The sunset on the Rosengarten

According to the legend, the Rosengarten (the italian “Catinaccio”) was the name of the wonderful rose garden belonging to Laurin, king of the dwarves. One day, the prince of Latemar came inside the garden because he was attracted by its amazing colours, and there he met the princess Ladina, daughter of Laurin. She was so beautiful that the prince immediately loved her.

The prince thought he couldn’t live without her, so he kidnapped the princess to get married with her. When king Laurin discovered it, he went mad for the sorrow and he threw a curse on the rose garden because it was the reason why his daughter had been kidnapped. From then on, no one could see and admire the garden anymore, neither during the day nor during the night. But Laurin, enunciating his curse, he forgot about the sunrise and the sunset. That’s why, now, during these particular moments of the day, we can admire the Rosengarten becoming of an amazing color. The Ladin people living at the slopes of the Rosengarten since thousands years and they call this phenomenon “Enrosadira”, which literally means “becoming pink”.

This is only one of the several fairy tales that the ancient citizens of Isarco Valley and Fassa Valley invented about the Rosengarten.

And if you want to assist at this show, you only have to go out a few kilometers from Bolzano.

The road ascends along the eastern slopes of Isarco Valley, until reaching Tires, a town with a very particular lifestyle. Here alpine “masi”, hotels and Spa receive all costumers with the two typical ingredients of this place: the hospitality and the local cuisine. But in addition to this, there’s even more. 

Outside the nature is full of forests and basins of crystalline water such as the Karersee Lake, one of the symbols of the Dolomites all over the world, which is famous for its particular colours. Also about this small lake there are some ancient legends

But if you want to admire the Enrosadira, winter is the better period: the mountains are covered with snow taht creates strongest color contrasts, in particular during the sunset.

If you like it, why don’t you wear the snowshoes and walk up to this mountain range? There are a lot of itineraries and, starting from Tires, you can arrive until the western side of the Rosengarten.

It’s also possible to do an easy and beautiful walk along the mountains, also perfect for those who use snow rackets. The itinerary starts from San Cipriano (a suburb of Tires) and comes back in the same point after a “ring” tour. Here, ascending through the forests of Passo Nigra, you can reach the rock peaks of the Catinaccio; and then, once you are on the top, you can run along the Rosengarten Spire and the Vajolet Towers. In addition to the Rosengarten, during the walk you have the opportunity to admire many of the western Dolomites such as: Latemar, Weißhorn, Brenta Group.

Coming back, there’s the opportunity to stop at the grazing-lands of the Malga Plafötsch and then enjoying the most exiting landscape during the Enrosadira.

At the end, it’s time to descend again toward San Cipriano, before it gets dark.

But anyway, it’s still early: so, before dinner, take your time for a relaxing sauna.