From b7e6de8605e1f33410c03d0a12c57eda4bd07425 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Sebastiano Tronto Date: Sat, 27 Sep 2025 15:41:27 +0200 Subject: Day 3 --- src/av2/day3/day3.md | 144 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++- 1 file changed, 143 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-) (limited to 'src/av2/day3') diff --git a/src/av2/day3/day3.md b/src/av2/day3/day3.md index 9323efc..07ccf3a 100644 --- a/src/av2/day3/day3.md +++ b/src/av2/day3/day3.md @@ -1,4 +1,4 @@ -# Day 3 - TODO +# Day 3 - A knee-breaking descent |[← Day 2](../day2)|[Alta Via 2](../)|[Day 4 →](../day4)| |:-|:-:|-:| @@ -9,5 +9,147 @@ [outdooractive.com](https://www.outdooractive.com/en/route/hiking-trail/alta-badia/-2025-alta-via-2-day-3/325541657/?share=%7E3zdmpbrn%244ossqbcq)*

+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 back 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 days 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 we are +going to take a lower route, 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 arount the Antersass, but the trail to +climb up to the top and then down is actually easier than the one that +goes around it. 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](https://www.rifugiocapannapizfassa.com/en/).* +

+ +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 in places that +would otherwise be hard to reach. + +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 some rest before continuing, so we decide to stop +until 14:10. 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 mountains surrounding the Pordoi Pass.*

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

+*The view in the direction of [Cianacei](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canazei).* +

+ +The 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 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](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/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](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monte_Pelmo) and the +[Civetta](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monte_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 to 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](../day2)|[Alta Via 2](../)|[Day 4 →](../day4)| |:-|:-:|-:| -- cgit v1.3