Via ferrata delle trincee

The route of the Trincee via ferrata

The Trenches Via Ferrata can be reached either from Passo Fedaia or from Arabba. The black volcanic rock stands out strikingly against the white dolomite rocks that surround it, and immediately puts mountaineers to the test with a series of technical sections. The via ferrata actually starts straight away on a steep, fairly smooth wall about thirty metres high, where it is important to place your feet carefully, even on smooth surfaces. After half an hour’s walk, you’ll have passed the most difficult section of the via ferrata. Before long, you reach a thrilling bridge leading to the foot of Mesola, whose summit – at 2,727 metres – is the highest point on the via ferrata.

The route begins to descend along the northern slope of the Mesola, following a fairly steep path down to a saddle where the first secured section of the route ends on a steep meadow. You can now choose whether to head down to the nearby Alta Via path – which you will then follow on the way back – or, weather and fitness permitting, to carry on towards the structures built during the Great War.

The second section of the route is only partially signposted and can be reached by following the signs for ‘Gallerie e Tunnel’. After a short climb, you come to the first caves used as shelters for soldiers, followed by numerous other traces of the war scattered all along the route. This stretch offers no shortage of views and panoramas of the Belluno Dolomites, where the Civetta, Pelmo, Antelao and Tofane peaks stand out.