Rifugio Pederü - Lavarella

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 Val Badia valley. Continue along the valley and turn left at Longega towards San Vigilio. In San Vigilio, turn left at the crossroads after the "Pederü" signs. After about 200 metres, turn right, also after the 'Pederü' signs. Follow this road until you reach the large parking lot in front of the Rifugio Pederü.

b) 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. The motorway ends near Belluno and we continue towards Cortina d'Ampezzo at the next junctions. 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 the Valparola Pass and continue towards Alta Badia. At La Villa turn right towards Brunico. Follow the road to Longega and turn right towards San Vigilio. In San Vigilio, turn left at the crossroads after the "Pederü" signs. After about 200 metres, turn right, also after the "Pederü" signs. Follow this road until you reach the large parking lot in front of the Rifugio Pederü.

Path description:
From the parking lot, continue to the crossroads behind the cottage. Signposts point slightly right on the footpath towards the Lavarela and Fanes huts, while the path to the left leads to the Fodara Vedla hut. The level path first crosses a stream and a road, then begins to climb slightly steeper through dwarf pines. After an initial slightly steeper section, the path becomes flatter further on, and also descends slightly for a short section. The path briefly joins the road a few times, and then rejoins the road, passing mainly through dwarf pines on the right side of the valley.

The path then turns slightly to the right and the views of the surrounding peaks start to open up. Later, we rejoin the mountain road, which runs along the Rü dal Plan stream. The road then climbs gently and leads to a crossroads.

The road to the left leads to the Rifugio Fanes hut (5 minutes) and we continue to the right towards the Rifugio Lavarela hut. The road continues along the stream and pasture and soon leads to the hut.

At the hut, continue to the right and after a short climb up a grassy slope you will reach a crossroads. We continue to the left on the lower path (path No 12), which leads to the Ju dla Crusc and Forcela de Medesc saddles, and to the right on the upper path (path No 7), which later joins the lower path and also leads to the above-mentioned saddles.

From the crossroads, the path continues for a short distance along a grassy slope past a shepherd's hut, and then begins to climb through a sparse, mainly pine forest. The trail runs westwards here, following a small stream. Later, the trees become scarcer and the path leads to an undistinguished saddle from where a view opens up towards the Sasso delle Dieci and Sasso delle Nove peaks.

Here the panoramic path starts to descend a little and leads us past Lake Le Parom, which is situated slightly to the left of the path below the slopes of Mount Lavarella. The path then turns slightly to the right and leads into a valley, where the upper path (route No 7) joins from the right.

Continue left along the grassy valley and you are quickly back at the crossroads. The path leads straight on towards the Ju dla Crusc saddle and on towards the Sasso delle Dieci summit, while we head left towards the Forcela de Medesc notch. The trail is relatively gentle and runs south-eastwards. As we approach the slopes of the summit of Piz de Medesc, the path climbs slightly steeper and leads us to a crossroads where the path from the Ju dla Crusc saddle joins us from the right.

At the crossroads, continue left on route 12b and follow the gently ascending path to the Forcela de Medesc notch.

At the saddle where the Val Medesc valley path joins from the right, continue slightly left following the La Varella signs. The path over the scree soon leads to the slightly steeper slopes of the summit 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 summit of Lavarella. Continue left and soon reach the summit along the ridge.

On the way: Rifugio Lavarella (2042m), Forcella de Medesc (2533m)

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