Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Dolomites - Day 4: Via Ferrata Punta Anna

Day 4 was to be a spectacular day in the mountains.  We awoke early and enjoyed a simple breakfast of bread, cheese and prosciutto at the refugio Dibona.  Then we headed out for our next adventure climbing the via ferrata Punta Anna.

The view at breakfast time

The approach to the route

The via ferrata follows a long ridge and there were some breathtaking views along the way.  This route is graded as "5C" which is the maximum technical difficulty and the maximum degree of exposure for any via ferrata in this region.  Thankfully the holds were all very solid and the weather stayed perfect for the entire day.

The route follows the ridge in this picture (from L to R)






Once we reached the end of the via ferrata we traversed off the ridge to explore some ruins from the first world war and to visit another refugio (the Refugio Giussani) for a well deserved cappuccino and a sandwich. 

At the end of the VF

Buildings from the war








Refugio Giussani

Refugio Giussani

The walk back to our starting point was down a steep scree slope and then through beautiful alpine meadows.  We spotted a few Edelweiss growing in the wild on the way.



Our final activity for the day was to transfer to the refugio Lagazuoi for that evening's accommodation and dining.   This was achieved with the help of a cable car, so it didn't take too long.  Once we were there we enjoyed a hot shower, a nice sunset, and some more fresh pasta for dinner.

 The view from refugio as the sun set

Inside the regfugio Lagazuoi





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