Whether you stand or walk, descend or ascend: at the Val Senales Glacier you will be walking in the footsteps of Ötzi, the famous Iceman from Italy. The finding site of Ötzi lies at the Tisenjoch saddle and exerts its magical attraction between the summit peaks and boulders. Have a guess: why is Ötzi so famous? It may be because he lay in the ice for 5,300 years and remained hidden for thousands of years as a silent witness of time. And why did Ötzi remain intact? That was because he was covered under a thick layer of ice and snow until he was discovered by a couple of mountaineers on September 19th, 1991, complete with copper axe and leather shoes.
GLACIER MIRACLE ÖTZI FROM ITALY, VAL SENALES
So where did Ötzi live? This question is not undisputed, but what we do know is that he was found below the Similaun peak on the Tisenjoch saddle in Val Senales, South Tyrol. The discovery is considered a milestone for research into the Neolithic period. It proves that the alpine passes on the Val Senales Glacier already connected the cultural circles in the Alpine region in early times. Thanks to the eternal ice and lucky circumstances, Ötzi’s remains have been preserved for posterity. Did you know that Ötzi almost went down in history not as a South Tyrolean but as an Austrian? Ötzi was found only around 93 metres from the Italian-Austrian border.
