Val d'Ultimo and the Thousand-Year-Old Larches

In South Tyrol the most famous valleys are saturated with tourism, but you need only turn off the road between Bolzano and Merano, at Lana, to enter a valley that has chosen a different path. Val d'Ultimo, in German Ultental, winds westward between dense woods and steep slopes and for a long time remained isolated and poor: it is precisely this isolation that has preserved it. Here there are no big ski lifts or fashionable resorts, and mountain farming with its scattered farmsteads is still the backbone of the valley.

The thousand-year-old larches

The heart of the experience are the thousand-year-old larches of Santa Geltrude (St. Gertraud), at the far end of the valley. They are enormous trees, among the oldest in Europe, survivors of the centuries thanks to their isolated position and the respect of the inhabitants. Reaching them is easy: a short trail sets off from near the village and leads to these giants with their twisted trunks, living witnesses to a very long history. Standing beneath their crowns, in a silent clearing, gives you the measure of mountain time.

The valley is best explored by climbing up from Lana towards the interior, taking in its main villages: San Pancrazio (St. Pankraz), San Nicolo (St. Nikolaus) and finally Santa Geltrude. Along the way it is worth stopping at the Val d'Ultimo museum, which recounts peasant life, the farmsteads and the traditional trades, helping you understand the culture of this secluded community. The historic farmsteads, some of them centuries old, dot the steep meadows and many offer hospitality and their own produce.

The park and the lakes

The upper part of the valley lies within the Stelvio National Park, of which Val d'Ultimo is a part. From Santa Geltrude the trails set off towards the high-altitude lakes and the huts below the highest peaks. Striking is the excursion towards the high mountain lakes in the area at the head of the valley, where the landscape turns severe and grand, dominated by the glaciers of the Ortles-Cevedale. For those who love slow walking, the valley is crossed by routes that link farmstead to farmstead along the sunny slopes.

Getting there

To get here a car is best: from the Bolzano motorway exit you reach Lana and from there you take the valley road, which climbs gradually up to Santa Geltrude. There is also a scheduled bus service that runs up Val d'Ultimo from the towns of the Adige valley, handy for those who want to travel without a car. Once in the valley, you move on foot along the waymarked trails or by bike along the cycle routes; the distances between the villages are short and lend themselves to an unhurried journey.

When to go

The ideal months are June, when the meadows are in bloom and the huts reopen, and September and October, when the larches turn to gold and tint the slopes with an unmistakable warm light. These are the periods when the valley is at its best while staying quiet: summer brings a few more holidaymakers, but Val d'Ultimo knows nothing of the crowds of the neighbouring valleys, and in the shoulder season the trails are almost deserted. Autumn, with the foliage of the larches, is perhaps the most beautiful and least crowded moment.

A practical tip: give time to the farmsteads and their produce. Many families sell speck, cheeses and home-made bread, and stopping at a farmstead open to the public, perhaps for a plate of canederli, is the best way to support a community that has kept this valley alive precisely by turning its back on mass tourism. Bring good shoes and warm clothes even in summer: the valley floor is shady and cool, and climbing towards the lakes you gain altitude fast.