The legends of the Dolomites tell of skiing

Albolina

In the Val de Grepa, above Fontanac, there is a small plateau called "Pian da Pènt". On this plateau, in ancient times, the gnomes had imprisoned a beautiful girl named Albolina. Her skin was smooth and white like milk because she lived in the mountains, and an Aguana, a water nymph, had taught her to take care of the skin on her face and hands early in the morning, with the sunlight, when it rose beyond the high mountains with that beautiful golden color. Albolina had absorbed so much sunlight to make herself beautiful that the demons of the high mountains were left without any. When they realized all that light was gone, they went to Albolina and ordered her to return the light she had taken to make herself beautiful, or they would kill her. She didn't want to return it, fearing she would become ugly and disfigured. When they understood this, they captured her, took her up to Pian da Pènt, tied her tightly with a braid wrapped twenty-four times around her waist and legs, and told her she could only free herself if she let go of all the sunlight she had absorbed around her. Then they left her alone. Thirteen months, thirteen days, and thirteen hours had passed since this poor girl had been imprisoned there. One night, a handsome warrior fleeing from his enemies passed by, but it was so dark that he had lost his way. Albolina called out to him, and when she heard that he was lost in the night, she felt so much pity that she released all her light to guide the young man, and thus the demons freed her. The legend doesn’t say whether the warrior married her, but I believe that’s exactly what happened, and who knows what kind of wedding they had. 
Now listen to the moral of the story. Girls, to become beautiful, must take care of their skin early in the morning, when the sun rises beyond the high mountain peaks, and use their beauty to do good for people, especially those who love them, and not to satisfy the whims of gnomes or demons.

Witches all around

The legends that abound in the Dolomites are some of our most treasured cultural legacies. Rare is a valley, town or village without legends of yesteryear which tell of mythological creatures or adventures full of heroes, monsters and... witches. Witches, in particular, have always been at the centre of tales which try to make sense of unexplained meteorological, agricultural or natural phenomenon.
Witches are not always old ladies who ride broomsticks, Harry Potter-style. Some cast good spells, while others are as wicked as they come. Wicked witches who gather to dance and cast spells and curses on the inhabitants of the mountain valleys have often been accused of causing inclement weather, floods, avalanches and drought. Sometimes their rivals, ‘white’ witches, reversed evil spells or helped people get rid of a curse.
The Dolomite valleys are home to countless legends about witches. Some of the best known include the Schlern witch, who lives on the imposing, unmistakeably Alpine mountain in the Seiser Alm, as well as Zicùta and Spina de Mul, sorcerer siblings who descended from the epic Fanes lineage, and witches from the Trentino, Belluno and Friulian Dolomite valleys. This fear of demons and witches has given rise to many place names which have survived to this day including the Piana delle Streghe (the witches’ plain) and the Banco delle Streghe (the witches’ bench), among others. Places which valley dwellers still hold their breath as they pass by even today.

Where the eagles have golden talons

The Fanes were a peaceful people, and the marmots were their allies. Thanks to this secret alliance with the marmots, their kingdom had grown great and powerful. One day, the king went hunting and managed to capture a young eagle, but from the sky, the eagle with the fiery beak and golden claws swooped down. "Give me back my son," the eagle said, "and I will make you the most powerful king in the region." The king agreed, and the eagle, who was actually the king of a distant island, proposed an alliance sealed with an exchange of twins. Thus, the King of Fanes gave his daughter Luianta, twin of Dolasila, as a pledge to the eagles, betraying the alliance with the marmots and initiating the decline of one of the brightest kingdoms on Earth.
The King of Fanes, who had become monarch by marrying the Queen of Fanes, the true sovereign, was a greedy man who cared little for the fate of the kingdom. To pave the way for his enrichment with the treasures of Aurona, the kingdom of the underworld, and to increase his power and glory over neighboring peoples, he denied his daughter Dolasila marriage to the brave knight Ey de Net, banishing him from the kingdom. The warrior princess’s fate was thus sealed, and the secret alliance between the King of Fanes and the enemies of Fanes led to the final battle. Through the king's betrayal, Dolasila was killed by archers armed with enchanted arrows she herself had given to some ragged children she had met on the road. These children were none other than demons sent by the sorcerer Spina de Mul to deceive the warrior. The Kingdom of Fanes fell, while the king was busy hoarding riches to satisfy his greed, near a Dolomite pass that today bears his name – Falzarego. For his betrayal, the false and greedy king was turned to stone, and his effigies still dominate the path from Lagazuoi to Punta di Fanes, a warning to traitors of their own people.

Where do dwarves come from?

In everyone's imagination, dwarves are small, good-natured men with long beards and often a red, pointed cap, dressed in a tunic, with a large belt and hiking boots. Long braids knotted with colourful bows are typical of the female version of the dwarves. The mythological figure of the dwarves comes from the imagination of Paracelsus, an alchemist of the Middle Ages. It was he who first spoke of "gnomes" at the end of the 14th century, deriving the name from the Greek etymon "gnosis", which means knowledge. For Paracelsus, gnomes were chthonic beings, i.e. mythological creatures that lived underground and were somehow connected to earthly or subterranean life. The physical representation of gnomes, often referred to as elves, as small, bearded, sometimes funny or, on the contrary, gruff human beings, dates back to the development in Northern European literature and fantasy literature. Elves, dwarves, fairies, goblins, trolls: these are similar characters that are often mistakenly confused with each other and evoke a strong connection to nature, the earth and the forest. They are usually industrious, resourceful, particularly intelligent and capable. They care for the animals of the forest, know the uses and functions of the herbs that nature provides, and know how to make marvellous ointments and medicines from them. Depending on the geographical origin of the author talking about them, they are described with positive and sometimes negative characteristics. Dwarves with exactly the characteristics described above are also "at home" in the Dolomites. You don't believe it? Then read on:

The good dwarf and the curious farmer's wife
Once upon a time, there was a young peasant girl who lived in a small hut at the foot of the rocky giants known as the Dolomites. The place was idyllic, like Heidi's cottage in the famous animated film. Unfortunately, the young woman had become a widow and had to look after her animals, mow the meadows, harvest the potatoes and chop the wood for the winter alone. In short, it was a drama, and almost every day the young woman cried in despair. She didn't know it, but a dwarf who lived in a cave near her house had seen her in all her sadness as he wandered through the forest in search of berries, mushrooms and perhaps some sweet fruit. The dwarf, who was a good soul, felt challenged and it activated what is in the DNA of good dwarves. At night, but always in secret, he began to do the hard labour in place of the young farm girl. She was surprised when she found herself in front of a huge pile of beautiful, split wood, ready to burn in the stove during the cold winter days. And when she wanted to feed and milk the cows and goats that she kept in the barn, the milk buckets were already full and the animals were lying on the floor full to bursting. And it was the same in summer when it was time to sow, harvest and mow. Everything was done before the farmer's wife could start. Naturally, the woman was overjoyed and gradually began to suspect that a dwarf might have had a hand in it. One evening, the woman hid in the barn and waited for someone to turn up. It wasn't long before the gnome came into the stable and did all the work. The farmer's wife peeked out from behind a large bale of hay and... suddenly she sneezed! The gnome was startled and wanted to flee, but the woman stopped him at the door. With a smile on her face, the woman began to thank him and cry with happiness. The gnome, delighted at the praise, reassured the woman by telling her that he would be happy to help her as long as she needed him. But on one condition: The young woman must never ask him his name. The years passed and the dwarf was still the farmer's wife's faithful helper, who now led a much quieter and less strenuous life than before. From time to time, the woman baked a cake in the oven and gave it to the dwarf as a thank-you gift. Once, when she handed him the cake, her curiosity got the better of her and she could no longer contain herself: "Come on, tell me your name - we've been friends for so long!" If only she had never said that! The dwarf suddenly changed his expression, scowled, began to rumble, ran quickly out of the door and disappeared into the forest. And that was the last time the woman saw him. From then on, the farmer's wife had to do all the work on the farm herself again.

The giants

When you admire the jagged peaks and towers of the Dolomites and some of their most imposing peaks, the human imagination quickly recognises them as giants. A natural consequence of this is the creation of stories, tales and legends that are passed on to descendants and become part of the cultural heritage of the mountain valleys. In many areas of the Dolomites, giants are part of these stories, which often differ in plot but are basically very similar. And this is where the names of the giants Sassolungo and Grimm appear.

Sassolungo, the evil one
A family of gentle giants is said to have lived between Val di Fassa and Val Gardena. The farmers sold them potatoes and cheese, which the giants paid for with gold collected in the river. Only one of them was evil: the giant Langkofel, a thief and liar of the highest order. Langkofel was so quick and cunning that not even the other giants realised how mean and malicious he was. The badger and the mole were blamed for the destroyed harvest, the magpie for the stolen gold, the little mice for the stolen grain. And Langkofel was the first to shout: "Death to the fox, death to the marten, death to the hawk, the badger, the mole, the mice and the magpie!" So it was decided that the fox, magpie, badger and marten would guard the valley during the day, while the hawk, mole and mice would keep watch at night to understand what was happening. They soon discovered that the giant Langkofel was the culprit and condemned him to sink into the earth until he confessed his misdeeds. The giant was so dishonest and stubborn that he did not even admit his mistakes when his whole body was under the ground and only one hand was sticking out. This hand with the five open fingers remained fossilised in the Fassa Dolomites and is now known as the "Five Fingers of the Sassolungo".

Grimm, the lover
Closely linked to the morphology of the territory is the legend of the giant Grimm, who lived on the Jochgrimm Pass between the Weisshorn and Schwarzhorn. According to the story, the giant kidnapped the beautiful daughter of a nobleman from the Val d'Ega, took her to his palace on the Weisshorn and married her. To get his daughter back, the girl's father called for help from the famous hero Dietrich von Bern, who managed to defeat the giant in a duel in the Salurner Klause. Enraged, Grimm retreated to his mountain and from there began to throw huge stones at the knights who followed him. The stones were the foundations of the Weißhorn, which suddenly collapsed, burying not only the knights but also the giant and his bride: the blood of those killed coloured the valley below red. Even today, the Bletterbach gorge stands out against the white of the summit: it is the chromatic contrast between the white dolomite of the Contrin formation, which forms the summit of the Weißhorn, and the red Val Gardena strata below, in which the gorge is engraved. The collapsed foundations of the Corno Bianco can be recognised by the landslide blocks that fall from the summit towards Radein and Aldein.