Blog Posts in Category: Via Ferrata

Fernau Klettersteig

Alastair BegleyVia Ferrata Short Link

With a terrible forecast for most areas it took us a while to settle on an objective. We knew that in some places we had a brief spell of dry weather in the morning, that we wanted to do a klettersteig, and if possible wanted to be high up in the mountains. We ended up settling on the Fernau Klettersteig which is a the end of the Stubaital and is a short Klettersteig directly from a lift station, which started running at 8am. There are two klettersteigs from the Fernau lift, a very difficult “E” graded route and an easier “D” graded route. As it was our first klettersteig in a while and the weather forecast wasn’t great we elected for the easier route. This involved a few hundred meters of climbing and a few short sections of “D” with the majority being “C”. In the morning there was much more cloud than we were hoping for, but this gave us some fairly atmospheric views on the ascent. The route itself was enjoyable, but due to the setting in a ski resort, and the fact it was fairly short was. Read the full article…

Summer Holiday 2020 Summary

Alastair BegleyBavaria, Dolomites, Landscape, Mountaineering, Rock Climbing, Via Ferrata Short Link

We have recently finished a brilliant holiday in the German Alps and the Dolomites. It was great to have a holiday with excellent conditions after the mixed year so far due to Coronavirus. This post contains a summary of the photos from the trip in 27 photos. We started the trip with a day trip into the Bavarian Alps from Munich, due to the next 2 days having pretty poor weather (and the only bad weather we had on the trip). Mittenwalder Höhenweg Klettersteig After a day in Munich we then drove down to the Brenta Dolomites to do a hut-to-hut trip through the high mountains. These via ferratas are very different to the rest of the Dolomites and can be best described as ledges and ladders in surreal positions. The two day trip through the mountains was incredible and is highly recommended. Brenta Dolomites Day 1/2: Sentiero Alfredo Benini & Sentiero Bocchette Alte Sunset, Astro and Sunrise from Rifugio Alimonta Brenta Dolomites Day 2/2: Via delle Bocchette Centrale We then had a relocation day to the central Dolomites. For the rest of the trip we based ourselves in the. Read the full article…

Val Duron Via Ferrata – Laurenzi-Molignon

Alastair BegleyDolomites, Via Ferrata Short Link

On our second day from the Rifugio Alpe di Tires we were going to do the Laurenzi-Molignon via ferrata, which crosses the impressive ridge which you look at as you walk up Val Duron. The description in the Rockfax guidebooks described it has having lots of poorly protected downclimbing on loose cable, thankfully since the guide has been written the route has been fully re-equipped so it is now well protected with good cable. After a short approach from the hut we were soon at the start of the cable. The first section was very easy and took us up to a nice section of ridge walking with fantastic views over Val Duron. We also found a surprising bench which was ideally situated, if only it was late enough to have lunch at that point! We were soon at the start of the proper route, and it certainly did not disappoint on exposure! We spent a significant amount of time scrambling with a massive drop which felt like it went all the way down to Val Duron below us. The new cable meant that it always felt safe, and the. Read the full article…

Val Duron Via Ferrata – Sentiero Massimiliano

Alastair BegleyDolomites, Via Ferrata Short Link

With an excellent multi day weather window we decided to head up to Rifugio Alpe di Tires which is situated at the top of the beautiful Val Duron. From this rifugio there are two classic via ferratas which are known for having stunning views, and they certainly did not disappoint. We decided not to pay for the shuttle bus up to the start of Val Duron and made the walk up, this was steep right from the start and not a particularly pleasant way to start the day. Thankfully we were rewarded with a beautiful view up Val Duron towards the col which was hiding the rifugio. The walk along Val Duron was beautiful, and we made great time so before we knew it we were at top of Passo Duron. All that was then left was a final ascent up to the hut. After arriving at the hut we discarded most of our kit and headed out for the short via ferrata. It is graded as VF2B, so we decided to leave our kit off and only put it on if we felt like we needed it. This made. Read the full article…