Alta Badia

Therefore, our first trip was in Bolzano and Sopra Bolzano, which was fantastic.

The second was Alpe di Siusi, and this past trip was in Alta Badia.

So slowly we're working our way east.

And for those of you who may not know, the Dolomiti was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2009.

[laughs]

[laughs]

However, some of the areas like Alta Badia, where we were staying, along with Alpe di Siusi, which we had stayed in before, and Val Gardena run a little longer.

So those three places, their gondolas and cable cars close around mid-October.

Joining me today are the two people at the heart of it all.

The local, Igor Tavella, who has spent most of his life riding and exploring the back roads and trails of Alta Badia, and pro cycling photographer, rider, adventurer, Gerard Gruber, whose original crazy idea helped start the whole thing.

We'll talk about how Yolomites began, why the Dolomites are such an incredible playground for gravel, the evolution of the bikes and equipment over the last decade and

what keeps bringing people back year after year.

We'll try to get to that in a minute.

This was our third time driving into the Dolomiti, but this time we stayed in Alta Badia, so a little further east than our previous two trips.

We prefer to drive because we keep noticing new things.

Or we're reminded of some others, like the fact that Italians will plant vines absolutely anywhere, in any space available.

I tell people, go to the museums.

Go to the Ladinius Ursicus Museum in Alta Badia.

Go to the Latin Museum that's just north of Alta Badia.

All of these places, like Otzi, the Iceman, and all of the open-air museums for the World War I.

Right there in like where the Alta Via 1 is.

I saw your menus.

Annoyingly, we were heading back from Alta Badia.

We couldn't be there.

Maybe you can explain for them.

Yeah

...

in Alta Badia and say-

Yeah

Yeah, a lot of plum work.

Um, but Alta Badia is known as a region for, well, apparently the best food in Northern Italy, especially in the mountains.

But it's beautiful to see and especially the ingredients.

Cumin seeds.

Yeah.

I don't wanna, I don't wanna reignite the debate, but-

L'Astuce de Michel One of only two Michelin star restaurants in Alta Badia

Have we told people we're recording from the other one?