Dolomites

The Marmarole mountain group is an island of quiet, where, especially at the end of the season, it’s easy not to meet anyone for entire days. Nature is harsh and wild; steep, apparently inaccessible ridges separate the slopes and basins. It follows that the elevation gains are significant and many obligatory passages are often technical, exposed and equipped with steel cables (via ferrata). Water is scarce everywhere, especially on the north face, which also lacks refuges at altitude. Up there, the support structures are spartan bivouacs, isolated and challenging to reach. The solitude up there is almost total, but frequent encounters with high-altitude wildlife compensate for it. It’s easy to spot chamois, ibex, marmots, and eagles. ...

I left home at 5 AM on my Triumph Bonneville, arrived in Palafavera at about 9 AM, and left on foot half an hour later. I was eager to see the Civetta’s northwest face again, and it was as I remembered it: giant, looming, impressive, intimidating, outstanding. As I crossed the valley below, I thought about Marco Anghilleri, who completed the first winter repeat of the Solleder route on that wall, and just then, I came across a plaque, just below the summit’s vertical, announcing his passing on the Central Freney Pylon in 2014. He fell while attempting the first winter solo of a challenging route there. ...