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Tag: Via Ferrata

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This hike goes from Fanes and via a via ferrata over the Furcia Rossa to Rifugio Giussani. It is definitely one of the best hikes we have done so far!

Fanes is just beautiful. We pass the great Fanes alp and from there go in the direction of the via ferrata Furcia Rossa. On the whole way up to the Furcia Rossa we are completely alone. The view around, especially to the Tofana, is just amazing!

Before we reach the first ladders of the via ferrata we walk along a very exposed band (no rope). The via ferrata is difficulty C and no problem even with the heavy backpacks. On top of the Furcia Rossa there is a nice bench where we sit for a long time and enjoy the view. Going down more ladders is easy, but then an exhausting trail leads to the Monte Castello and Bivacco della Pace. The Bivacco della Pace is looking really nice inside and it is well equipped. From here most people go back down to the Fanes alp which is only 1.5 hours away. But we continue a bit up before going down on very steep gravel (this is a variant of the Via della Pace, but the descent is very difficult!) to the valley of Travenanze. This valley is really beautiful! Luckily there is a river going through the valley where we refill our water bottles. From here it is still a long way up to Rifugio Giussani.

We cross the river and are now on the other side of the valley. There is another via ferrata called Scala del Menighel. But when we see what it looks like we decide to take the longer way around it. I think this one is not so good when you have a heavy backpack, because you might easily lose balance. On the further trail we pass a huge waterfall! And there is a rainbow in it - so pretty! 🙂 Then it is a long way up - but finally we reach Rifugio Guissani. The rifugio is one of the best we ever stayed and during a fantastic dinner we have a good view to the Tofana di Rozzes. This was one of the best hikes ever - but it was also a very long day, in total it took us almost 12 hours and about 2000m going up.

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After four years we are finally back in the Dolomites! The crossing of this mountain range from Abtei to Cortina has been on our wish list for a long time. We take the bus to Abtei and from there walk up to the Rifugio La Crusc. The rifugio is directly below the Heiligkreuzkofel and the view around is amazing! We can see Marmolada, Piz Boe, Geisslerspitzen and a lot more of the beautiful Dolomites!

After breakfast the next morning we walk along the wall of the Heiligkreuzkofel thinking about Reinhold Messner climbing up this wall on one of the most difficult climbs during his time! After about 2 hours we are on top of the massive where it is very spacious. There we continue to the top of the Heiligkreuzkofel, then further on via a short via ferrata to the top of the Zehnerspitze. The view is amazing! We take a long break and then go on to Fanes. Fanes is a very beautiful place. There are many Italian tourists, but we are lucky and find a sleeping place at a cosy alp 🙂

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Actually we wanted to do the Mainzer Höhenweg this weekend! We were already very excited about it, but then the weather changed all our plans. There was a lot of snow (in July!!) and so not the best conditions to do this hike.

So instead we take the car and drive to Riezlern. After many traffic jams we finally arrived at about 3pm. During the drive we already decided that we will try to do the "Zweiländer Sportklettersteig" on the Kanzelwand. The difficulty is about C/D-D, so this is one of the more difficult ones. We walk up from Riezlern and reach the beginning of the via ferrata at about 5:30 pm. The view is very beautiful, because most mountains are covered in a bit of snow and because it was alredy late we are the only people in the wall! The via ferrata is very exhausting, there are many traverses and often it is hard to find a good place for the feet. But anyway we did it! 🙂 After about one and a half hours we safely arrive on top of the Kanzelwand.

Being on the summit was just amazing because we were the only people all around and the sun already started going down covering everything in a very special light. We stayed for a long time before going back down to Riezlern.

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For some time now we were waiting for the next weekend without snow, rain, storm and extreme heat. And also this weekend didn't look so good at first. For Saturday the weather forecast predicted rain and storms for almost the whole day. However Sunday was supposed to be quite good and Monday was said to be perfect.

So we decided to "move" the weekend by one day and went to Oberstdorf in the Allgäu, again. Our plan was to go to Birgsau by bus and then climb up to the Mindelheimer Hut via the Mindeheimer Klettersteig. The next day we we wanted to climb down to Mittelberg very very early to get back to work not too late.

So in short - this basically worked out as planned! However, this was our first via ferrata this year and the way up from Birgsau to the entry point was already quite long. So when we arrived at the beginning of the via ferrata we already fell a little tired. I think next time we will sleep on a hut again before entering the Mindelheimer Klettersteig.

From the  via ferrata we had a very good view to the left and to the right. To our left we were able to see the Enzian Hut, the Rappensee Hut, the Waltenberger Haus and the Heilbronner Weg. To our right we looked down to the Fiderepasshütte.

At about 7 in the evening we finally arrived at the Mindelheimer Hut. Luckily there was still a free place for sleeping and we even were able to order a dinner! 🙂 The evening on the hut was unusual warm and we had a nice look onto the mountains which were still covered with sunlight.

The next morning when we woke up on the hut we were almost not able to move due to muscle ache! 😀 Still, we made it down to Mittelberg in the end to catch the bus back to Oberstdorf. This was a very nice first tour through the Alps this year! 🙂

 

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On a very sunny and hot day we decided to do another via ferrata above Riva. In the morning we took the boat from Torbole to Riva. From there we started and took the small road which goes along the lake. After about 20 minutes there is a small path leading into high grass. It looks like this path is not walked very often. Later we realized that most people who do this via ferrata are coming directly from Biacesa. The path which leads to the beginning of the via ferrata Susatti is quite small and steep and we are already completely in sweat when we reach the beginning of the via ferrata. Walking up the via ferrata is not difficult, so we have a lot of time to enjoy the view down! The lake is so blue and because of this view it is really worth going up there. When we reach Cima Capi we take a short break and then continue on the via ferrata Foletti until we reach the small hut. Because of the heat we are already tired, but Cima Rocca with the old galleries from World War First sounds promising. So we continue. Luckily we have a torch with us. It is really worth going this way as you can pass the old galleries. Going down we take the direct way to Biacesa. By the time we arrive there the sky is completely covered with clouds and there is no bus going back to Riva. So we walk along the old road to Pregasina directly above the lake. Back in Torbole we are really tired and looking forward to a big pizza and our hotel room.