Monday, September 06, 2021

Cadini Massif 2: Sentiero Durissini

We were so impressed with the Cadini massif during Thursday's hike that we opted to go back. Andrea found an Italian description of a loop through six high passes that sounds too good not to do and the weather forecast was good, so off we went.

This time we drove past the Lago di Misurina and parked just past it. From here it's up, up, up to the Rif. Fonda Savio. The trail takes us through the woods and then up and through the nice valley below the hut, past a large group of older hikers, and up, up the last bit to the hut. As we're putting on our helmets at the top of the ladder we can see a group of three following the path we're planning on taking and another group of 4 on their way up to the Ciadin de Nevaio. 

Down the ladders we go and the across the snow and along the good path which takes us around the corner and then up to the Forcella de la Torre, the first pass of the day. The group of three (two French women and a guide) are still here and a solo hiker comes from the other direction during our break. We have a food break and enjoy the views before descending the other side. Down a bit, then a traverse, overtaking the group of three, then up again to the Forcella Sabbiosa and more nice views. Down again, another traverse, another climb, and we're at the Forcella Ciadin Deserto. From here it's just around the corner to the Forcella Cristina. Just below this one we find a nice (and unexpected!) bench in the sun and do another short food break, just because we can. Now down a bit , into a greener area, and then around the corner and back into the land-of-rock. Up, up again with more scree and then some scrambling and ladders until we get to the Forcella Verzi. Fortunately we're at the top when we encounter the couple getting ready to go down... there are plenty of options to kick rocks down on people below you on that bit and it was nice not to have to worry about that. We enjoy another food break and appreciate the views (what a place!) before continuing on. From here there's just a short bit of ascent to the Forcella del Nevaio, from which we have simply awesome views. The descent into the Ciadin de Nevaio is easy, if a bit loose, we descend a bit of snow (there's what seems to be a good-sized permanent snow field up here) and start our way down, down to the hut. Nice views along the way to the klettersteig which heads up to the Cima Cadin Nord Est (busy! busy!). Back at the hut (busy! busy!) we opt for the quick descent (the way we came up) to the car. We do this down, down, down efficiently and are back at the car pretty quickly.

This was pretty much a perfect hike: great views, interesting terrain, fantastic landscapes, just sooooo good! :-)

Stats: 6:00, 13.4 km, ~1150m up and down

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