- Joined
- May 13, 2015
- Messages
- 841
Hi there! Autumn is coming slowly but steadily in the mountains here. I managed to be out for the weekend with the family :thumbup:. Since also the little one was with us, we didnt really camped out but opted for a more comfortable overnight solution
and breakfast was served 
.
The woods are getting the beautiful fall colors in the shades of brown, red and yellow and the cattle is coming down from high pastures. This ancient common practice is known as transhumance. Another tradition on its way to be lost, unfortunately. This also is what makes a country/region unique and worth to know and explore, not only the territory, the trails, but its own traditions, its own people, its own soul and soil, so to say. In mountains villages, cattle fairs are common in this period of the year and we just jumped into one ! Also its the right time to taste (and buy some of 
) the great alpine cheeses produced during the summer. Other products on the verge of extinction, together with old skills passed down from one generation to another and these somehow heroic local communities. Sad is when the elderly are gone, there will be no younger generation to take all this up.
The milk got in all the fantastic, tantalizing flavors of the high pastures wild flowers and herbs and the cheeses, aged drying in the chilly mountain breeze, are absolutely great with or without a hot polenta and a glass of wine (had a great Sfursat wine this time) ! Also this was the time for one of our last wild edibles collection of the year, before ski seasons starts: mushrooms (if weather keeps on fine these can be picked until October), blueberries and blackberries and the very last wild strawberries. We went for a very easy picking hike four hours long, so no real need to set up a camp, but the kids wanted to light up our usual camp fire anyway . Chestnuts also are ripening, a good excuse to come back in October! A Chestnut Fair is planned by mid October here. With me this time I had the Viper Free for the fine work and the X5 for a very little wood cutting/splitting (I have posted some thoughts and pics of my Viper Free sometimes ago). Just to share .
. The woods are getting the beautiful fall colors in the shades of brown, red and yellow and the cattle is coming down from high pastures. This ancient common practice is known as transhumance. Another tradition on its way to be lost, unfortunately. This also is what makes a country/region unique and worth to know and explore, not only the territory, the trails, but its own traditions, its own people, its own soul and soil, so to say. In mountains villages, cattle fairs are common in this period of the year and we just jumped into one
! Also its the right time to taste (and buy some of ) the great alpine cheeses produced during the summer. Other products on the verge of extinction, together with old skills passed down from one generation to another and these somehow heroic local communities. Sad is when the elderly are gone, there will be no younger generation to take all this up. The milk got in all the fantastic, tantalizing flavors of the high pastures wild flowers and herbs and the cheeses, aged drying in the chilly mountain breeze, are absolutely great with or without a hot polenta and a glass of wine (had a great Sfursat wine this time)
! Also this was the time for one of our last wild edibles collection of the year, before ski seasons starts: mushrooms (if weather keeps on fine these can be picked until October), blueberries and blackberries and the very last wild strawberries. We went for a very easy picking hike four hours long, so no real need to set up a camp, but the kids wanted to light up our usual camp fire anyway . Chestnuts also are ripening, a good excuse to come back in October! A Chestnut Fair is planned by mid October here. With me this time I had the Viper Free for the fine work and the X5 for a very little wood cutting/splitting (I have posted some thoughts and pics of my Viper Free sometimes ago). Just to share .
