CAUTION: Grandparents must be warned that this post may make you feel that we are bad parents.
Today was an epic family day. Josh claims it is one of our top five family days of all time. I think I have to agree with him. We are in the Dolomites, an ancient mountain range in Italy. Based out of Pozza di Fassa, we are happily surrounded by high peaks encircling the valley, Val di Fassa.
We have wanted to try a via ferrata (literal translation: iron roads) with the kids for a while. It is an essential part of alpine adventuring in the Alps and neighboring mountain ranges. The origins of the via ferrata date back to the nineteenth century, but they are often associated with the First World War, when several were built in the Dolomite mountain region of Italy to aid the movement of troops, So, we got a guide and set off for a half day of via ferrata and rock climbing.
After taking a breathtaking gondola ride up to almost 6,000 feet, we hiked to the base of a “crag”, or rock climbing area, where we could do a few short pitches (about 60-70 feet in length). Sylvie and Noah both showed skill and bravery, while Josh and I were giddy with the fact that we were back on the rock.
We then made a beeline to the base of the via ferrata. We all wore helmets, harnesses and had a double-safety clipping system. The premise is simple: clip into a thick iron cable that is bolted into the rock and climb up! You have to continuously clip and unclip yourself as you move up the cable. Our route was about 500 vertical feet. When I say vertical, I am not understating.
The via ferrata felt like an actual exposed rock climb, except that you are securely fastened to the cable directly next to you. That is, of course, hard to explain to a 6 year old boy. These kids were hanging off the rock with hundreds of feet of air below them.
Sylvie was forging on like a guide, sure-footed and truly fearless. Noah was more tentative, but incredibly focused and brave. I kept looking up at them (I was the caboose after Josh), marveling at the fact that these little beings were charging straight up a rock face.
It may be hard for most of you (except our climber friends) to appreciate, understand or approve of the thrill of being on beautiful rock, staring across an alpine valley, hanging with your family. But, I promise, it was awesome, beyond incredible. When we topped out, finishing the climb about an hour later, I had a lot of feelings. Pride, euphoria, guilt (because my mom would kill me if she knew what we were doing), gratitude. I mean, I was feeling it all.
I only wish that I could bottle the feeling we had as a family, triumphantly standing at the top of that alpine route. The sun was shining, paragliders circled around us. We were really on top of the world.
