UKC

Hi all,

I’m going to the Dolomites at the end of May  and first week of June. I was wondering about a) if people knew which lifts are open then as I heard some only open for the summer season later b) which via Ferrata would be recommended at this time of year/accessible without the need for a closed lift etc? Best ones for beginners.

thank you,

Chris

Hi Chris

Plenty of VF accessible on foot from the top & Corvara side of Val Gardena. Gran Cir & Piz de Cir V suitable for beginners.

Then the excellent but slightly more difficult Brigata Tridentina (you can bail out after the first section if feeling stressed, but it doesn't get any harder, and you'll miss the bridge!!).

Piz da Lech is accessible on foot if you don't mind an hour or so uphill, & the VF is nice and easy.

Sass de Stria is very easy but a nice historical walk with some cabled sections. Or you can go up the Lagazoui (?spelling) tunnels via the Martini Ledge (good for a wet day (take headtorch & helmet for low ceilings). Military history by the bucketload, & very easy routes

Sass de Roccia is different & pleasant with a nice finishing summit.

When you've done all of them you can slog uphill for an hour to do Cesare Piazzetta. A long day out, & grade 5, tho if you rock climb it's not difficult (VDiff/Severe)

That's 6 days entertainment without a lift needed. Averau is another short easy VF with an excellent summit finish after a good walk in if you don't feel up to Cesare Piazzetta. 

Excellent fun all round. Enjoy your trip

Be prepared for the possibility of quite a bit of snow still around on approaches & descents

Thank you very much. Sounds like a great itinerary. Chris

Hi Alan, useful to know. Are we talking crampons and extra gear needed? Chris

This is a useful link for conditions, it will give you an idea of condtions in the are. Cortina guides so mainly Cortina and Falzarego Pass. Col de Bois/ Alpini, Strobel & Bovero have no cable car access. https://www.guidedolomiti.com/en/via-ferrata-in-cortina-open/

Not crampons, more like reasonably robust shoes for step kicking rather than trail runners. 

^^^This, and also on the VFs themselves which will invariably ruin your plans.  Any VF with north or east facing big ledges, couloirs or gullies above 2500m has a significant chance of being impassable safely without axes and/or crampons before August.  If you're going to the Brenta Dolomites the Arco area is about 1.5 hours away and significantly lower and warmer, so plan backup plans to do the VFs there. If you're in the main Dolomites, then the two north of Cortina (Michaeli Strobel, Ettore Bovero) are relatively low altitude and south-facing. Ivano Dibona is also mostly on the south side of its ridge. Maybe look at the logbooks on here to see when people have tried stuff too.

One of the locals keeps this page up to date so worth checking. He’s been doing it for a number of years now.

https://www.guidedolomiti.com/en/via-ferrata-in-cortina-open/