One day hike: trenches, marmots and cheese...

Do marmots make good eating? Do they taste like rabbit or rats?
 
awesome views! i'm curious where the villagers are getting their water from? the tiny lake is quite a bit of distance from the homes.
 
I always had the idea in my mind that Europe is over populated with few open place where there are few people.. But when I see your pics I stand corrected every time. Your pics are amazing you must have had a great day out there. Makes me want to learn Italian and spend lots of time following you around.
I bet that food was good enough to die for .
 
Hi!

@ Panzertroop: Thanks! Your posts are always inspiring for me! I’m rather bad at filming but who knows? Can be an “extension” of the hobby…:)

@ Spyken: I am afraid I can’t answer to this question because… I have never tried one! :D We have been living in Mainland China for some years and I travelled quite much inland so I have been exposed to rather unusual dishes but the marmot is missing :). I can only say here eating a marmot is comparable to eat a dog for the general public, who, nevertheless, is rather fond of chamois and Alpine ibex instead :D. Bear meat, though not truly common these days, it was some decades ago.

@ THEJimmyN: Thank-you! We are rather lucky since these areas are really close to where we live so it’s a sort of “back-yard” for us. In one, one and and a half hour driving, we get to the mountains. We do it rather often, both in summer for hiking/camping and in winter for the ski season. Always a good thing to be out in the Nature :thumbup:! The SG SM it’s truly a beautiful little knife, probably my best acquisition last year :). My long version here: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1350578-Southern-Grind-Spider-Monkey

@ JV3: Thank-you! I am an avid reader of your posts here, really like those :thumbup:! Water is really not a problem in Alpine areas in general, there are a number of ever flowing torrents, brooks and creeks. This area specifically is blessed by abundance of water, so much that, along the years, many big and small hydroelectric power plants have been built. Villages and small towns, generally, have own wells and water towers, small hamlets and lodges have sources and springs. Consider that the worldwide famous Sanpellegrino water is bottled in San Pellegrino, a town in the valley here (which we cross every time we go to the mountains) :).

@ Sasha: Thanks for your kind words Sasha! Europe is not (only) London, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, Milan or every other big Capital City. The true Europe is found in its town and villages, in its countryside, in the old fishing towns on the seaside, from Sicily to Normandy, the small villages in the mountains, from the Alps to the Carpathians. There you find the real People, the true European identity and centuries old traditions. It would be like for me to say USA is New York City, really not representative of what the “real” USA is. You are welcome in Italy :)!

Have a good day!
 
spyken said:
Do marmots make good eating? Do they taste like rabbit or rats?
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Native Indians here in British Columbia used to highly prize marmots for eating.....they get fat like hogs or bears before hibernation

Great countryside and country life pictures.....really enjoyed your post

I have 10 acres across from bridge lake in the cariboo...roughly 1200 metres above sealevel that has lots of marmots as well.

Some of your shots look like parts of B.C.

Take care and I will be on the lookout for more from you.
 
Brad "the butcher";16266583 said:
Native Indians here in British Columbia used to highly prize marmots for eating.....they get fat like hogs or bears before hibernation

Great countryside and country life pictures.....really enjoyed your post

I have 10 acres across from bridge lake in the cariboo...roughly 1200 metres above sealevel that has lots of marmots as well.

Some of your shots look like parts of B.C.

Take care and I will be on the lookout for more from you.
Click to expand...


Hi! Thanks! Happy you liked the post and pics. Didn't know that about marmots as food source for Native Indians. Interesting! :)
 
I can't believe I missed this one, I've been far too busy lately... Fantastic thread! I would love to live in one of those cabins. The cheese and meats look awesome. Your Marmots look very much like our groundhogs, very cool.
 
The June 2016 issue of the Smithsonian Magazine had an article in it "Blood in the Clouds" about the fighting in this area during WWI, and one of the captions of a photo was "Hell in a Very Cold Place" which pretty well sums up what soldiers went thru in those times in these mountains. John
 
I'll mention again that our eastern woodchuck is - marmota monax !
I've take many woodchucks but always because they are pests but never have eaten them.I once had a friend visit just after I took one so I offered it to him. Later I asked about it and he asked whatwas he eating ? I had no idea but that one tasted terrible !. He had eaten them before but never had a bad one ! today coyotes take many.
 
Very cool pics. Cheese, marmots, and Bad Monkey. Throw in a cat and that pretty much sums up the good life!

Thx for sharing.
 
Hope you are NOT close to the earth quake (6.2) that happened early this morning.
 
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I've done business with CS but in NY. How can you be in two places at once ?
 
Hi there!

@ A.L.: Thanks. Yes, :) I consider myself lucky to have such a “playground” just one hour away from home!

@ Mistwalker. Thanks! Glad you liked the post :). Most of these cabins are in reality temporary stables for livestock, used very much during summer time. The transhumance practice is, fortunately, still alive in these areas. The cows, goats and sheeps are taken onto higher pasture lands during the summer and they graze the fragrant mountain herbs and flowers. The milk and cheese is simply great :thumbup:! Pity it’s a practice going to disappear in one generation or two… a tough life and little money. Hoping the new generations will preserve these traditions and a strong identity/link with our land and country. Money and a luxury life-style is not everything in life!

@ John A. Larsen: Thanks for sharing :thumbup:! Intersting and touching article. These trenches pictured here, fortunately, haven’t seen much battling. They were our third line of defense during WWI. Yes, I’m probably a little biased in this but, very often, every mountain peak I climb, every clearing I sit and camp, watching the edelweiss blossom and the brathtaking scenery, I can’t help thinking about all those who fought and fell for our Fatherland and our country on our mountains. Italian Alpine Troops payed a high price, both in WWI and WWII.

@ Mete: Hi. Thanks! These are the Alpine Marmots (Marmota, marmota) :). Hunting of these is permitted but heavily regulated and, as said, today, eating them is seen as a big no-no here, comparable to eat a dog or a pet.

@ Jamesh Bond: Thanks! Yes, I’d agree, even though I prefer dogs as pets, but, with three kids, we have enough “look-after work” for now :)!

@ 22-rimfire: Thanks for caring! Actally we have been close (we were spending last week in Marche region at seaside). We felt the earthquake and all the camping has been awaken in the middle of the night :eek: by the earth shaking but, fortunately, no dameges nor casualities were we were. The wooden bungalows held up well and RVs and tents had no issues. We did what we could, from the camping, the next morning, to contribute to a delivery of some food and water to the affected towns. Very sad, as bad as it was for l’Aquila some years ago :(. The whole nation is mobilized anyway to support our people in need!

@ CampingSurvival: Thanks! Glad you liked the post :)!

Take care!
 
Wonderful pics as always from you!
Italy is high on mys list to visit again ... maybe next summer :)
Thanks for sharing.
 
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