The marvellous Ortleralpen and its beautiful flowers

[Katherine J]

Hello all,
I would like to show you the place where we spent the last two weeks of July, and which I can recommend for all mountains and alpines lovers.

The Ortler group, with the 3905 m Ortler (Ortles) mountain lays in northern Italy, where the Swiss, Austrian and Italian borders meet. There are many peeks over 3000 m, and a lot of huge glaciers. The rocks are mostly granite, phyllite and other metamorphic rocks, no lime at all.

Our "home" was an apartment in Sulden (Solda), a village at about 1800 m, beneath the north-eastern wall of the Ortler. This is a valley surrounded by snow-headed peaks all around. It's beauty is unbelievable, and there are VERY nice people there.
Many flowers were already over, but also many were in full bloom. We would like to go back next June to see the springflowers too.

As I don't like to speak much, here are the pics:

Reschensee in Vinschgau (Val Venosta), in the background the Ortler group
View from our bed(!) at 6 in the morning
Sulden in the morning
Sulden morning
And again
Little rock garden
Unknown something
The first Papaver alpinum
View
A little tired?

More to come...

[ranunculus]

[quote As I don't like to speak much, here are the pics:[/quote]


Your beautiful pictures say it all Kathrine...   

Many thanks for posting.

[Katherine J]

Silene nutans maybe
Sempervivum montanum
Gentiana nivalis
View from Düsseldorfer Hütte (27?? m)
The Königspitze
Pyrola
Rose Myosotis
A little cold up there at Tabaretta Hütte
View
Phyteuma haemisphericum

[Katherine J]

Silene acaulis show...

[Katherine J]

Gentiana brachyphylla (?) show...

[Luc Gilgemyn]

Wonderful pictures Katherine !  

I spent a holliday in Sulden 25 odd years ago  !  You're bringing back excellent memories of a gorgeous valley !  I remember climbing to the Düsseldorfer and the Tabaretta Hütte at the cost of a lot of sweat... ... but the great views and numerous plants rewarded us tremendously... I definitely should get back there sometime...  

I hope you have many more pictures to show us !  
And thanks for taking us on your hikes !

[Katherine J]

Field of flowers
Another morning
Achillea atrata
Linaria alpina
Natives of the Alps  

View
Arabis pumila?
Campanula barbata

Will be back soon...

[Katherine J]

Ranunculus glacialis show...

[Maggi Young]

Kata, your photos are so beautiful !
Magnificent mountains, charming flowers.... I could expect this, I suppose, though I do not know this area..... BUT...... YAK??? This was indeed a BIG surprise 

[Maggi Young]

re: YAKS...... mind you, on reflection, there are reindeer in the Cairngorm mountains, so..........

[Katherine J]

Maggi,
there were also lamas (is this English?)

Luc,
There are 3 mountain lifts now in Sulden, you don't have to walk too much if you don't want to...

[Katherine J]

Sheeps NOT eating the Gentians
Saxifraga stellata ssp. alpigena (isn't it?)
Our way with many flowers
Lilium martagon
Aster alpinus
Many Saxifraga aizoides
Waterfall
The Rosim glacier
The whole Rosim glacier
Minuartia

[Katherine J]

Larix decidua and Pinus cembra
On the road 
Marmot
View
The Payer Hütte
View
Some are enjoying themselves like this...
And some like this...
Suldenbach
Holes in the glacier

[Maggi Young]

Maggi,
there were also lamas (is this English?)

Llamas!   Really!!    Though we have some of these in Scotland, too , now  

[Katherine J]

Androsace alpina show...