world over for its gelato makers. From the mid-nineteenth century, as the old ironworking died out, many Zoldani set off to make a living and carried the craft of artisan gelato first across Italy and then around Europe, from Germany to Austria and the Netherlands. The valley keeps that heritage with pride. In summer, trails lead to Lago di Coldai and along the base of the Civetta. In winter you can ski locally, in an uncrowded, genuinely local atmosphere.
