Alba di Canazei - Punta Penia (Marmolada)

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 at the motorway junction you will turn towards Belluno. Follow the motorway to the exit for Belluno, 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.
From the crossroads, the path initially climbs gently up the grassy slopes and the view towards the summit of Punta Penia starts to get better and better. Later, the path crosses a stream and starts to climb a little more steeply up the valley called Val Rosalia. For some time we continue to climb up the mostly grassy slopes below the precipitous cliffs of the Gran Vernel and Ombretta peaks, and then the path leads to a crossroads at 2400 m.
To the right is the trail to the bivouac at the Ombretta saddle, and we continue to the left, following the Forcella Marmolada signs. The trail continues up a grassy slope with a magnificent view of the precipitous cliffs of the surrounding peaks. The grassy slopes are later replaced by a scree slope and an unmarked path from the Ombretta saddle joins us from the right. Higher up, the scree becomes steeper and steeper and leads us below the wall where the climbing part of the route is entered.
In the initial part, the climbing route climbs steeply up the right side of the ravine, aided by a number of scrambles. A relatively short initial climb leads to the Forcella Marmolada notch, where the path from Lago di Fedaia joins from the left.
At the notch, continue to the right and start climbing up the steep slope with the aid of crampons. The path then turns slightly to the right and briefly follows the ridge, where a view of the south side opens up. The path then follows the ridge and then climbs along the cliff for some time on a series of staples and wedges. This path leads us back to the well protected ridge, which we then climb eastwards. In the last part, the path becomes less steep and a short traverse of a sloping snowfield ensues. The snow is usually so soft that the use of snowshoes is not strictly necessary.
There is a short, easy climb up to the shelter, where a path over the glacier joins from the left. From here, it's just a few steps of easy walking to the highest peak in the Dolomites.

On the way: Locia de Contrin (1736m), Baita Cianci (1828m), Rifugio Contrin (2016m), Forcella Marmolada (2896m)

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