Ferrata Sasso delle Nove

Overview

The Ferrata alla Cima Nova is a long, demanding alpine route set in the austere heart of the Val Badia. While it doesn't feature extreme technical grades, the climb is defined by pronounced exposure and a solitary environment, demanding physical endurance and familiarity with high-altitude terrain. The fixed metal cables, concentrated in the final hundred meters below the summit, protect sections of smooth slabs and airy ridges where the sensation of emptiness is constant. The route unfolds largely on trail, gradually evolving into a stark, rocky landscape, culminating in the conquest of the distinctive Cima Nove.

Approach

The route begins at Rifugio Pederù (1548 m), accessible from San Vigilio di Marebbe and equipped with a large parking area.

The itinerary initially follows the well-traveled trail no. 7, which gradually ascends the valley floor of the Vallone di Fanes. The setting is typical of a wide, pastoral Dolomite valley, with a steady progression that touches Rifugio Pices Fanes (2007 m) and, after a brief optional detour, Rifugio Fanes (2060 m). After about one hour and thirty minutes, you reach Rifugio Lavarella (2050 m). From here, the pace changes: take trail marker 13 heading north, crossing the Piano delle Sarenes with a constant, continuous grade up to the Passo di Sant'Antonio (Ju de Sant'Antone, 2466 m), reached in approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes total from the start.

At the pass, leave the main trail to tackle a steep scree slope marked by red paint blazes, with a few short sections of easy rock. The physically demanding climb leads to a grassy saddle that offers the first direct and impressive view of the walls of Cima Dieci and Cima Nove. From this point, the markings cease, and the route continues in an obvious but exposed manner along the ridge in a northwest direction. The path features a continuous up-and-down over unstable terrain, overlooking deep precipices on both sides, in an atmosphere of great isolation. You thus arrive at the start of the via ferrata at an elevation of about 2800 meters, after a total approach of approximately 3 hours and 30 minutes.

Via Ferrata

The equipped section, though covering a limited elevation gain of about one hundred meters, forms the technical and emotional core of the ascent. The first meters of cable protect a narrow, stepped ridge, similar to a protected trail but with the abyss of the north wall immediately alongside. The character of the route changes radically when you move onto the south side, which is decisively more exposed: here the cable runs over moderate slopes but sheer above the void, requiring psychological steadiness.

You reach a boulder that introduces the most interesting and technical section. A long, airy traverse to the left begins across a smooth slab, to be negotiated mainly through friction, with minimal handholds. After overcoming this test of balance, the cable bends upward, climbing more vertically along an extremely exposed arête, then enters a chimney of moderate difficulty. This last represents the most technical passage of the entire ferrata, though it is well-supplied with footholds.

After the chimney, you tackle a final sloping slab and some exposed summit rocks, beyond which the fixed cables end. The time to complete the ferrata is about 45 minutes. A further quarter-hour of walking over a loose, gravelly slope finally leads to the summit cross of Cima Nove (2968 m), reached in about 4 hours and 30 minutes total from the start.

Descent

The return is made by reversing the ascent route, including the via ferrata, which must be descended with extreme caution given the exposure and nature of the passages. From the summit, it takes about 3 hours and 30 minutes to return to Rifugio Pederù, for a total hiking time of about 8 hours.

Useful Notes

The main difficulty of this ferrata lies not in pure technique, but in the significant and continuous exposure combined with the progression over smooth, vertical slabs, which demand a steady foot and solid experience in equipped terrain. The metal infrastructure is nonetheless excellent and well-placed.

Descending the ferrata requires absolute concentration. The length of the route and the isolated environment beyond the first refuges make it essential to tackle it only in stable weather conditions. In case of fog at the summit, it is crucial to precisely identify the gully leading back to the cables to avoid route-finding errors.

An alternative access starts from the locality of Spescia (1549 m) in Val Badia, ascending the steep trail 13 along the Val di Fanes to the Passo di Sant'Antonio. This variant, shorter in distance but more strenuous and steeper, results in a total excursion duration of about 7 hours.

The ferrata is located in the Sasso della Croce Group and is often combined with the nearby Ferrata del Sasso delle Dieci. The area offers numerous other alpine possibilities, such as the Sentiero Attrezzato Tru Dolomieu, the Ferrata della Pace, and, further north, the Ferrata di Valdaora and that to Piz de Peres.