Speaking of waterfalls, I found one in Val Gardena, just a few kilometers from our apartment.It´s quite a surprise, nevertheless this calm natural beauty is tucked in between the mountains of Monte Pana.Though it´s not as big as the Krimml Waterfalls in Austria, or the eye-catchy ones in Zwitzerland, still there is something about waterfalls that keeps our curious spirit on top.

We did the hike right after breakfast , I still not as fit as I do, my voice is not yet back but my spirit is up for some adventure.The hike is approximately 5kms, uphill , but the path is well shaded.There was a detour since there´s a house construction but overall, it didn´t bother us.It had rained the previous night so the grass is wet, too much snails though, which I am not so fond of, and a bit slippery.A sweet find , the ” Der Kletterer “(or the Climber) is a unique statue we´ve seen while doing the hike through the Cascata Tervela, (in Italian) or the Tervela Waterfalls situated opposite the center of Sta. Cristina in the region of Val Gardena in the Dolomites.While driving to our apartment , I spotted this waterfalls on our right side and googled it.It was so captivating ,so I was really curious how to reach it, on foot or by hiking.Of course there´s a hike to get there, with chair lifts as well, going up to Monte Pana but since it was near to us, we decided to park at the bottom of Monte Pana and hike up.

The daughter changed her mood once she knew that we are hiking up to see a waterfalls. She was still too little when we hike the Krimml waterfalls so she doesn´t remember the beauty of it.But this time, she was excited to see the falls herself.The sound of the gushing waters mades our hearts excited, we played like kids, excited, maybe a bit loud with our shouts but we don´t care.

Time flies as we gazed upon the cascading water, admiring the statue and just basking on the raw nature that´s in front of us.We climbed the big boulders of rocks to get close to the water, and just admired it in silence.What a pure bliss to see it.

We hiked up to the first drop of the waterfalls and had an outstanding view of the valley of St. Cristina. The tiny houses on the mountains, the cows grazing, the sound of nature in our ears, everything is just as we´ve expected from the Dolomites.Pure beauty.

Monte Pana High Palteau is another nature paradise in Val Gardena.We reached this place by driving up after we´ve seen the waterfalls. It can also be accessed by chair lifts but we decided to drive up to catch up on time.This high plateau is located on the southern part of Sta. Cristina (1,800m) and on the eastern side of the Alpe di Siusi (which we´ve explored on our first day).To the east the area borders the famous World Cup ski slope Saslong. The view stretches from the Sella until the Sassolungo Group where we´ve experienced the Langkofel mountain and Coffin lifts.

The view above is spectacular, much to our surprise. It was so sooo relaxing, walking through the wild paths,awaqy from the modern world, with small crooks, with gushing waters, leading to turquoise lake, surrounded with acres of grassland filled with lazy cows grazing, the majestic Dolomites peaks in the background, with a perfect weather as well, who are we to raise our complaints and worries? It is just a perfect day.We feel blessed.

Monte Pana is a huge playground for everyone.Children played loose on the grounds, trying to pet the cows, decoding the oldest Sundial built by Simon Moroder, or getting lost in the old-school labyrinth playground where giant slides, tree houses and going down to basics is a natural thing to do.

There´s something about the still silence in the mountains, it hushes us, to put our tired feet on the ground, to finally listen, but sometimes it is overwhelming to grasp all these natural beauty so I gave up analyzing.We finally rest our feet in the cold waters of the lake, murmuring deep thoughts of gratitude,waiting for the fishes to bite our toes.It was another beautiful well spent.

Until then, Servus and Happy Sunday !