I can’t remember having such a strenuous day on a trail before but the views were definitely worth the effort. I had to have a long day today to get the whole Alta Via 1 completed in the eight days that I had and this meant a long strenuous day. It would start with a long downhill section, then uphill to get my lunch at Rifugio Fanes before continuing upwards, then a very scenic and mostly level track. Then, a long and very hard on the legs climb up to Forcella del Lago and a leg killing descent to Lago di Lagazuoi and more steep descent would see me ending a long hard day at Rifugio Scotoni.
The photos will tell a better story than I can, but I left Biella early before breakfast as I had a long day ahead and the breakfast didn’t appeal to me anyway. It was chilly so gloves and hat were on when I left, and for quite a while. The first five miles were downhill mainly, reasonably gently down to Rifugio Sennes but it soon got very steep zigzagging down the narrow trail to Rifugio Pederu, I’m glad it was dry as it wouldn’t be much fun in bad weather. I safely made it down to the Rifugio and had a little break and looking back where I’d come from made me realise just how steep it was.
Pederu was extremely busy as busses are able to get there so I watched bus loads of walkers head up the trail in a big queue. I decided to have a longer break as I didn’t fancy being stuck behind them all. It was quite tough when I set off again, my legs still getting used to the trail as I eventually zigzagged away from the Rifugio. A wide track at the side was busy with mountain bikers who would probably be quicker walking. A trail away from the road was good for me.
Not long after, I saw Rifugio Fanes in the distance, this was good as this would be my lunch stop for today. I had a beer and a large lunch as I hadn’t had breakfast before heading steeply upwards again. This hurt after my break but I was rewarded at the top as I then set off on a few miles of relatively flat track with incredible views around me and every turn, so many wow moments. This was indeed a very enjoyable part of the Alta Via 1 for me today which took my mind away from my tired legs.
The flattish ground felt fantastic after so much ascent and descent but all good things come to an end and I knew a very big ascent lay ahead of me before a scary descent. I left the main path to head up the long climb to Forcella del Lago, this really hurt and it got colder as I got higher, snow lay at the side of me. The views across the valley took the pain away from my legs slightly but high above me I saw the gap where I would eventually walk through.
Eventually I reached the top and immediately started down the steep ascent towards Lago di Lagazuoi, it was too cold to hang around at the top. Again this is not a descent I would want to do in wet weather as the descent zigzagged very steeply down towards the lake at the bottom. I slipped a few times but didn’t fall thankfully as it’s a long way down.
I was relieved to reach the same level as the lake, looking behind me showed me just how incredibly steep I had come down. Ahead of me, way up high stood Rifugio Lagazuoi, I was glad I wasn’t heading up there but I knew tomorrow I would be heading up almost as high as the Rifugio. If I thought my steep descents were finished for the day, I was mistaken. I left the main route and headed steeply down towards the bottom of the valley and Rifugio Scotoni. This was also very steep and I also knew that in the morning I have to retrace my steps and climb back up this, I hope that I can eat plenty of good food tonight and breakfast for energy.
The Rifugio Scotoni - Night 2
Rifugio Scotoni was very nice, the room was en suite and the food I had was good. My roommates all spoke English and I had met two of them on the way to the start of the trail at Lago Di Braies. I’ll catch up with another two of them in a couple days time. Meeting new people like this is certainly a plus point about these walks, people come from all over the world to walk these popular routes, and I'm one of them.
