Via Ferrata Bolver Lugli

Overview

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It is climbs a big wall, with great rock; It has spectacular views as it climbs into the Pale di San Martino Range. It is, however, a true alpine route, with about 1000 feet of unprotected scrambling on the approach, followed by over 1000 more feet of high-quality ferrata climbing. After that, the return route is a fairly long journey down an alpine valley with a descent of steep snow slopes a possibility. An excellent route, but you need to be comfortable with the alpine mountaineering setting.
If there is extensive snow in the valley used on descent (the Val dei Cantoni), an ice ax and/or crampons are a good idea.

Getting There

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The route starts from the Colverde-Rosetta chairlift station. Take the lift to the middle station at Colverde and get off. The wall above you to the north is the wall the ferrata climbs. A trail (number 706) behind the lift station / bar leads up, initially through a small bit of forest, towards the cliff. Take this trail.
Soon the trail breaks out into alpine meadow and climbs up and across some scree-filled drainages. Up above, the wall you are about to climb is in full view.
Eventually, the trail arrives at a 4-way junction. Ignore the cross-trail (712) and continue up on 706, which in short order leads to a plaque and the start of the scrambling section.

Route Description

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It is a long and unprotected scramble to reach the start of the ferrata wire. The route climbs a steep prow of rock that just out onto the wall. The steepest scrambling is right at the start, so if you are ok with that part you'll probably be ok with the rest of it. The rock is very sound and the holds are plentiful. It really is all about whether you are comfortable and competent on such terrain - if so, you likely won't find it all that bad. Higher up on the prow of rock, much of the going is walking on steep, semi-loose talus. Watch for the painted waymarks, which point the way to the best lines up. Take care not to knock material down onto people below you.



There's actually quite a bit of this scrambling - about 1,000 feet (almost 300 m) worth of elevation gain.
Following the waymarks, the scrambling ends at the first bit of wire. This is the start of the ferrata proper. Gear up and go for it! The rock is superb, and if you are reasonably good at climbing, you can definitely do the whole route 'free' (i.e. clipping into the wire for protection but not using it to haul yourself up). There is one particularly nice section, where the route traverses up and left over a lot of air. This is also the techincal crux of the route.
The wire is mostly continuous, but there are places that are less steep where you can take off your pack and have a break.
Nearing the top, the route angles right and enters a narrow gorge surrounded by pinnacles. From here, the wire leads up a cleft, then curves around to reach the top of the wall. The route flattens out to horizontal and traverses over to easier terrain, then ends.
The end of the ferrata is a great place for a break. You can see into the heart of the Altopiano of the Pale now, with its endless expanses of whiteish, moon-like rock. A well-defined trail curves around a wide bowl and up to the little orange dot of the Bivacco Fiamme Gialle, which you can see above you.
The Bivacco, which you reach in a quite short time from the end of the ferrata, is the high point of the route (unless you plan to climb Cima Vezzana, an optional diversion. The Cima della Vezzana is the large steep-looking peak right across from you to the north). From the Bivacco, the trail leads down through easy scrambling terrain to the pass at the head of the Valle dei Cantoni. This is Passo Travignolo, and here you can start your optional climb of Cima della Vezzana, up a loose scree trail. The Cima della Vezzana is the highest peak in the Pale Group.
Now at the passo di Travignolo, you have a good look at the upper Valle dei Cantoni and your descent route. The route you are following is marked path #716. Depending on the season and/or year, there might be little snow, or a lot. This is the time, if necessary, to get out your ice ax and/or crampons. If the amount of snow is low enough, there may be a scree path leading around the snowfields.
Descending the Valle dei Cantoni, you'll notice that the grade gets steeper. There are several minor scrambling sections, but if the whole valley is covered in snow, it will be quite steep snowfield. There are lots of waymarks on the rocks that guide you to the right-hand side of this section of the valley (again, assuming it isn't all covered in snow - for the record, when we did this route in mid-July of 2007, there were only a few patches of snow and they were almost all avoidable).
Once finished the steep scrambling descent, your troubles are over. The rest of the route to the rifugio Rosetta present no special difficulties. Follow the path as it descends the valley for a bit, then rises to the right and around into the next valley to the south.
The trail (#716) curves around into the next valley to the south, and then climbs up it to a pass (Passo Bettega). The trail then descends and trends left, traversing at a mostly constant altitude, then up again, until it emerges on rock benches above the rifugio Rosetta. Along this section there are trails which branch right and down, ultimately leading back to the Colverde station where you started
If you choose not to hike down, and want to take the cablecar down, or if you are staying at the Rifugio Rosetta, then stay on the path until the Rifugio. The upper cablecar station is clearly visible from the Rifugio, and is only a 15-minute further walk. From the Cablecar station, you can hitch a ride back down to the parking lot.

Essential Gear

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Complete set for Ferrata, including an helmet

Images

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