Trip Report: Dolomites in Summer - June 2025

Mountains, one of the most awe-inspiring and utterly fascinating geologic formations on earth, are integral to my being. I’ve lived my entire life amongst them – wandering through valleys formed by glaciers and rivers and climbing up to towering heights on ridgelines and pinnacles. To say that I love mountains would be an absolute understatement.

I’ve spent countless hours exploring and photographing mountaina all across the globe and there are a few distinct ranges that, in my mind, stand out from the rest. Of course, North America is home to some iconic ranges like the Teton and Wind Rivers ranges in Wyoming, The Beartooths of Montana, The Lost River Range of Northern Idaho, The San Juans in Southern Colorado, and the Northern Rockies that start in Glacier National Park and go on to form the boundary between Alberta and British Columbia. There are many others, but these are a few that stand out to me. You could easily spend a lifetime and then some exploring any one of these mountainous regions and I think in the end, you’d be quite happy and content.

In recent years, I’ve had the opportunity to broaden my horizons and have begun to explore new ranges much farther from home.  Of course, the list of distant ranges I wish to explore is practically endless, but I had always dreamed of visiting and photographing the alps. This towering range is the true backbone of the western European Continent and the mountains here are unlike anything else on earth. One of the regions that specifically held a place high on my list was the Dolomites of Italy – An extension and sub-range of the southern limestone alps.

Last October, I was able to make the journey east, across the Atlantic, to discover this unique and stunning range. I had the privilege of leading the first ever ‘Dolomites in Autumn’ workshop with Backcountry Journeys and this summer I was able to head back to the northern reaches of Italy for our ‘Dolomites in Summer’ trip. It was amazing to revisit this place in a completely different season under different environmental conditions. The mountains had traded cool, cloudy conditions and bright orange larches for stunning sunshine, bright green foliage, and of course a plethora of vibrant wildflowers to fill every alpine meadow. This trip was one for the books and between some world class shooting and a fun group I won’t soon forget this adventure.

I’ll dive right on in and break down our incredible adventure in the Dolomites:

Day 1 – June 22 

Our journey began on the coast in Venice. After a day or two of exploring this iconic city on the sea and adjusting to the new time zone, we all met up as a group after breakfast at the hotel. Our local guide, Leo, and I walked through a quick orientation and before we knew it the bags were loaded and we were driving north towards the foothills. We drove for a couple of hours through stunning Italian countryside and eventually ended up in Cortina D'Ampezzo – our first home base of the trip.

Cortina is an absolutely beautiful and quintessential town in the alps featuring traditional Swiss chalet-style architecture. It’s nestled in a lovely little valley surrounded by towering peaks. Cortina will be one of the main host cities for the 2026 winter Olympics, so the town was busy with construction and renovations to get ready for the upcoming games.

We checked into our hotel, which was just outside of town in a quiet and beautiful meadow surrounded by thick forest. The Hotel Mirage is absolutely incredible, and it was the perfect place to spend the next four nights.

Of course, the photography here is world class but in my opinion one of the main highlights of this trip is the food, lodging, history, culture, and hospitality. At the end of the day our trips are about enjoying an all-encompassing experience that goes beyond the camera.

After a lovely lunch on the patio and a few hours to decompress and get settled, we headed out for our evening shoot. We drove Northeast to a small area called Misurina and ended up at a little pond called Lago Antorno. From here we shot some nice wildflowers and managed to catch a reflection of the iconic Tre Cime formation in the pond. This was a great first shoot and when the light began to fade, we drove back to the hotel for some sleep.
 

Day 2 – June 23 

The following morning, we set out quite early and drove up winding mountain roads to another one of my favorite locations: Passo Giau. This is a stunning alpine pass located due west of Cortina and it’s one of the most iconic locations in the Dolomites. We parked the vans and started hiking to one of the lesser-known locations on the pass: a small pond where you can catch a reflection of Ra Gusela, the most prominent and photogenic peak on the pass.

Normally I’m a sucker for reflections but on this morning, I couldn’t help but notice some beautiful rhododendrons just off to the side of the pond. I chose to focus on these and managed to capture some nice focus-stacked images. The good light lasted for a while and the whole group was able to explore and capture some great images. When everyone was satisfied, we headed back to Cortina for a lovely Italian buffet breakfast. As an avid breakfast buffet enthusiast, I can confidently say the Italians know what they’re doing.

In the afternoon some thunderstorms rolled in, so we all enjoyed some rest and relaxation at the hotel. The forecast for the evening was looking somewhat promising so we headed out for dinner in town and then drove all the way up to the Tre Cime formation. Sitting at about 7,500 feet in elevation, this is the highest point we reached throughout our trip. Tre Cima di Lavaredo is one of my absolute favorite locations in all the Dolomites and I’m glad we were able to explore it with this group.

Upon arrival, the Dolomites delivered their magic, and we were treated to a perfect gap in the intermittent storms of the afternoon and evening. We got some great light and everyone managed to get some nice shots. After a productive evening, we hiked back to the vans and made the drive back to town to hit the hay.

 

Day 3 – June 24 

Day 3 of our Dolomites adventure was all about lakes and catching crystal clear reflections. For our sunrise shoot we awoke very early, yet again, and began the roughly 1-hour drive north towards Austria. Stopping just shy of the border we had arrived at our location, which is one of the most famous and photographed lakes in all of the Dolomites. We parked the vans, walked several hundred yards, and arrived at the shoreline of Lago di Braies.

Lago di Braies is an absolutely stunning lake with a gorgeous mountain backdrop but what makes it truly unique and special are the foreground elements. With a quaint little boat house and dock extended outward followed by lines of wooden rowboats tethered together waving out into the lake, this shot is truly unique and absolutely wonderful. The entire group loved this destination, which is to be expected, and we all managed to get some nice shots.

After sunrise, we headed back to Cortina, enjoyed a lovely breakfast, and relaxed for a bit during the afternoon. Some of the guests took the shuttle into town and did some shopping and exploring while others rested and caught up on some sleep. We all met up again for dinner and then set out for our sunset shoot.

If Lago di Braies is one of the most heavily visited and photographed lakes, this next location is quite the opposite. Lago Limides is a small lake/pond that sits high on the top of Passo Falzarego (one of my favorite passes outside of Cortina). It’s still relatively unknown and only a few hikers and dedicated photographers visit this spot. It’s a bit of a hike to get here but it’s absolutely worth it. 

Once we made it to the lake, we all did a bit of exploring to find compositions we liked and then got set up. We were treated to some beautiful conditions throughout the evening which concluded with a stunning sunset featuring colorful cirrus clouds high in the atmosphere. Lago Limides is one of my favorite spots in the Dolomites and it put on quite the show for us.
 

Day 4 – June 25 

For our last full day in Cortina, we had to hit a few more spots to expand our ever-growing portfolios.  We got up quite early and made the drive back up to Passo Giau. This time we drove past the small pond and parked right at the top of the pass. We embarked on a short but steep hike up the hillside and arrived at a beautiful location full of wildflowers.

There were several species of vibrant flowers but again I was immediately drawn into the rhododendrons. These flowers are just so beautiful and stand out amongst the rest. We all got settled in and waited for the sun to rise. When it did, we were treated with some nice light and several of us ended up focus-stacking to achieve the shots we wanted. Passo Giau had delivered yet again.  

As we were wrapping up our shoot we enjoyed a very pleasant surprise. A group of three billy goats had slowly been making their way up the steep ridgeline below us and popped out at the top at just the right time. We managed to get some nice shots of them in gorgeous light before they wandered on down the ridge and out of site.

We headed in for breakfast and enjoyed some more downtime. The days on this trip are so long that you really need to capitalize on as much rest and sleep as you can. We all napped for at least a couple of hours and then did a nice little post-processing session before dinner. We enjoyed our final Dinner in Cortina and then set out for another nice evening shoot on Passo Falzarego.
 

Day 5 – June 26 

The following day, we were able to sleep in which was a real treat on a trip like this. We all enjoyed breakfast together, packed our bags, checked out of the Hotel Mirage, and then set out for our next destination. We were headed for the beautiful Val Gardena region which is home to the iconic Alpe di Siusi.

Throughout our drive we made some really nice stops on multiple mountain passes and after a few hours we had arrived at our hotel. We checked into the Hotel Artnatur Dolomites where we  would be staying for the next two nights. This was a beautiful hotel with a modern interior nestled in the wonderful small town of Siusi Seis. We all got settled in and then drove to dinner which was right next to our sunset shoot.

This evening, we shot the San Giovanni church, which is one of the most famous and historic churches in the dolomites. The weather was a bit stormy, so we didn’t get a ton of color, but I personally enjoyed the dark and moody atmosphere. After concluding our first shoot in Val Gardena we headed back to the hotel and hit the hay.

 

Day 6 – June 27 

For our first full day in the Val Gardena region, we started out with a bang and photographed one of the most iconic and quintessential scenes of the Dolomites: Alpe di Siusi. If you’ve spent even a few minutes researching the Dolomites or follow any prominent photographers who have explored the region you’ve likely seen images captured here. With small log cabins perfectly scattered throughout rolling green hills leading to towering, jagged peaks in the background, it’s hard to imagine a scene more beautiful than this.

​​​​​​​We made sure to get here very early as this is a popular spot and snagged the best vantage point before anyone else arrived. Eventually several other photographers and groups filtered in but we were in the prime location eagerly waiting for the sun’s rays to illuminate the scene before us.

When the sun finally did arrive, it perfectly lit up the scene and we all started snapping away. At first just a few patches of green grass were illuminated and slowly over the next several minutes the entire scene was bathed in a golden glow.

After Alpe di Siusi we ventured to another part of the valley, hopped out of the vans, rode a gondola and a cable car up a mountain, and took a short hike to another jaw-dropping location: Seceda. This is a jagged ridgeline that is vertical on one side and sloped on the other forming a giant wedge in the landscape. We all captured some shots and then enjoyed a nice lunch at a restaurant right next to the top of the cable car.

That evening we photographed Santa Magdalena, which is another world-famous and beautiful church. The church itself is nice, but the real beauty of this scene is the setting and backdrop behind it. The Odele group of jagged and razor-sharp peaks shoot up into the sky like the teeth of a dragon or some mythical creature. Throughout the shoot we were treated to some lovely light that danced across the landscape and beautifully illuminated the peaks. Another successful shoot was in the bag.

Day 7 – June 28 

The following day we had some ground to cover as we were transferring to a new location. We got up early and enjoyed a nice sunrise just outside of the valley, and then started making our way to our final destination of the trip: San Martino di Castrozza.

Once again, we drove over several stunning mountain passes, through wonderful forests, and by some absolutely gorgeous alpines lakes. Eventually we arrived at our hotel and got settled in.  

For the final sunset shoot of the trip, we ended up at another one of my absolute favorites. We drove high up from the valley floor to the local ski area and onto a winding dirt road that would be a catwalk in the winter. After a while we arrived a small hut/refugio called Baita di Segantini which sits right on the edge of a small pond. Behind this little settlement is one of the most impressive and beautiful mountain formations I’ve ever seen. We waited for sunset and all managed to capture some really nice images. Our final shoot in the Dolomites was really great and this was an excellent way to cap off such a wonderful trip.

Day 8 – June 29 

The next day we all slept in a bit and then enjoyed a lovely group breakfast at the hotel. After that we packed our bags and began to make our way down south to the sea. We arrived in Venice and all said our goodbyes.

This was another absolutely incredible photographic journey into the Dolomites, and I couldn’t’ have asked for a better co-guide and group. I’ll remember this trip for quite some time, and I’ll always enjoy looking back at the images I managed to capture. I can’t wait to get back to the Dolomites next summer and do it all over again!