Lake Braies

Lake Braies is an emerald of water that shines at an altitude of about 1490 metres, enveloped on three sides by a crown of Dolomite peaks that, reflected in its waters, doubles in size: Croda del Becco (2810 m) dominates over them all, with a wall that plummets to the southern shore of the lake. This is the heart of the Fanes-Senes-Braies Natural Park, in a "world apart" of forests, alpine pastures and plateaus, where we arrive by taking a ten-kilometre detour from the Val Pusteria state road and cycle path, heading south. The splendid "postcard" of Lake Braies, with the bulk of the Croda in the background, is also well known for other reasons: the credit goes to the successful television series Un passo dal cielo (English: One step from heaven) with Terence Hill, filmed on its shores and broadcast by RAI since 2011.

Approximately 1,200 metres long, up to 400 metres wide and more than 35 metres deep, the lake has a character that differs from almost all other Dolomite basins: it was formed by a huge landslide that fell from the Sasso del Signore onto the course of the Rio Braies, creating a natural barrage, neither glacial nor moraine in origin. Along the banks, between fir forests, runs a walk of about an hour, very pleasant and a little overcrowded in summer. The charm of the landscape and the great television fame have made the lake so popular that limits have been introduced to reduce the impact of tourism. This means that in summer, you cannot get there by car but only by bike or by shuttle (line 442 from Dobbiaco and Villabassa) or on foot from the car park (to be booked) in the village of Ferrara: this is where the theme path "Viktor Wolf Edler von Glanvell" starts, which takes an hour and a half. For those looking for more challenging hikes, the Alta via no. 1 of the Dolomites starts from the lake, the "Classica", which arrives in Belluno at the foot of the Schiara group.