Dolomites in a thunderstorm

I was up super early so that I could catch the sunrise from Lago di Braies. I rolled up just in time and got myself in position amongst ~30 other keen early birds. I guess with phenomenally beautiful places like this, even a 5.20am start won't eliminate the crowd. The view is something from a fairy tale. A lakeside cabin in front of the undisturbed lake giving an almighty reflection of the towering mountain backdrop. I stayed there admiring the golden barrier of the Sun beat its way down the mountain for about an hour until I decided to make a move for my big hike, a non-direct route up to Seekofel, 1,300m up above the lake.

Calm before the storm

I followed the route, not seeing another soul all the way up the side of the mountain. With the skies being totally clear, I wanted to make good progress early on so to beat the warmer part of the day. All was looking great, until I had to traverse an exposed gravelly section along the slopes. The gradient was picking up and this supposed trail kept shooting over sudden drops of about 5m. Very fine gravel meant that it was a bit of an effort to pass each one. Eventually I could not make out a trail to follow, but using the GPS it suggested I was following it just fine. My progress was getting hampered by the terrain and I realised I am moving on pretty slow. I kept thinking whether maybe there's a trail I missed somewhere just nearby and I should try to locate it, but observing the surroundings suggested nothing else that might look like a trail anywhere near me. The gradient kept increasing until I had to start scrambling. And the farther up I looked, the more it looked like it will turn into a total rock climb. There was no alternative route available, so I either keep going or go back down to the lake. I was only 5k into the hike and there was a direct alternative route straight up to Seekofel from the lake, but I'd miss seeing the lake around noon, when supposedly it looks the most blue just as the Sun is reflecting from the highest point. I decided to take a break and make a decision. I really didn't want to go back down. The way up looked scary as hell too. I was worried that if I keep climbing up, should it get too much for me I would have no choice but to turn back. That would then also mean descending the really steep bits I am already climbing up. Total nightmare. Another worry was, what if I do get up, I'm not sure what the other side is like. Maybe it goes down just as bad as it came up, then I probably wouldn't be able to descend that part. And then I might not be able to descent the current part either and I'd be stuck. I took my camera out and made a little video, saying I'm an idiot, ending up in one of these stupid situations as usual all on my own. I made the decision to keep going up and judge the situation.

Steep gravel straight down. I traversed across the slope from the left

The 150m climb looking up

No idea where this supposed trail was, but I kept ascending and took the path just at the bottom of the rock face and the gravel so that I could use the rock for hand holds and keep my feet low. It wasn't overly treacherous and after some struggles I made it to the top. Wow, what a relief and it was also a relief to see grassland and gradual slopes on the other side. Glad I pushed on, but for a moment there I was definitely panicking. The trail from here was easy and pretty flat. After an hour the clouds rolled out across the sky and the weather cooled off a little. It kept getting darker and darker, and soon it started drizzling, then a bit harder. I passed the top of the other trail which ascends directly from the lake and I carried on going up a short section towards the base of Seekofel, the final big climb. The weather was still churning up and to my left it kept getting darker and darker. It wasn't long until thunder and lightning joined the show. The final ascent was 400m up and I had covered about 1,700m so far. during the hike I ascended the first 100m, rain still coming down on me. Initially there were still some people coming back down the mountain, but soon enough it was just me again. Everyone seemed to have disappeared. Then the lightning picked up more. I counted the seconds from the flash. One...two....three....four...five...six...crack! Typically, the lightning sounded about 2-3 miles away, but the closest strike hit down less than one mile away from where I was. I don't know much about lightning but that's damn close. I reluctantly went up another 100m until a couple descended towards me. The guy asked me if I'm planning to go all the way to the top to which I responded, yeah probably. He said he knows quite a bit about mountains and lighting and strongly advised me against it. He could probably see I wasn't overly sold by that and really tried convincing me of the dangers. The peak of this summit is very flat in the final section, should the cloud pass over here I will be the highest mark on the mountain. I stood there for a bit digesting his advice, and then to my own surprise said, OK man, you're probably right. Maybe not today. In reality I knew there won't be another day. I turned around and started going back down, leaving the couple to descend at their own pace. My mind was full of what ifs but I thought it's better to be safe as that lightning was striking super close earlier. As I kept descending towards the base, the sky looked like it was clearing up just slightly. I kept wading down thinking what if, but kept beating this thoughts down thinking ahhh it's too late, I already descended quite a bit. After another few minutes and more glancing over my shoulder at some promising sky I stopped, just to see what the weather is gonna do. I stood there for about 5 minutes until the couple caught up again. I pretended I was just taking a break and having some food. The rain had died down by now too. My mind was so in battle and it was just a load of should I, nah too late now, but I still could, yeah but you already accepted the guy's advice.

Some serious storm clouds in the distance

It looked like directly up the mountain there were blue skies and in the close surround it was a bit gloomy. I wondered, what if I just try a bit, and should the storm clouds start moving in, I'll sprint back as fast as I can. I turned around and started going back up again, after having descended for the last ten minutes. I felt such a rush and powered up as hard and fast as I could. The thought of potentially making it to the top drove me, and it felt a bit naughty to still be going up after all the advice I received earlier. I kept looking down to try spot the guy shaking his head at me but I couldn't see him. I got up the steeper parts and the mountain evened out a bit, as expected. I started running to cover the ground faster . The GPS was counting down the elevation left, 120m, 80m, 40m. The weather had held back and the occasional rays of Sun would penetrate gaps in the cloud. I could see the big cross at the summit and was closing in fast. Shiiiit, I really didn't think I'd find myself up here but I made it. The Sun reached out in full force pretty much as I reached the summit and I was treated to the views down to the lake. Fucking hell, only person up here, beaten the unlikely conditions. I can't really describe the feeling. It was just a huge rush. The pinnacle of the day had been reached and everything else would just serve as extra icing on the cake. It felt amazing not having given up and still fighting my doubts to get up here.

Lago di Braies from Seekofel

Around this time of the day, the lake should have been the most blue. According to my research, with the Sun hitting it from the highest point, the colour should really light up incredibly. There were bits of sunshine now and again, but not enough to show me what I was hoping to see. Also the storm clouds weren't just to the South, but reached all around to the North also. I stayed up there for a while and eventually made my way back down. 1,300m lower and I reached the lake. I was so hot and sweaty on my way down I couldn't wait to jump in the cold lake. I'd been for a swim in there the evening before and the water was really cold. But now my muscles were yearning for that cold therapy. Shame the weather turned out the way it did, but I got the better of it. Another hike to remember.