Capanna Alpina - Bivacco della Pace (Via della pace)

Access to the starting point:
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 the pass and then turn right towards Passo Valparola. From the pass, descend towards the Val Badia valley. As the road levels out, you will see a large parking lot on the right, as well as a restaurant and a bivouac. We continue along the main road for a few 100 metres and then, just after the bridge crossing the Rü Sciare stream, turn right towards the Capanna Alpina restaurant. Follow the road to the end and park in the large parking lot in front of the restaurant. During the summer months, there is a charge for parking. The price for one day of parking is 5€ (July 2019).

From the coastal side. 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 past the Capanna Alpina restaurant on the macadam road, which is closed to traffic. The road then leads quickly to a plain where there is a crossroads. Route 20 to the right leads to the Ütia Scotoni hut, while we turn left onto route 11 and follow the signs for Col de Locia and Fanes.

From the crossroads, we walk for some time on a gravel path, which crosses a stream over a bridge in between. The path becomes a little narrower and leads into dwarf pines and then into a sparse forest. Here the path also starts to climb a little steeper. A little higher up, the path turns left and then climbs along a fence on a slightly steeper slope. The path here offers beautiful views to the west where the Sella mountain group is clearly visible. The path then crosses a grazing fence and leads to flatter terrain along the undistinguished summit of Col de Locia, which is on our left alongside the path. There are also some benches at the top.

The path turns slightly to the right here and descends gently at first before crossing a small stream. The trail then follows a wide and gentle valley, mostly to the north. For a while the path continues along the dwarf pines and then leads to vast grassy slopes. This path then leads to a marked crossroads where a path branches off to the right towards Lake Lech de Legacio and on towards the Lagazuoi hut.

At the crossroads, we continue straight on across the vast meadows, which are also grazed by cattle in the summer months. The path begins to descend gently again and, with magnificent views, leads us to another marked crossroads.

This time, the path branches off to the left towards the peaks of Conturines and Lavarela. We continue along the wide path until we reach the mountain pasture of Malga Gran Fanes, where there is a marked crossroads.

Straight ahead, it is only a few minutes' walk to the Ütia de Gran Fanes hut, which we can already see ahead of us. At the crossroads, we turn right onto the Fridensweg / Via della pace (Path of Peace), which is number 17. From the crossroads, the path first follows a grassy slope and then leads into a belt of very sparse larch and pine forest. The path is further marked with the number 17 and with the VB and FR markings, indicating the Vallon Bianco and Furcia Rossa peaks. The trail continues to climb gently and follows the old military causeway to the south-east. The path slowly curves slightly to the left and the view to the east of the Valle di Fanes begins to open up. The mulatiera here leads us onto more rocky terrain, which soon leads to a crossroads.
Route 17 leads to the right towards Monte Castello or bivouac Bivacco della Pace, and we continue left along the path towards the peaks of Furcia Rossa and Vallon Bianco. From the crossroads, the path then crosses the slopes a little more to the east for some time and leads to slightly steeper slopes. The ascent is mostly in switchbacks up a steep slope and the path leads to the next crossroads.

This time turn right towards the protected climbing route leading to the Furcia Rossa III summit (marked Ferrata - Klettersteig, Furcia Rossa). From the crossroads, cross the slope to the south-west and the path leads to a wide ledge below the precipitous cliffs. The path then turns left and continues along the edge of the escarpment and begins to climb slightly. Higher up, the path then turns slightly to the right and leads to the start of the protected path.

Before entering the protected part of the trail, equip yourself with a helmet and a self-protection kit. At the start of the protected path, you will first descend slightly along a steel ladder, followed by a steeper descent with the help of a few ladders. After the descent, the trail becomes less demanding again and starts to climb towards the slopes of the Furcia Rossa III peak. Here the ascent crosses a valley on the east side of the summit and then follows a slightly steeper climb up a slightly crumbly slope where the path is somewhat destroyed. In early summer there may also be a snowfield. This route then leads to the wall where the protected route continues. The path climbs up here along the glacis and again we have some ladders to help us. Higher up, the path then turns to the right and leads us along an occasionally slightly exposed slope to the most challenging part of the route. Here we climb vertically with the help of a number of scrambles, and in a short section the wall is even a little overhanging. Climb above the crags with the help of rope ladders for a while, and then the path will lead you to the less demanding slopes on the north side of the Furcia Rossa III peak. Here we first cross the slope to the west and the path leads us to a crossroads.

To the left it is only a few minutes' climb to the top of Furcia Rossa III, which is definitely worth a visit. From the summit, return to the crossroads and follow the path south-westwards. The trail starts to descend a little here and soon becomes more difficult again. With the help of ropes and a few ladders, you cross the steep slope. The path then leads to a slightly less steep slope above a distinct notch. There is a lot of rubble on the path here, so considerable caution is still needed. The path then crosses the steep slopes to the left and leads to the foot of the slopes of Furcia Rossa IV. Here the path becomes more difficult again and there is a steep descent with the help of some ladders. The path then turns sharply to the right and descends on an exposed ledge below an overhang. The path is very well protected here by a number of ladders and pitons. After the descent, the path leads off the cliff and onto the scree where the protected path ends.

Continue left here and then cross the scree to the south, where you can already see the precipitous tower of Monte Castello, next to which is the Bivacco della Pace bivouac. If you do not intend to visit the bivouac and want to return to the mountain pasture Malga Gran Fanes, you can also descend down the scree where there are shortcuts that join the route number 17 at a lower level. Otherwise, continue south along the slopes below the Furcia Rossa ridge. The path then starts to climb a little steeper and soon leads to the bivouac.

Descend via route 17 towards mountain pasture Malga Gran Fanes and then return to the starting point.

The route described here, called the Peace Trail (Fridensweg in German, Via della pace in Italian, Tru dla Pesc in Ladin), crosses the Furcia Rossa ridge along the route of an old military trail. The most difficult part of the protected route is rated C. Helmets and a self-protection kit are required for the ascent.

On the way: Col de Locia (2069m), Ju dal'Ega (2157m), Ütia de Gran Fanes (2102m), Furcia Rossa III (2791m)

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