We discovered this campsite in 2013. It is high up in The Dolomites at 1350 metres and is everything we want from a campsite. It has stunning mountain views, clean air, green grass, lots of space, peace and quiet, a restaurant and it is only a few minutes ride into the town of Predazzo, where there are good facilities. There is something incredibly Italian about this site. It is not used by many foreigners or passersby. Most guests have permanent tents fixed up. They wonder across the site in the morning, in their dressing gowns, toilet rolls under arms and seem very at home. They are friendly enough, without the enforced politeness and unwritten rule-following that you get in German sites. We prefer the Italian way.

In 2013, we were grateful for the high altitude as, down in the valley, it was 37 degrees. Even then, we had to go to bed at 8pm as it is too cold to sit out when there is no cloud cover and temperatures drop to about 7 degrees. This year, were were not so lucky as the weather is not that good across most of Europe and, after the first day on the site, we experienced prolonged and heavy rain, which went on for about 36 hours. This did not deter us, as experienced campers. We dug deep, still cooking during gaps in the rain and holing up inside the tent for hours and hours, reading while it hammered down outside. At the end of the last day there, we ventured to the restaurant for some respite, to be treated to delicious, simple, wood fired pizza, cooked by a friendly, old guy and some great local wine (Helen´s favourite wine is northern Italian white). The smell of the wood smoke and the thick cloud hanging low over the mountains lent a real atmosphere to the place.

Despite the romance of it all, there is no doubt we were damp and needed a change. Our plans to stay north in the mountains and cross into Switzerland seemed unwise, given the weather, so an alternative plan had to be hatched.