The Vagabond Hiker

Hiking, trekking, and climbing the world

Italy: Via Ferratas of the Gruppo del Catinaccio

Late in August I joined some friends of mine for a guided hut-to-hut via ferrata trek in the Gruppo del Catinaccio of the Dolomites. Also known as the Rosengarten Group, it is located about an hour drive east of Bolzano, the capital and by far the largest city in the province of South Tyrol. The entire trip was 10 days, but I climbed only on the first 6 as I had done some of the later ferratas only last year (see my blog from 15 September 2018). (For those who aren’t familiar with via ferratas, they are cables attached to the mountain that you clip into with caribiners using a special ferrata lanyard attached to your harness).

While many of these photos are similar to the ones I shared last year, the stupendous scenery of the Dolomites never tires (at least for me!) and of course there are several photos of my Utah friends included here. Enjoy!

Our day 1 approach to Roda di Vael. A short and easy route in dry conditions.
Common Monkshood. We saw a lot of Monkshood, one of my favorites.
Other climbers on the Roda di Vael crux, an ascending traverse. It was raining by the time we reached it, making it even more difficult.
On our day 2 approach to Vael Majare
Csilla climbing Vael Majare
Vista from Vael Majare. Some beautiful shades of green!
On our day 3 approach to Via Ferrata (VF) Santner
Me (with others behind) on an airy traverse, I believe on VF Santner. I usually climbed the rock rather than the cable if it was possible. Photo by our guide Tomas.
Looking back on our VF Santner descent route, the large crack in the middle of the photo
Our lodging for the night, Rifugio Re Alberto Premier. Most rifugios are in unbelievable locations.
Bob, Denise and Robert topping out on one pitch of the VF Antermoia on day 4
Bob, Don, Leslie, and Csilla on the summit of Antermoia. It seems nearly all peaks in Italy feature a cross.
Bob, Robert, and Denise on the descent of Antermoia, with Rolando behind the lens.
Antermoia vista. I stitched together 6 photos for this panorama.
A lake near Rifugio Antermoia on the fourth night. Unfortunately, too cold for a dip.
Morning light with Rifugio Antermoia, day 5
Csilla (seated) and Rolando on VF Laurenzi, day 5. Laurenzi was the most technically difficult of the 6 via ferratas I climbed.
View towards Sasso Piatto from VF Laurenzi. The rest of the group was heading in this direction after I left.
Potentilla nitida (Dolomite cinquefoil), seen on VF Laurenzi
Bob on a VF Laurenzi traverse with Tomas, our lead guide, behind
Rifugio Alpe de Tires, a welcome sight after our longest and toughest day. VF Maximiliansteig, our day 6 objective, is behind it.
View along our traverse of VF Maximilianstieg on day 6. Not technically difficult nor long, it was quite airy nonetheless.
Saxifrage (Saxifraga caesia) on VF Maximilianstieg day 6
Leslie on VF Maximilianstieg
Csilla and I on the Maximilianstieg. The Rifugio Alpe de Tires is in the right background. Photo by Rolando.
A “Monkshood” meadow seen on the descent of VF Maximilianstieg
Likely Black Vanilla Orchid, seen as I was heading back to the valley and on then to Bolzano on day 6 after the Maximilianstieg

Thanks to Bob for organizing this fantastic trip and to all who joined in climbing in this special area of Italy!

Speaking of which, I’m still in Italy, above Riva del Garda with views to the town, mountains, and Lago Garda. My next blog will be in 2-3 weeks, featuring lower elevation hikes, scrambles, and via ferratas nearby here.

The Vagabond Hiker

Val d’Aosta redux

Last month I returned to the Val d’Aosta for 10 days hiking in the amazing Italian Alps. I managed to secure an AirBnb apartment above St. Nicolas at 1550m elevation (the valley is only about 900m here) with a great view looking south to Gran Paradiso National Park. Although I never made it across the valley and into the park (see my blog post from last August that included GPNP), I was well placed to do several interesting hikes either directly from my front door or necessitating only a short drive to the trailhead.

Morning view from the shared balcony of my apartment. The Grivola summit was almost always shrouded in clouds.
A piazza in Vens, a hamlet located about 20 minutes walking uphill from my apartment. Note the traditional shale roofs on the houses.
Cappella della Madonna delle Neve, near Lago di Joux above Vens.
View on the descent to Vens with Gran Paradiso NP behind
Less than 30 minutes walking from my place, this canalized stream near the hamlet of Vedun reminded me of the Levadas of Madeira.
Fireweed with Monte Bianco, taken from near Vedun (and . There were some nice “balcony” trails right out of my apartment. This morning view (very similar to a photo from last year) was taken before Monte Bianco became completely cloud-covered
This is a view on the trail north of Punta Oilletta looking towards Punta Leysser. I did a longish loop hike/scramble up from Lago di Joux.
Punta Leysser from the ridge-line trail
A Cobweb House-leek. It was late in the season for many flowers. Although I managed photos of several species, nearly all (including this one) I had photographed last year and included in my blog. Oh, well!
My final big hike above the Val d’Aosta was to the summit of Monte Fallere. Here the view is near the start of the hike in Vetan, looking back towards the trailhead.
“Ibex” seen near Rifugio Monte Fallere. Someone there is quite a sculptor as there were several dozen wood sculptures of animals and people along the path up to the rifugio, about 1/2 the way to the summit.
The Monte Fallere ridge traverse. Only about 15 minutes, but airy enough to have some chains installed!
Monte Fallere domesticated Ibex. With bells on their necks, from a distance I thought they were cows. The alpha male took exception to my presence close to his herd, and I discreetly retreated after a couple of photos.
A misty morning view from my apartment towards Gran Paradiso NP. I never get tired of mountain views!

As my sojourn in Italy continues, stay tuned for some photos from the Dolomites and Lago Garda. . .

The Vagabond Hiker

A Spanish Pyrenees walking holiday

June is such a wonderful time to hike in the Spanish Pyrenees! Many wildflowers are at their peak. The weather is generally good: fairly dry with moderate temperatures. The summer hordes have not yet descended (or rather, ascended) on the mountain villages. Did I mention the wildflowers?

Maggie and I spent nine days hiking: the first six from village to village in and above the Valle de Tena in the central Pyrenees and the last three doing center-based day hikes in Ordesa National Park, located less than an hour’s drive from the Valle de Tena. (I then spent a final two days soloing a couple of peaks in Andorra). To arrange the accommodations and luggage transfer from village to village in the Valle de Tena, we engaged Hike Pyrenees. For our self-guided hikes they provided daily maps and directions which were definitely a help as some routes were not at all obvious. I highly recommend Phil and his team and they do guided hikes as well if that is your preference.

Enjoy the photos which follow, many of flowers. The book Mountain Flowers Pyrenees & Picos by Cliff Booker & David Charlton was invaluable in flower identification, though augmenting it with Wildlife of the Pyrenees purchased from a Hike Pyrenees guide, was beneficial as neither are comprehensive but used together there were only a handful of flowers we couldn’t identify.

A buttercup field and the Valle de Ripera path. Our first day was our only circular hike, looping around this side valley from the village of Panticosa.
Elder-flowered Orchid. One of 35 orchids found in the Pyrenees. Both pink and cream colored varieties are often seen together.
A Trumpet Gentian, one of my favorites.
A rock garden along the Valle de Ripera. Still beautiful though the saxifrage is not in bloom.
Common Mallow
Valle de Tena vista above Panticosa with the northern end of Embalse (reservior) Bubal. We headed from Panticosa to Sallent de Gallego on the second day.
Likely Bedstraw Broomrape (Orobanche caryophyllacea)
Early Purple Orchid
Maggie ascending a scree field to the Ibones (lakes) de Arriel on the third day. To our village-to-village walks we added one night at a refugio high above the upper end of the Valle de Tena. This was a tough day hiking.
One of the Ibones de Arriel, a lovely set of high mountain lakes set in a rocky cirque, on the way to the Refugio Respomusa.
The Refugio Respomusa in a stunning landscape at 2200 m (7218 ft), our abode for the night. Both trekkers on the GR11 and climbers of some local peaks frequent this refugio.
Snow reflected off the Embalse Respomusa in the morning light
Fire Salamander near the Refugio Respomusa. Usually nocturnal, we were lucky to see it as we started our day 4 descent.
Rio Aguas Limpias. This riverside meadow provided a charming rest stop both on the ascent and descent from the refugio.
Vista with Sallent de Gallego on the lower right at the start of day 5. Marginal weather in the morning added atmosphere to some of the photos.
View north from Punta de la Cochata (1901 m, 6237 ft). A pleasant little scramble during our day 5 lunch stop.
The bucolic barranca below Ibon de Piedrafita on day 6
Bell flower (possibly narrow leaved, Campanula persicifolia)
Pyrenean Poppy

Our short drive to the Parque Nacional de Ordesa y Monte Perdido gave us a break from hiking and a day to explore Torla-Ordesa, the charming mountain village where we would be staying for the next three nights. As the hikes are well established and several of the best start at the same trailhead in the Valle de Ordesa, we stayed at an AirBnb apartment within a 20 minutes’ walk of Torla-Ordesa. A very picturesque village only a few kilometers from the park entrance, it proved a great choice. What’s more, we were able to relax on our balcony after hiking all day and cook dinner ourselves if we didn’t want to wait until 8 or 8:30 when the restaurants opened!

Bridge across Rio Arazas, Valle de Ordesa, with the Mondarruego massif looming behind. Our first day in the park was a short loop hike on the south side of the valley.
Rio Arazas featured numerous waterfalls and cascades as it descended the Valle de Ordesa.
Bears Ears (Ramonda maconi)
Punta Mondarruego, Ordesa, seen on our second day in the park. We did the Calzadores (Hunters’) loop, a 7+ hour hike with 900 m (3000 ft) altitude gain that ascended and traversed the slopes on the south side of the valley and returned along the valley bottom itself.
Mountain vista along Calzadores path, Ordesa
White Asphodel. We only saw it two days, but a couple fields were filled with it.
Another cascade along Rio Arazas, Ordesa
St Bruno’s Lily, the only example we saw the entire trip
Globe Flowers
Pyrenean Cranesbill (Geranium endressii)
Large-flowered Butterwort (Pinguicula grandiflora). Insectivorous, the dark dots are insects trapped on the sticky leaves and slowly being digested.

After returning to Barcelona so Maggie could fly home, I drove 3 hours to the Principality of Andorra the following morning. For the three nights I had booked a room in Hotel Babot above the village of Ordino, which had the twin advantages of being centrally located and away from the ugly conurbation of the main valleys of the Principality. Enjoy the photos!

View from summit of Casamanya, Andorra. This was a quick exercise hike (about 750 m, 2460 ft gain). Ordino is seen directly below.
View from summit of Casamany towards Coma Pedrosa, which is indicated by the arrow. As a climb, Coma Pedrosa was a horse of a different color from the hike up Casamanya.
Butterfly and flowers, one of only two I managed to photograph
What primary colors! Spring Gentians and Buttercups were running riot on the slopes of Casamanya.
Early view of some peaks during my 7 hour climb of Coma Pedrosa, the highest mountain in Andorra at 2,943 m (9,656 ft). At this point, I wasn’t sure which is the actual peak. In fact, I’m still not certain!
About half way up the climb, a natural amphitheater provided the site of the Refugio Comapderosa, behind me to the left. Notice the bee on the right of the photo?
The upper Negre Lake on Coma Pedrosa, mostly still frozen. The steep gully route above here was covered in deep snow, so I opted for the ridge route (next photo) for both the ascent and descent.
The long ridge route to the summit of Coma Pedrosa. The summit is the high point furthest back in the center of the photo.
Coma Pedrosa summit view northeast towards France
On top of Coma Pedrosa with the orographic summit “cairn” and Andorran flag. I took a selfie as there was nowhere convenient to place the camera.
From the summit, a view towards the Coma Pedrosa trailhead about 1500 m (5000 ft) below. A long way back to the car for tired knees!

I write this from Hastings on the south coast of England. My next post will either be some highlights of local walks on England’s south coast, or if I don’t have the time to organize the disparate photos from the past several months, from my two week trek in the High Atlas of Morocco coming up in July. Either way, keep enjoying the outdoors!

The Vagabond Hiker

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