Dolomite Failures

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South face of Marmolada.
We spent another night in the Auronzo Hut and then drove to the Marmolada region for a casual yet very scenic hike up to Refugio Falier. Our hope was to bag one of the longer routes on the impressive south face of Marmolada. The remainder of the afternoon was spent reading, eating, and playing with the miniature goats at the refuge. With the 4:15pm deadline for topout (last cable car from the top vs. a painful glacier descent and many miles of road hiking) and many pitches to go, we were out the door by 5am. Unfortunately, the clarity of the previous day was replaced by thick clouds obscuring the mountain. We hiked up into the milky whiteout and waited near what we guessed to be the start of the route for things to start breaking up. By 8am conditions were still not improving and so with heavy hearts we gave up and hiked down. On the walk down from the refuge later that morning, the upper reaches of the south face would momentarily show themselves but overall the mountain remained socked in. Oh well – next time.

Photos

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Starting the approach hike to Rifugio Falier at the foot of Marmolada’s south face (July 2010).
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Marmolada cable car and a helicopter ferrying logs up the valley as seen during the the hike in to Rifugio Falier (July 2010).
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South face of Marmolada as seen on the hike up to Rifugio Falier (July 2010).
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Shirley relaxing at the Refugio Falier at the base of the huge south face of Marmolada (background; July 2010).
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A miniature goat at Rifugio Falier at the foot of Marmolada’s south face (July 2010).
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More wildlife at Rifugio Falier (July 2010).
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At the Rifugio (July 2010).
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Clouds gathering over Marmolada (July 2010).
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Rifugio Falier (July 2010).
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Shirley at the base of Marmolada’s south face trying to decide go/no-go…we did not go (July 2010).
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Shirley hiking through Cortina d’Ampezzo (I think; July 2010).
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Rifugio Boscanero at the foot of Rocchetta Alta (July 2010).
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A pet goose at Rifugio Boscanero (July 2010).
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An affectionate feline at Rifugio Boscanero (July 2010).
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Racking up for Spigolo Strobel on Rocchetta Alta (July 2010).
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Staring up the scramble portion of the approach to Spigolo Strobel (July 2010).
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A couple of easy but loose pitches to access the start of the route proper (July 2010).
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Shirley nearing the base of the route (July 2010).
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Shirley checking out the guidebook at a bar in Castelrotto. We spent a night in the same hotel as we had two years prior (July 2010).

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