Trafoi is a village of a few dozen houses in the Ortles Alps of South Tyrol, at about 1,540 metres, on the northern approach to the Stelvio Pass, and it sits under one of the great mountain faces of the Alps. The Ortler, at 3,905 metres the highest peak in the region, rises above the village in a wall of ice and rock, and it was first climbed in 1804 by a local hunter, Josef Pichler, on the orders of an Austrian archduke. The glaciers hang right over the valley, and on a clear morning the sight is so large that the village looks like a toy.
The history here is of pilgrims and soldiers. A small pilgrimage site, the Three Holy Springs, lies above the village at the foot of the mountain, said to have been the place where the Virgin Mary appeared to a shepherd boy in the sixteenth century, and a chapel marks the spot. During the First World War the front line between Austria and Italy ran across these peaks, with troops fighting in ice caves and carrying guns up to the summits, and you can still find traces of trenches and barracks along the Stelvio road.
For riders, Trafoi is the foot of the famous climb. From here the road to the pass, the highest paved road in the Eastern Alps at 2,757 metres, rises in a series of forty-eight numbered hairpins on this side, many of them tight and steep, with sheer views and a wall of rock above. It is generally open from late May or June to October, depending on snow, and closed in winter, so check before you go. The surface is good but the road is very busy on summer weekends, with cyclists, coaches and fast sports bikes, and weather at the top can change within minutes, with cold, fog and even snow in July.
In the village, a few hotels and cafés serve apple strudel, hot chocolate and hearty South Tyrolean food such as dumplings and speck. Come early in the day, bring a warm layer, and give the hairpins respect.