Rifugio Dibona - Grotta di Tofana

Access to the starting point:
a) Access from Gorenjska: Via Border crossing Rateče or Predel to Trbiž / Tarvisio and then along the motorway towards Udine to the Tolmezzo exit. From Tolmezzo, follow the road towards Ampezzo and the Passo della Mauria mountain pass. The road then descends and leads to a crossroads where you turn left (possibly right) towards Cortina d'Ampezzo. At all subsequent junctions, follow the signs for Cortina d'Ampezzo. In Cortina d'Ampezzo, follow the signs for the Passo di Falzarego Alpine pass. Follow this ascending road to where a road forks off to the right in the direction of the rifugio Dibona hut (the fork is at a height of about 1700 m). At first, the asphalted road leads higher up to a crossroads, where you continue on the lower road on the left (Duca d'Aosta hut on the right) and follow it to the parking lot behind the Dibona hut.
b) From the coastal side: take the motorway towards Venice/Venezia. At Portogruaro, leave the motorway towards Venice and turn right on the motorway towards Pordenone. At the next motorway junction near Conegliano, turn right towards Belluno. The motorway ends near Belluno and we continue towards Cortina d'Ampezzo at the next junctions. Continue as described above.

Path description:
From the parking lot, continue along the dirt road past the gate. Follow this road to a marked junction, where you turn left onto a footpath marked "Via Ferrata Lipella", and to the right is route 403 towards hut Rifugio Giussani. After a few metres you are back at the crossroads. This time turn right, also following the signs for "Via Ferrata Lipella". The path then ascends and crosses the slopes below the mighty south face of Tofana to the west. Initially, the ascent passes through dwarf pines, which is soon replaced by a scree slope. As we approach the wall, we are back at the crossroads.
At the crossroads, continue straight ahead or slightly to the left, following the signs for the "Grotta della Tofana" (Via Ferrata Lipella on the left, Rifugio Giussani on the right). From the crossroads, the path climbs along the escarpment and leads to a large ravine. Turn right into the ravine and after about 10 metres you will see a sheltered path on the left leading to the Grotta di Tofana.
The protected path crosses the wall to the left along a narrow ledge. The protected path is short and technically not too difficult. However, as the path is quite exposed, it is still advisable to use self-belay. After crossing the ledge, there is a short steeper climb that leads to the cave entrance.
Inside the cave, head straight up slightly. A path joins from the right, which we will return to later. A circular path leads through the cave. In the initial part, a few pegs help us climb up, followed by a short climb up the pegs. The cave then turns to the right and there is a descent down a flight of steps. Continue left and after a short descent the cave narrows. Continue descending gently and at the last part the path turns right and there is a short climb to the cave entrance.
Descend along the ascent path.

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