THE MOTOR DILIGENCE S CES THROUGH THE TYROL.
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THERE ARE many travellers who have had experience'of the pleasures of motoring in the Tyrol and many more who have heard of them. The motor vehicle has brought this marvellous mountain district on the frontiers of Italy, Switzerland, and Austria within reach, and made a tour of it practicable, and, next to a private car, the excellent system of motor diligences run by the Italian State railways and by private concerns makes a tour exceedingly easy, comfortable, and attractive.
The Tyrol itself is one of the most beautiful stretches of country in Europe, and includes, among its other attractions, the famous .Stelvio Pass—the highest carriage road in Europe.
The difficulty which invariably presents itself when one is touring in mountain country is to cover all the ground one wants to without retracing one's steps. It is, however, possible to devise a route through the Tyrol, which includes all the most famous Passes and which can be followed entirely in motor diligences. This route starts at Landeck, in Austria, and ends at Venice, and crosses nine Passes, seven of which are over 4,000 ft. in height, while an eighth only falls short of this mark by 175 ft.
Landeck itself is easily reached, as it is on the main line to Innsbruck and Vienna over the Arlberg pass, and is a quaint old village among the lower hills of the Austrian Tyrol. From Landeck a motor diligence belonging to the Austrian Post. Office runs to Reschen .(Resia) on the Reschen-Seheideck pass. This pass is 4,901 ft. in height, and although by no means among the highest is, nevertheless, extremely charming. One drives from Landeck to Reschen
village, which is just beyond the summit,
in the Austrian
diligence, and thence in one be longing to t he Italian corn pa n y "Atesina" to Spondinig (Spon digna). The entire . journey, takes rather over seven hours, in cluding stops. The scenery on the Austrian side is ex tremely beautiful, that on the Italian side being less imposing, but still very pretty.
From Spondigna one may next under take the passage of
the 1110S;, wonderful pass of all—the' Stelvio. But before doing this the tourist should, if he 1 has the time, run up for the day in the motor diligence to the village of Sulden, which is on a by-road off the Stelvio and' which commands a splendid view of the Ortler group. Returning to Spondigna, . the journey over the Stelvio tray be undertaken. The famous pass, which rises to a height of 9,041 ft., is truly a marvellous feat of
832 engineering. On both sides it zigzags up in a series of hair-pin bends. A motor diligence from Spondigna will take one so far as Bortnio, which is well on the other side of the pass and which is reached in six hours from Spondigna. From Bormio, Tirano is reached in under two hours by another diligence.
At Tirano one changes again and runs down to Tresenda, which is practically the end of the Stelvio, and from where one commences, in the same diligence, the ascent of the Aprica pass. This pass is comparatively low (3,875 ft.), but is, nevertheless, extremely charming, the road being quite easy. The diligence goes so far as Edolo at the end of the pass, the journey from Tirano taking two hours. f rom Edolo the ascent of the 'Relate pass is begun, the highest point of which is 6,181 ft. above the sea, one diligence running the complete length of the pass to Male, the journey taking three hours. The comparatively ordinary scenery on the lower levels is made up for by the entrancing views nearer the summit of
this pass, the peaks of the Presanella being its chief attraction.
Male, where we have now arrived, is at the foot of the Tonale, Mendel (Mendola), arid the Madonna di Campiglio passes. As both cannot well be included in a through trip, we must omit the lastmentioned, and take the diligence which runs over the Mendel to Bozen (Bolzano). This pass is 4,475 ft. high, and has the peculiar characteristic of winding straightup the aide of a mountain, instead of following a valley.
' From Bozen to Cortina, which is the next stage of our journey, runs the famous Dolomitenstrassa. This great road, over one of the most beautiful groups of mountains in Europe, crosses the Karer (Costalunga), Pordoi and I'alzarego passes. The whole journey takes rather over nine hours, and the heights of the passes are respectively 5,697 ft., 7,382 ft., and 6,913 'ft. This stage of the journey is one of the most beautiful of all and is never missed by travellers. On the road from Cortina to Venice the mountains only extended so far as Vittorio, but if the traveller wishes to return home by rail he always descends so far as Mestre by diligence. Between Cortina and Vittorio is the ninth pass of the route the Fadalto, which is, however, only quite small-1,604 ft. in height.
The journey. from Landeck to Mestre is ones pf exactly 600 kilometres, or 375 miles. It should be mentioned here that a Motor boat is run in conjunction with the Cortina-Mestre diligence, -which takes one straight to the steps of the Piazzetta at Venice.
The whole of this trip can be accomOshed in six days the stages being (1) Landeck to Spondigna, (2) Spondigna to Tirano, (3) Tirano to Male (4) Male to Bozen, (5) Bozen to Cortina, and (6) Cortina to Venice. But if the tourist has a little more time at his disposal he always spends as long as he can afford in any of the places along the route. There are, of course, many Tyrolean passes which can be crossed by motor diligence and which areinot on this route. If the tourist has the time and the inclination to continue his travels in the'' Tyrol he usually takes the diligence from Mestre which goes to San Martino di Castrozza. He will then be again in the Dolomites and can take a diligence from there which crosses the Rolle pass to Predazzo. This pass is 6,424 ft. high and takes two hours to cross from San Martino.
From Pretlazzo one can take a diligence which runs. to Bozen by way of the Karer pass. From Bozen a diligence runs over the Madonna di Campiglio:pass to the village of that name. This pass is 5,413 ft. high, and the journey from Bozen takes rather over seven hours. From. here the tourist renerally, if he has time, takes the diligence, which runs down to Riva on Lake Garda, the journey taking 3i hours. A map is given on page 731.
The diligenees on the Italian routes are nearly all Fiats, with a few Lancias. In Austria they are chiefly Austro-llaimlers and Saurers. They are all of them., as a rule, extremely regular with regard to time, and are very well driven. So far as luggage is cone,e,rned, the matter is quite simple so long as the traveller has only band luggage.
It may have been noticed in the foregoing notes that most of the prace mentioned have IAN.° names, the Italian and the Gs nnan. Although nearly all the Tyrol now belongs to Italy, the inhabitants still speak German, for which reason the German name is given first.