Belopeška jezera - Visoka Ponca (ferrata)

Access to the starting point:
From Kranjska Gora, drive to Trbiž / Tarvisio via the Rateče border crossing. After a few kilometres past the border crossing, the road to Belopeški jezera / Laghi di Fusine turns left at Fusine / Fužine, and in a few minutes of moderate climbing you reach a large parking lot at Upper Mangart Lake (Belopeški jezera). We park there.

Path description:
From the parking lot, continue along the left-hand side of the guest house towards the Zacchi hut. The path initially follows a forest road, which you leave after a few minutes, as signs direct you left onto a wide cart track (it is also possible to continue along the forest road; this version is a shade longer). The cart track, which you follow, turns into a footpath a little higher up. A relatively wide and well-marked, and in places quite rocky, path then leads us on a moderate ascent through the forest to the Zacchi mountain hut within a good hour's walk from the starting point.
In front of or below the hut you will find the signs "Ponza di Mezzo, Ponza Grande", which mark the start of the trail to Ponzi. The trail first crosses a torrential stream and then climbs through the steep dwarf pines, always slightly to the right, under the precipitous cliffs of the Ponce. Higher up, it leads to the first cable-stays. Here the path bends slightly to the left, climbing quite steeply alongside the cliff a few times. When we are fully approaching the walls below Visoka Ponca, the path takes us to the right, crossing a wide torrential gully. There is a short steep climb to the right of the gully, which leads to a crossroads. To the right (signposted "Ponza di Mezzo"), a path branches off, leading to Visoka Ponca via via normale, a slightly easier route, and to the Middle Ponza; we take the left, a very difficult climbing route (ferrato).
We continue climbing to the right of the ravine, partly over the steep slope of Srednja Ponca, partly over rock ledges. After crossing the gully again, this time of course to the left, we stand at the entrance to the ferrata.
The most difficult part is right at the start: the first few dozen metres of ascent are up a vertical gully, followed by an exposed traverse to the left. Just after the traverse, the world gets a bit flatter and we wind our way up the passages, helped in places by a rope or a makeshift rope, and after one short paragraph by a ladder.
At the top, the ferrata is completely flattened, there are no more ropes and, unfortunately, there are no markings. In places we are helped by cairns. Orientation is not difficult in this part if visibility is good. A moderately steep ascent through the scree soon leads to the summit.

On the way: Rifugio Zacchi mountain hut (1380m)

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