Vajolet Towers – Torre Stabeler Normal Route

Alastair BegleyDolomites, Rock Climbing Short Link

With a slightly mixed forecast we decided to head into the remote Rifugio Re Alberto to climb on the famous Vajolet Towers. Our main aim was for Piaz Arête which climbs the left hand arête of Torre Delago (left hand tower), however having not climbed for a while, and with the cloud which was around on the first day we headed for a slightly easer route, the normal route up Torre Stabeler, the central and highest pinnacle. We walked into the rifugio from the top of the Vajolet II chairlift, and made excellent time despite our horrible heavy bags. I again decided to carry my photography gear, but this time it was in addition to climbing gear! When we arrived at the rifugio we were very hot from the hard ascent, but as it was in the cloud it was pretty cold so we soon cooled down. After a coffee and a hot chocolate to warm up we headed over to our route, and thankfully as we left the hut the cloud cleared and mostly stayed away. We soloed the first easy pitch to get to the start of the. Read the full article…

Brenta Dolomites Day 2/2: Via delle Bocchette Centrale

Alastair BegleyDolomites, Via Ferrata Short Link

Continuing on from our first day and night on the Via delle Bocchette we set off after a leisurely breakfast on the classic central section of the traverse, the Via delle Bocchette Centrale via ferrata. The start of the day was a short climb up to the Bocca degli Armi, this is the section of the route which forced us to carry our crampons and ice axe as it involved a short cross of a dry glasier. We were not sure if we would actually need them, but when we got there we were very glad that we had them, even if only for 100m! When we got to the col it became apparent that there was a brilliant cloud inversion to the south, unlike the cloudless skies to the north. This provided us with yet more atmospheric views, but as we were earlier today the clouds remained firmly in the valleys. An strenuous start quickly lead us up to the highlight of the two days. The route crossed improbable ledges as it traversed around Torre di Brenta and Campanile Alto. No words can really describe how brilliant this section. Read the full article…

Sunset, Astro and Sunrise from Rifugio Alimonta

Alastair BegleyDolomites, Landscape Short Link

During our hut to hut across the Brenta Dolomites, I perhaps foolishly decided to carry my tripod, filters and wide angle lens with me. This left me with a very heavy bag, but did enable me to make the most of staying high in the mountains and the beautiful evening and morning light. The other advantage of doing the route in September is that sunset and sunrise are both at respectable times, this even allowed me to some time where the sky was actually dark to try my hand at astro photography for the first time. Totally by accident I managed to find the milky way! Despite sunrise being around 7, I still struggled to drag myself out of bed the next morning having not slept that well. But I am very glad I did, as it was a beautiful morning and it was a great way to start the day.

Brenta Dolomites Day 1/2: Sentiero Alfredo Benini & Sentiero Bocchette Alte

Alastair BegleyDolomites, Via Ferrata Short Link

We decided to start our holiday with a hut to hut in the Brenta Dolomites on the Via delle Bocchette, an area known for it’s stunning mountains which are surprisingly accessible due to the via ferratas which wind their way along ledges with ladders whenever the terrain becomes technical. Classic traverses tend to range between 3 and 5 days, however after much debating we decided to link days 1 & 2 together by doing Sentiero Alfredo Benini & Sentiero Bocchette Alte as a long first day which took us just over 8 hours. This took us to the stunning Rifugio Alimonta where we spent the night, before we completed the classic Via delle Bocchette Centrale on the second day. The descent out to the valley was also surprisingly enjoyable. We caught the first lift up and made good time to the start of the first via ferrata (Sentiero Alfredo Benini), however it soon became clear that we had misjudged the temperatures and were regretting our choice of clothing, and the number of layers which were packed in our bags. The start of the via ferrata was a good sign of. Read the full article…