Passo di Costalunga / Karerpass - Roda di Vael / Rotwand (Via Ferrata Majare)

Access to the starting point:
Access from Gorenjska: Drive through the Karavanke Tunnel into Austria, then continue to Spittal and on to Lienz (the motorway ends a little after Spittal). We continue along a relatively nice and wide road through the Drava Valley, which leads us into Itali. The road continues past Dobbiaco/Toblach and Brunico/Bruneck. Just after the last-mentioned town, which is passed by a bypass road, we turn left into the Val Badia valley. Continue along the valley past La Vila and Corvara. Then climb over the Passo Campolongo and Passo Pordoi. From Passo Pordoi, descend to the west side of the valley of Val di Fassa. Just after Pozza di Fassa, turn right towards the Passo di Costalunga / Karerpass. A few hundred metres before the pass, park in a large parking lot called "Valate". The parking lot is on the right hand side of the road.

From the coastal side: From Nova Gorica, exit into Itali and follow the motorway to 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. Follow the motorway until you reach the exit for Belluno. When you leave the motorway, you come to a large roundabout, which you leave at the exit for Belluno and Feltre. At the small roundabout in Belluno, turn right towards Agordo. Follow this road until Moena in the Val di Fassa. At Moena, turn right towards Canazei, but only as far as Vigo di Fassa, where you turn left towards the Passo di Costalunga / Karerpass. A few hundred metres before the pass, park in a large parking lot called "Valate". The parking lot is on the right hand side of the road.

Path description:
From the parking lot, take the narrow cart track after the "Rifugio Roda di Vael" signs. Cart track initially climbs through the forest and soon leads to a marked crossroads. A path branches off to the left towards Rifugio Paolina, and we continue to the right towards Rifugio Roda di Vael.

We continue along the cart track, which climbs mostly through the forest, occasionally opening up views towards the Latemar mountain group. Higher up, the path leads out of the forest to pastures which also open up views to the south.

At mountain pasture, where there is also a shepherd's hut, cart track ends, and we continue along the footpath, which continues eastwards. The path then turns slightly to the left and starts to climb a little steeper up the slopes, which become more and more scenic. Soon we will see the Rifugio Roda di Vael and Baita Marino Pederiva huts ahead of us, which are only a short climb away. Just before the huts, the path from Rifugio Paolina joins us from the left.

At the hut, continue left up the hut, following the signs "Via ferrata Majare". The path climbs up a grassy slope and quickly leads to a crossroads. To the right is a shorter path that leads directly to the Torre Finestra tower, while we continue to the left on a longer option that leads along the ridge over the top of Punta Masare.

From the crossroads, the path first crosses the slopes to the south, then turns right and starts to climb slightly steeper below the slopes of Punta Masare. This route leads to a ridge on the western side of the summit where the start of a protected climbing route called Via Ferrata Majare is located.

The protected route starts on the west side of the ridge and crosses the steep slopes by a ropeway. This route leads to a small notch with a very steep climb using a rope and some scrambles. After a steep climb, the path then runs mostly along the ridge and leads to a tower from which you then descend vertically. In addition to the rope, the descent is aided by a number of rungs. There are a few short steep ascents and descents, and then the route turns slightly to the right and follows the east side of the ridge. At this point, the route is a little less difficult and climbs back up to the ridge along the cliff. Later, the path turns right again and then descends quite steeply along the cliff for some time until it reaches a lower slope below the summit of Torre Finestra, where there is also a crossroads.

At the crossroads, continue up to the left, and on the right another path (a shorter variant) joins us from hut Roda di Vael. From the crossroads, the path follows an easy slope below the summit of Torre Finestra, easily recognisable by its natural window. The relatively gentle slope is later intersected by a deep ravine. The gully is reached by a vertical wall, which is well protected by a rope and pegs.

There is a steep climb out of the gully along a rope, with a ladder for a short part. The path then leads to another less steep slope where the protected path ends. Then it is just a climb up an easy and increasingly scenic slope to the top.

You can descend along the ascent route and then follow a shorter variant back to hut Roda di Vael. Alternatively, you can descend from the summit along the sheltered path that runs along the north side of the mountain to the Passo di Vaiolon saddle. The sheltered path on the north side of the mountain is slightly less demanding than the one described above. From the saddle, return to the Roda di Vael hut or descend the ravine to the Paolina hut and from there back to the starting point at the Passo di Costalunga / Karerpass pass.

On the way: Baita Marino Pederiva (2275m), Rifugio Roda di Vael (2280m), Punta Masare (2585m), Sforcela da le Rode (2605m)

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