Unusual Itinerary: 5 Night Trek in Schlern-Rosengarten Nature Park
Base Town: Vigo di Fassa in Val di Fassa, South Tyrol. Transport to Trailhead: Catinaccio cable car. Via Ferratas: VF Passo Santner, VF Catinaccio d’Antermoia (Kesselkogel), VF Roda di Vael and VF Masaré
Rosengarten is an area of the Dolomites that many American travel bloggers have written about extensively - and for good reason! Being the western-most area of the Dolomites, it is easily accessible from Bolzano, has a high concentration of rifugios, and offers a lot of fun via ferratas packed into the Catinaccio Group: Passo Santner, Catinaccio d’Antermoia, Roda di Vael and Masaré, Maximillian, and Laurenzi. “Rosengarten” is renowned for its stunning sunsets, which set the sky ablaze in red, pink and orange like a magnificent rose garden.
Before our two month trip to the Dolomites, we believed that hiking or climbing in Rosengarten required multiple nights in remote mountain huts and that we had to make reservations months in advance. This was a false impression. We did not make any advance reservations until we arrived in Italy — yet we spent 5 consecutive nights in Rosengarten… then returned for another 2 nights. It’s not even necessary to stay in the mountains. All rifugios and via ferratas can be reached within a few walking hours of Vigo di Fassa, Carezza, or Campitello di Fassa by utilizing cable cars. You could stay in a base town and enjoy Rosengarten day hikes and via ferrata without a single night in a crowded mountain hut.
Our multi-night mountain itinerary diverged from typical blogger suggestions, but we covered all the same trails, slept in huts, and had a blast! The key is flexibility - we sometimes stayed “up” the mountain, sometimes returned to a “lower” hut; we didn’t have a fixed forward progression in mind. We made bed reservations about 3-4 weeks ahead of arrival in Schlern-Rosengarten Nature Park.
Night 1: Rifugio Alberto (Gartlhütte) at Torri dei Vajolet
We stored extra belongings at an inn in Vigo di Fassa and began our trek with a boost up the cliff on the Catinaccio cable car. (There is a trail that loosely follows the cable car route; we walked back down to Vigo di Fassa on Day 6 using the trail.) Stepping off the cable car, we had immediate visual rewards before we even hoisted our packs!
Rosengarten Spitz in Schlern-Rosengarten Nature Park, Dolomites, Italy
Click any photo for a larger slideshow…
From the park at the top of the cable car station, we followed the crowd down a gravel road, forking onto a shaded, wooded trail through a pine forest. For about a mile or so, the going was easy, with little elevation change. We passed lots of families with strollers and baby-packs, toddlers stooping to smell the flowers or poking sticks in the stream. Simple delights! Coming out of the shade and into the sunlight, Rifugios Stella and Gardeccia were lively; the last relatively flat zone before the trail pitches vertically into Valle del Vajolet. We could spy Rifugio Preuss perched on top of a high promontory that looked fit for a hawk’s nest.
It took about an hour of steady ascent up a crowded, dusty trail road to reach Rif. Preuss, with Rif. Vajolet just behind it. We rested briefly at Rifugio Vajolet, surveying the various divergent trails. We would be staying at Rifugio Alberto. Their website warns about the path to the hut, mentioning several times that it requires hiking up a cliff, with several sections of via ferrata assistance. They were not exaggerating! The hike-climb to Rifugio Alberto was arduous…but do-able for the average adult or child… just don’t over-pack!
The reward is standing at the base of Vajolet Towers, huge limestone spires thrusting skyward. It’s a popular rock climbing spot. After getting settled into our bunks, we had enough daylight left to walk up the path to Passo Santner, where we watched a few people finish Via Ferrata Santner, which we would be doing in two days. From Rif. Santner, we could see Bolzano in the distance. Returning to Alberto Hut, we shared a dinner table with the group of climbers from the United States that we had photographed earlier in the day. Lots of Americans at Alberto Hut, so dinner was lively and fun!
Enjoyed meeting Rene and Conner from Colorado and Kim and Karen from Ohio. Seems like everyone is following the same, detailed multi-night Rosengarten trekking itinerary laid out by Marta in her “In a Faraway Land” blog; we all agreed that Rosengarten is smaller and more compact than we thought from reading her blog.
Night 2: Passo Principe Hut and Via Ferrata Catinaccio Antermoia
After breakfast and a long check-out line, we headed back down the cliff at 9:00 a.m. 30 minutes later, we turned left at Rifugio Vajolet for a 90 minute ascent up Valle del Vajolet to Rifugio Passo Principe. Absolutely stunning views as we walked up the valley surrounded by massive peaks and flowing scree fields.
Valle del Vajolet, Rosengarten, Dolomites
Passo Principe Hut is the most rustic of the Rosengarten Huts. Each dorm room has layered bunks that sleep 4-6 people packed in like sardines. Fortunately, we were not here to hang out in the room. Just outside Passo Principe Hut is Via Ferrata Catinaccio Antermoia, rated 2B. After staking claim to 2 sleeping mats in one of the bunk rooms, we bumped into Rene and Conner again. The four of us had a light lunch and then spent the next 3 hours climbing the Catinaccio d'Antermoia (aka Mt. Kesselkogel) loop. The ridge top is quite exposed, but otherwise the via ferrata was non-technical and a fast climb with rewarding vistas!
From the summit, we had expansive views of Sassolungo and the Sella Group, which we had previously explored while based in Ortisei in Val Gardena. On the opposite side, a sweeping view of Rosengarten.
Rosengarten Sunset at Passo Principe
While the hut may have been rustic and the sleeping conditions sub-optimal, the dinner was over-the-top! I was full after a plate of pasta bolognese and could barely finish course #2: a full dish of eggs, ham, and potatoes!
Night 3: Vajolet Hut and Via Ferrata Santer
Breakfast and then “goodbye and see you later” to Rene, Conner, Kim, and Karen. We had just a short downhill stroll to Rifugio Vajolet, our accommodation for night 3. We arrived too early to check in, so we stashed our backpacks in their holding area, grabbed our via ferrata kits and headed out for the Via Ferrata Santner loop. The loop skirts the base of the Catinaccio “wall” — the massive vertical cliff face at the entrance to Valle del Vajolet — and proceeds continuously upwards to Passo Coronelle.
Click any photo for a larger slideshow…
A cloud at the pass quickly lifted, unveiling fabulous views of Valle del Vajolet on one side and the meadows of Val di Tires and the Latemar Group on the opposite side! From the pass, it was a steady downhill to an overlook just above Rifugio Fronza, where we had reservations the next evening. Skipping lunch at Fronza Hut, we continued along the loooong ascending trail towards Via Ferrata Passo Santner. The scree crossing transitioned to rockier terrain requiring some serious unprotected scrambling, finally meeting vertical towers with via ferrata cables. The via ferrata wound in and around the towers and gullies, threading upward to Passo Santner.
We unclipped at the top at 2:30 p.m., four hours after leaving Rifugio Vajolet. We ordered some kaiserschmarren and beverages at Passo Santner Hut and then set out to complete the loop, descending to Rifugio Alberto, passing the Vajolet Towers, down-traversing the cliff (once again), and finally arriving back at Rifugio Vajolet around 4:30 p.m.
Rifugio Vajolet is the “Locatelli Hut” of Rosengarten - very popular, very crowded. There were hundreds of people staying the night at the hut, including whole families with children and dogs. Dinner was fantastic (even a salad bar!!) and well-organized. We were seated with two guys from the Netherlands and had an interesting conversation comparing political systems in the Netherlands, the USA, and South Korea. Interesting to hear their perspective on the growing number of political parties in the Netherlands (and South Korea). As an American, I am frustrated by the lack of choice in just two political parties; Dutch and Korean people, on the other hand, feel that too many parties creates a diffusion of power and difficulty choosing a candidate. By the end of dinner, we had concluded that about 5 political parties is the optimal number.
Night 4: Rifugio Fronza
After a restless night in a room that smelled like wet dog, sweat, and feet, we were out the door and heading to our next Rosengarten accommodation. We followed the same course as yesterday, climbing back up and over Passo Coronelle, descending to Fronzo Hut. This time we had our packs on, so everything felt a bit harder.
The last few meters of the descent were the toughest, as a black cloud had stalled above us, thickening and growing… just as we had to pick our way very slowly down a near-vertical pitch littered with loose rock. This last part of the “trail” down to Fronzo Hut from the overlook above it had a few sections of wire to assist with the descent, but we had to proceed carefully. We reached the hut just as the raindrops started to splatter, and checked into our private room as a full-on thunder and hail storm rocked Valle di Tires. Unlike many afternoon storms that unleash a torrent of rain and then move on, this storm lasted all afternoon. We spent the day listening to the rain, playing board games, napping, reading, eating and drinking beer.
The reward for a rainy day was an absolutely spectacular Rosengarten sunset! In our private room, we also had a long and restful sleep (and a hot shower!).
Rosengarten, Dolomites, Italy
Night 5: Rifugio Roda di Vaèl and Via Ferrata Masarè and Roda di Vael
From Valle di Tires, the Catinaccio Group rises sharply from the green farmlands. Between the grasslands and the hulking grey limestone cliffs lies a skirt of scree-covered talus, criss-crossed with deep slits funneling mud, rocks and boulders downward. These erosion channels can be over 10 feet wide and deep - and after the prior day’s torrential rain, they posed a challenge as we headed across the skirt. In several places, the trail was wiped out and we had to navigate into or around the fresh landslide areas. It added a bit of adventure to an otherwise short and easy hike over to Rifugio Roda di Vael.
We arrived too early for check-in again, so they sent us downstairs to stow our big packs. We assembled our day packs and headed out for a 5 hour loop trek that included two (three?) separate via ferrata in the cliffs above Roda di Vael hut. We were advised to approach the course from a counter-clockwise path leading up a narrow, steep gully to Vajalon Pass.
At the Pass, the first via ferrata led to the summit of Vajalon. It was a fast, easy climb (lots of children) and we didn’t need to use via ferrata gear. The backside of Vajalon was a steep, tight switchback down to the next via ferrata course up the side of a vertical wall. Plenty of foot pegs and hand-holds, though.
From the top of the wall, we then crossed behind a tower with a peephole and cross, then down another steep switchback. The final via ferrata course of the day wound through a series of towers; we climbed in, up, through, down, and around — long course! There were a lot of people and we often had to wait a bit, giving us time to really soak in the gorgeous views of Marmolada, Sella group, Rosengarten, and Val di Fassa. Beautiful day and rewarding climbs!
After a final night of dorm-style bunk beds and shared bathrooms in Rifugio Roda di Vael, our 5-night trek in Rosengarten came to an end. We took our time ambling down a gravel service from Roda di Vael hut, through grazing pastures, descending along a narrow dirt footpath through dense pine forest, and finally emerging at a small church on the mountain top above Vigo di Fassa.
We followed a stone path into a grassy field below the gondola that we had ridden up to Valle di Vajolet a few days ago. Past the gondola base station, we reached pavement once again in Vigo di Fassa.
