Sappada Vecchia, Mezzano and Santa Maddalena offer three different subjects on foot: old houses, artistic woodpiles and a church beneath the Odle peaks.
A walk through a village can have a particular focus even when skiing is not on the agenda. In Sappada, the route follows the old hamlets; in Mezzano, woodpiles guide the visit; in Santa Maddalena, the landmark is the church on the hill at the far end of Val di Funes.
These are three suggestions for a winter stay, not a report of snowfall currently taking place. Snow can transform their appearance, but there is no need to promise already-white rooftops to explain what is worth seeing.
Sappada Vecchia: walking through the old hamlets
Sappada’s official website proposes a route through the historic hamlets as a way to discover the village through its architecture and traditions. The timber of the houses, the details of the buildings and the succession of inhabited clusters are the focus of the walk.
Here, it is worth making time for the details instead of crossing the village looking only for the widest photographic view. A short stay can devote part of the day to Sappada Vecchia and keep skiing as a separate activity.
In winter, the walk must be adapted to the ground conditions: a village road can be slippery even without recent snowfall. Suitable footwear and sufficient daylight matter more than trying to follow a fixed visiting time.
Mezzano: firewood becomes an exhibition
In Primiero, Mezzano preserves narrow lanes known locally as canisèle and a permanent collection of artworks made from stacked firewood. “Cataste e Canzèi” takes an everyday feature of the village — fuel prepared for winter — and transforms it into an outdoor art trail.
The pleasure of the visit lies in recognising the differences between a functional woodpile and an artistic composition. The village does not need to be treated as an enclosed museum: the works appear within a lived-in place, among houses, passageways and fountains.
For those staying in the area, it is an activity to combine with the mountains without having to reach a ski lift. Visiting the village remains interesting even when the weather makes spending an entire day on the slopes less appealing.
Santa Maddalena: the church and the Odle landscape
The church of Santa Maddalena stands on a hill at the far end of Val di Funes. The municipality records that an earlier building is documented in 1394 and that the bell tower preserves its memory; the present church combines Gothic elements with furnishings from later periods.
The Odle peaks make the landscape recognisable, but it should not be reduced to a photo spot that must be reached at any cost. Access restrictions, private property and local instructions must be respected, using the permitted walking route.
The three destinations therefore appeal to different interests: the architecture of Sappada’s hamlets, wood transformed into art in Mezzano, and the relationship between village and mountains in Santa Maddalena. What connects them is a winter day built around what can be observed on foot, not simply the presence of snow.
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