From 8158f66bb4842defd222b0989af3a6f621be212b Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Sebastiano Tronto Date: Tue, 14 Oct 2025 21:28:19 +0200 Subject: Added Alta Via 2 pages (hidden) --- src/av2/day3/day3.md | 194 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 194 insertions(+) create mode 100644 src/av2/day3/day3.md (limited to 'src/av2/day3') diff --git a/src/av2/day3/day3.md b/src/av2/day3/day3.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..777d2ac --- /dev/null +++ b/src/av2/day3/day3.md @@ -0,0 +1,194 @@ + + + + +
← Day 2 Alta Via 2 Day 4 →
+ +# Day 3 - A knee-breaking descent + +

August 22, 2025

+ +## Route of the day + +
+Click to see map + +
+ +*Download the [gpx file](../gpx/av2-day3.gpx) or see the route on +[outdooractive.com](https://www.outdooractive.com/en/route/hiking-trail/alta-badia/-2025-alta-via-2-day-3/325541657/?share=%7E3zdmpbrn%244ossqbcq)* + +## The lunar path to Rifugio Boè + +Our clothes are still wet by the time we wake up. The summer nights +in the Alps are just too humid. But at least we can finally see some +sun. The weather is going to be much better for the next few days. + +![View from the Pisciadù hut](../img/22-0702-pisciadu.jpg) + +

A beatiful view from the Pisciadù hut at dawn.

+ +The beds in the hut were comfortable and we slept well. After a comical +incident with my dad's boots - he put on someone else's pair, not knowing +that I had brought his into our room, and spent a good 15 minutes +searching for them - we are ready to leave the hut at 8:20. + +![The Pisciadù the lake and Piz Pisciadù](../img/22-0756-pisciadu-lake.jpg) + +

The Pisciadù lake and Piz Pisciadù (peak Pisciadù).

+ +The day starts with a short but somewhat steep section of the trail. +There are some steel ropes and we use our simple harness once again, +although this time we felt we could have done without. + +At 9:45 we reach what is likely the highest point of our route, +an anonymous plateau at 2960 meters on sea level. There are higher +points on some variations of the route, for example *Punta Penia* in the +[Marmolada](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marmolada) massif, but in that +section we are going to take a lower trail, which is the more classical +one according to my guide book. + +At this point, we are completely immersed in a sea of fog. It is quite +cold, probably only a couple of degrees above 0°C, and there is some +unpleasantly cold breeze. + +![My dad resting on a rock](../img/22-0946-fog.jpg) + +

My dad resting on a rock, trying to keep warm.

+ +The fog comes and goes, letting us see the beautiful panorama for a few +brief moments. + +![Panorama](../img/22-1006-panorama.jpg) + +As we walk down from the plateau, my left knee starts hurting. It is +not unbearable, and it only hurts when I walk downhill. But it does +not bode well for the rest of the day: our next stop is 900m below us, +so we are going to walk downhill for most of the day. + +At 10:30 we are on top of the *Antersass* (2906m), a minor peak next to +the more prominent [Piz Boè](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piz_Bo%C3%A8) +(3152m). We could have walked around the Antersass, but the trail to +climb up to the top and then down is actually easier. Going to the top +of Piz Boè would have been an interesting detour, but not quite feasible +for our 9-day plan. + +We reach [Rifugio Boè](https://www.rifugioboe.it), a recently renovated +hut at 2873m, before 11:00. + +![Piz Boè](../img/22-1145-piz-boe.jpg) + +

A view of Piz Boè (peak Boè) from Rifugio Boè (Boè +hut). The hut on the top of Piz Boè is, perhaps confusingly, called Capanna Piz Fassa. +

+ +We have now left Sout Tyrol. The rest of the Alta Via 2 route roughly +follows the border between the provinces of Trento and Belluno. + +We leave the hut at 11:20. The fog has returned, but it is not as cold +as before. + +The trail to *Foržela Pordoi* (2848m) is mostly flat, and very crowded, +because of a cable car that makes it accessible even to families with +kids. I am not sure I like this kind of over-turism in places that +would otherwise be hard to reach. + +## A painful descent + +As we reach the foržela, the view opens up on a more diverse landscape +of grass, rock and forests. After a very short break, we start walking +down to the Pordoi Pass. + +The descent is on a long and steep +[scree](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scree). I have never liked walking +down this kind of trail, but now that my knee is screaming for mercy I am +really hating it. I would have rather walked it up twice than down once. + +![The steep descent to the Pordoi Pass](../img/22-1236-pordoi-descent.jpg) + +

The steep descent to the Pordoi Pass.

+ +We reach the [Pordoi Pass](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pordoi_Pass) +at 13:30. I need a long break before continuing, so we decide to lay +down next to a tiny church just after the pass. Luckily the weather +is nice - or not terrible, at least - and we can enjoy a nice view of +the surroundings. + +![View from the Pordoi Pass](../img/22-1358-pordoi-pass.jpg) + +

+The Sella group +from the Pordoi Pass.

+ +![View towards Canazei](../img/22-1431-canazei.jpg) + +

The view in the direction of Cianacei.

+ +## Her majesty, the Marmolada + +At 14:10, after about 40 minutes of relax, we are ready to get up. + +We walk up an easy trail among ski paths. Here too there are plenty of +turists, and I can't blame them for choosing to walk in such a beautiful +place. This is a very common touristic destination both in the Summer +and in the Winter. + +We walk past a strange place called [Rifugio +Fredarola](https://www.fredarola.it/) (2370m), which looks more like +a night club you could find the center of Milan rather than a mountain +hut. They are even playing some electronic lounge music. It's hard to +describe, but it feels oddly out of place here. But maybe for people +coming from a big city this is just what they expect to find here; +I guess it is a matter of points of view. + +We continue on a wide, mostly flat trail. For now my knee is is doing +fine, but I am a bit scared for the descent that awaits us later today. +And finally we have a good view on the Marmolada, the Queen of the +Dolomites. + +![Me in front of the Marmolada](../img/22-1510-marmolada.jpg) + +

+The Marmolada, +the highest mountain in the +Dolomites, and its glacier. At the feet of the massif you can +see the Fedaia +lake, around which there are a couple of huts, including the one +where we are staying tonight. In the distance you can see the Pelmo and the Civetta. +

+ +We stop at [Rifugio Viel Dal Pan](https://www.rifugiovieldalpan.com/) +(2432m) for a short break at 15:30. From there, the steep descent towards +the Fedaia Pass (2054m) begins. My knee forces me to walk slowly, so by +the time we reach the pass it is already 17:30. + +The day is almost concluded, but we have to walk to the opposite side of +the lake to [Rifugio Fedaia](https://www.rifugiofedaia.com/). The closer +[Rifugio Castiglioni](https://www.rifugiomarmolada.it/), where we stop +for a beer, was fully booked when we planned our trip. + +![Fedaia lake](../img/22-1730-fedaia.jpg) + +We walk fast on the old road next to the lake, chatting with a local +resident who helps us keep up the pace. We arrive at our hotel at 18:05, +after almost 10 hours of hike (including breaks), and we are very happy +to find a comfortable room with private bathroom waiting for us. + +This day was longer than we planned, partly because of my knee. But the +scenery was beautiful. + + + + + +
← Day 2 Alta Via 2 Day 4 →
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