Are you a road tripper that just wants to drive and drive? Don’t you just love taking in the views, finding quaint villages, and stopping at a festival or two? Our third day of our Dolomite road trip was everything a road trip is supposed to be with a drive over Coller Pass, a couple of festivals…and bacon!
Day 3 of our Dolomite road trip was a long one! We’d already visited the small town of Völ am Schlern and arrived in Tiers where we witnessed a beautiful Thanksgiving ceremony.
Click here if you missed the beginning of our Day 3!
But now we’re on a quest to find another stunning cow festival. After enjoying the ones in Compatsch and Kastelruth, to be honest, we figured there was no way this one in Tiers would compare.
In a way, it didn’t matter, though. We’d already had the amazing fortune to witness the Rosari or Thanksgiving ceremony in Tiers. So, no matter what happened with the cows. We were happy.
I think this is an important reason why we love road-tripping. Who knows what we’ll find? Who knows if everything we want to do is actually doable? And really, who cares? We were having fun and enjoying our time together with a backdrop of stunning scenery. What could be better?
Looking for a Cow Festival
At any rate, we are looking for these elusive cows. As I’ve mentioned, whenever looking for a cow festival, there are usually plenty of clues to their path. The festivals developed from the annual tradition of bringing the cows home after pasturing them on the sweet green Alpine grasses all summer.
Farmers bring the herd down a path, usually a road, and sometimes a major road, or the only road in some of these more rural areas. To protect the lawns, houses, and fields they are passing by, there are usually some type of barriers or tape marking the path. We didn’t see anything like this at all in the town.
We knew it was happening, so we had to figure out where. I was contemplating asking someone, but except for a few smoking old men, no one was around. Instead, we got back in the car and headed up the road to look around.
Our Dolomite Road Trip Looked like this:
- Drove from Ramstein area in Germany
- Overnighted in the Brenner Pass
- Day 1 – Vipiteno, Bolzano, and Selva Val Gardena (volksmarch)
- Day 2 – Siusi, Seiser Alm, Compatsch and Kastelruth – Cow festivals
- Day 3 – Völs am Schern, Tiers Cow Festival, Via Coller, St. Magdalena Bacon Festival
- Day 4 – Tre-Cime and Lago di Braies
- Day 5 – Kronplatz Peak, The Lumen Mountain Photography Museum and the Messner Mountain Climbing Museum
- Day 6 – 9 – Back to Bolzano, Bergamo, Annecy and the Retours des Alpages
Download a snapshot pdf of our Dolomite road trip for further planning.
A few kilometers up the road, we found it.
There is a very famous Dolomite view point, near Tiers that many tourists seek out. We’d done so before on an earlier trip, and hilariously didn’t really remember that we had.
It’s the Capella di san Cipriano, and behind it, or across the street really, is a spectacular view of a mountain group called Catinaccio Rosengarten. Gorgeous.
We sat on the edge of a wall, looking towards the chapel and knowing the cows would be coming along this road. We happily waited.
The Cow Festival of Tiers (Tires)
Not long after 1:00 our cows were being herded up the hill. Some were decorated, but not as many as other places we’d been.
The herders, farmers, helpers, and everyone smiled and was happy. This is one of the key parts for me. Everyone loves what they are doing. It’s a joyful time.
Behind the capella, the townspeople had cordoned off a few paddocks, and that is where the cows were headed.
After that, all the spectators, farmers, and really everyone from all around the region headed down a muddy path to the fest area.
Here, there was an oompah band, lots of tables, beer stalls, food being served, and our favorite part, the home-baked goods stall.
It was high-tech, too. We got our cake for dessert but were told we needed to sit down and order food from a waiter. The waiters all had handheld order-takers, even though we were in a fiels out in the middle of nowhere. I was impressed.
We had the popular lunch of rotisserie chicken and fries with a glass of wine and a beer. We sat, ate, listened to the music, and enjoyed the atmosphere. It was a lot of fun.
Our Rating
The Tiers cow festival is definitely worth going to.
It had it all: decorated cows, happy farmers, and a fun festival with good food.
I gave it four stars, because the cow parade itself was pretty short. If it’s just cows you’re after, it was a pretty short parade. The cows came and were pastured.
The views are incredible, and the day we were there, the weather was spectacular, so sitting outside, eating chicken and cake while having a beer and taking in the amazing views was unmatched.
If you’re a cow addict like me, you definitely will want to go.
Speck Fest, Sta. Magdalena
One thing I love is a food fest. Any kind of food fest. We’ve loved the Garlic Fest, the Soba Noodle Eating Fest, and the Buckwheat Festival, as well as just going to any regular festival and trying out the local foods, you know, like the Oktoberfest We’ve done that soooo many times.
So, from Tiers, we drove over the Via Coller, a Dolomitian pass with stunning views. It was definitely one of many highlights of our day, and we did have a destination in mind. Santa Magdalena.
St. Magdalena is a stop that everyone should add to their itinerary, because the views are breathtaking and the village is quaint. For us, it was all about the bacon!
I’d heard about this “speck” fest and yes, I had no problem at all going out of my way to check it out. I mean, who doesn’t love bacon?!
We’d already done so much that we didn’t arrive until the end of the day. I think the fest was ending within the hour, so we were a little anxious that we’d missed it. We didn’t.
As it turns out, it’s a pretty small festival. There were mostly locals there, hardly any tourists. It was reminiscent of a small hometown festival in any place in the USA. There were only a few stalls. One huge one with the local bacon specialties, a hugely popular medieval bread stall, a couple of drinks stalls, and a few vendors selling various local products.
There, of course, was the obligatory oompah band, which was in high swing. People were sitting at tables drinking wine and beer, eating bacon and bread, and just enjoying themselves. It was fun!
We walked around, taking it all in. Yes, we tried the bacon. It was smoky and delicious.
Our Rating
I gave the Bacon Festival three stars. If you are in the area, and you enjoy local fests, stop by. It doesn’t take long to do the entire circuit.
To get the most out of it, of course, you should stop, grab a spot in the middle of the tables, and enjoy your drink and the oompah music, and just relax!
Map of our Dolomites Road Trip
Day 4 of our Dolomite road trip was another stunner! We drove and rowed. Took lots of photos and really enjoyed the sunny day and the views of Tre Cime! Check it out!
Conclusion
A road trip through the Dolomites is just not a road trip without…well, road tripping! That’s what our Day 3 was all about. Driving through alpine villages, looking for cows, vistas, and then stopping and eating some mighty fine bacon. A perfect day!
Author Bio: Corinne Vail is a travel photographer, food lover, and a perpetual traveler who has been travel writing for over 14 years. For many years she lived overseas in Germany, Japan, Turkey, South Korea, and the Netherlands teaching the children of the US. military. She’s visited over 90 countries, and she’s not stopping anytime soon.