Alba di Canazei - Cima Ombretta (via Passo Ombretta)

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, cross the national border between Austria and Itali and follow the main road to Dobbiaco/Toblach, where you turn left towards Cortina d'Ampezzo. Once in Cortina d'Ampezzo, follow the signs for the Passo Falzarego Alpine pass. At the Falzarego Pass (2105 m) there is a crossroads where you continue straight down towards Marmolada and the Passo Fedaia Pass. At the following junctions, follow the road towards Marmolada and the aforementioned pass. After the Fedaia Pass (2057 m), which is located by the artificial lake Lagho di Fedaia, the road starts to descend again and we follow it to the beginning of Alba, where we will see the Ciampac cable car (swing) on the left. Park in the large parking lot at the bottom station of the cable car. From Kranjska Gora to the starting point is about 280 km.
b) From Kranjska Gora via Border crossing Rateče to Trbiz / Tarvisio and then on the motorway to Udine. Leave the motorway at Tolmezzo, from where we continue driving towards Ampezzo and on to the Alpine pass Passo della Mauria (1298 m). The road then starts to descend and leads into the Cadore valley, where we continue to the right towards Auronzo di Cadore. At the next crossroads follow the signs for Cortina d'Ampezzo. When you arrive in Cortina d'Ampezzo, follow the signs for the Passo Falzarego Alpine pass. At the Falzarego Pass (2105 m) there is a crossroads where you continue straight down towards Marmolada and the Passo Fedaia Pass. At the following junctions, follow the road towards Marmolada and the aforementioned pass. After the Fedaia Pass (2057 m), which is located by the artificial lake Lagho di Fedaia, the road starts to descend again and we follow it to the beginning of Alba, where we will see the Ciampac cable car (swing) on the left. Park in the large parking lot at the bottom station of the cable car. From Kranjska Gora to the starting point is approximately 270 km. c) From Nova Gorica, drive into Itali and continue on the motorway to Portogruaro, where you will take the motorway fork towards Belluno. Follow the motorway to the Belluno exit, and after Belluno follow the road towards Agordo and then Marmolada and the Passo Fedaia Alpine pass. After the Fedaia Pass (2057 m), which is situated by the artificial lake Lagho di Fedaia, the road starts to descend and we follow it until we reach the beginning of Alba, where we will see the Ciampac cable car (swing) on the left hand side. Park in the large parking lot at the bottom station of the cable car. From the Slovenian border to the starting point is about 245 km.

Path description:
At the end of the parking lot, turn slightly left after the "Locia de Contrin" signs onto a forest road closed to public traffic. The road is mostly through the forest, with only occasional views of the nearby peaks. The road then soon crosses a bridge and leads to a marked crossroads where the footpath from Penia joins on the left. Further on, the road climbs mostly in switchbacks and, higher up, a couple of dirt tracks branch off the road. We continue straight ahead on a well-maintained road. Later the road turns left and soon a footpath branches off to the right towards the ski resort of Ciampac. We continue along the road and after a short climb we reach the Locia de Contrin hut.
From the hut we continue along a gravel road which soon crosses a forest. The road continues to lead us through the valley along the Ruf de Contrin stream and leads us to a crossroads by the pastureland.
A path branches off to the right up towards the Forcia Neigra saddle and the Colac summit, and we continue along the road, which then begins to descend gently. Soon we come to a crossroads again, where a path branches off to the right towards the Rifugio Passo San Nicolò hut.
We continue along the road, which turns left here and crosses a bridge. The scenic road starts to climb again and leads to hut Baita Cianci.
From the Baita Cianci hut we continue along the road, which soon leads into the forest and starts to climb a little steeper. The path then alternates between strips of forest and meadows, from which we can enjoy increasingly beautiful views of the surrounding peaks. This path then leads to the Rifugio Contrin hut.
From the hut, continue along the dirt road, which quickly leads to a marked crossroads. We continue left on the footpath after the Forcella Marmolada and Passo Ombretta markings, and right on the road is route 607.
The path from the crossroads climbs gently up the grassy slopes at first and we start to get a better and better view towards the top of Punta Penia. Later, the path crosses a stream and starts to climb a little steeper up the valley called Val Rosalia. For some time we continue to climb the mostly grassy slopes below the precipitous cliffs of the Gran Vernel and Ombretta peaks, and then the trail leads us to a crossroads at 2400 m. To the left the path leads to the Forcella Marmolada notch and on to the Punta Penia summit, and we continue to the right following the Passo Ombretta markers. The trail continues eastwards and leads into the valley between the peaks of Ombretta and Punta Penia. The trail follows the left side of the valley with a magnificent view of the south face of the Marmolada. We continue to climb on the scree until we reach the Passo Ombretta saddle, where there is also a marked crossroads.
At the saddle, continue right after the Cima Ombretta markers and there is only a short climb to the Bivouac.
From the bivouac, continue south and after a short climb the trail leads to the glaciers. Here the trail turns slightly to the left and climbs up a rocky slope using the fixed safety gear. The sheltered path is short and quickly leads to scree. The path continues southwards along the scree and gradually becomes steeper. Higher up, the slope becomes quite steep and also dangerous for slipping. This path then leads to the saddle below the summit of Cima Ombretta di Mezzo.
Here the path turns left and follows the south side of the ridge to the east. The path crosses a rather exposed slope at this point, which is not protected, so some caution is needed when crossing. The path then becomes slightly easier again and leads to a small saddle below the summit of Cima Ombretta.
At the saddle, where the southern path joins us from the right, we continue straight ahead and soon reach the summit along a very scenic ridge.

On the way: Locia de Contrin (1736m), Baita Cianci (1828m), Rifugio Contrin (2016m), Passo Ombretta (2700m), Bivacco Dal Bianco (2730m)

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