The outdoor barrel at the Scoiattoli Mountain Hut

A little further south, in Cortina d’Ampezzo, the Rifugio Scoiattoli (2,255 metres) embodies the very essence of the Tofane and the Cinque Torri. Founded by the mountain guide Lorenzo Lorenzi, it has successfully transformed the rustic hospitality of Ampezzo into a cult destination, renowned not only for its handmade ‘casunziei’ but also for its famous open-air fir-wood tub: a hot bath under the open sky with views of the limestone monoliths, whilst the sunset sets off the ‘enrosadira’, the natural optical phenomenon whereby the peaks of the Dolomites are tinged with shades of pink, red, orange and purple at dawn and dusk.