La Crusc - Lavarella (western summit)

Access to the starting point:
a) From Kranjska Gora via the Koren saddle to Austria, where at the first major junction continue left towards Podkloštro / Arnoldstein and Trbiz / Tarvisio. At the end of Podklošter, signs for Šmohor / Hermagor direct you to the right on the regional road, which takes you past the town to the end of the Ziljska Valley, or more precisely to Kötschach-Mauthen, where you turn right towards Oberdrauburg. The road continues over the Gailbergsattel Alpine pass (982 m), after which you descend into the above-mentioned town. After crossing a bridge over the River Drava, turn left towards Lienz. At the main roundabout in Lienz, turn left towards Sillian and Itali. Next we cross the national border between Austria and Itali, and we follow the main road past Dobbiaco / Toblach, Villabassa / Niederdorf, Monguelfo - Tesido / Welsberg - Taisten, Brunico / Bruneck. Just after the last mentioned town, which is passed by a bypass road, we turn left into the Alta Badia valley. Continue along the valley and we follow the road to Badia / Abtei. In Badia / Abtei, turn left and park in the parking lot at the bottom station of the chairlift. We then take two chairlifts to the highest point of the ski resort.

b) From Nova Gorica, drive into Itali and continue on the motorway to Portogruaro, where at the motorway junction turn in the direction of Belluno. Follow the motorway to its end (do not turn towards Belluno) and then continue driving towards Cortina d'Ampezzo. When you arrive in Cortina d'Ampezzo, follow the signs for the Passo Falzarego Alpine Pass. At the Passo Falzarego (2105 m), turn right towards Alta Badia and ascend the neighbouring Passo Valparola (2192 m), then descend into the aforementioned valley, which we follow to Badia / Abtei. In Badia / Abtei, turn right and park in the parking lot at the bottom station of the chairlift. We then take two chairlifts to the highest point of the ski resort.

The chairlift operates from 8:30 to 17:15 during the summer months.

Path description:
From the top station of the second chairlift, continue slightly to the right and follow the wide path through the forest to the church. At the church, turn right onto route 15, following the signs "St. Kassian / S. Cassiano". The trail continues southwards for a long distance, crossing slopes and descending gently for the most part. There are also Stations of the Cross along the way, which offer good views, especially to the west. When the path leads to a marked crossroads, continue left on path 12A, following the signs "Forc. La Varella".

The trail then begins to climb and passes mostly through a sparse larch forest. Later on, the path briefly reaches dwarf pines, and then the path from La Villa and S. Cassiano joins from the right.

At the crossroads, turn left towards the La Varella saddle and the path through dwarf pines soon leads to a scree slope. The path then climbs up the Val Medesc valley in switchbacks for some time. Later, the path turns to the left side of the valley below the slopes of Piz de Medesc and continues to climb on the scree. The increasingly steep path then leads to a saddle from which there are fine views to the east.

From the saddle where there are signposts, continue to the right, following the signs for La Varella. The path through the scree soon leads to the slightly steeper slopes of La Varella. The path then becomes more difficult and follows the steep western slopes of the mountain. In a few places the path climbs steeply and then there is a climb up a fairly wide shelf, which is covered with a lot of rubble. The path is not protected and considerable caution is required. Particular care must be taken when descending, as the path is dangerous for slipping. From the ledge the path turns slightly left and climbs steeply up the rocky slope. The path then becomes less difficult again and leads to a crossroads just below the Lavarella peak.

To the left the path leads to the eastern summit of Lavarella, which is only a few minutes' walk away, and we continue to the right and descend gently to the notch between the eastern and western summits. At the notch, continue straight on along the path along the ridge. The path towards the summit is slightly exposed for a short time and then there is an easy climb along the ridge to the summit.

On the way: Forcella de Medesc (2533m)

We recommend: trips from the same starting point, similar trips, panorama