5 Days in Alta Via 1 with a tent
Alta Via 1 (high road number 1 in Italian) is a very popular trek but not an easy one. Challenging, beautiful, and long, me and Tintti did 60km out of 120km from Lago di Brais to Selva di Cadore with a tent. July 2023. The Dolomites, North of Italy.
Background
So after accomplishing Karhunkierros (Bears trail) in Lapland, Finland in June, We headed to our next challenge — Alta Via 1 (high road number 1) in The Dolomites, North of Italy.
Alta Via 1 is one of the most popular treks in Italy, starting in Lake Lago di Brais and finishing in the city of Belluno. 120 kilometers of mountain tops and breathtaking views. The trek itself is a hut-to-hut (Rifugio in Italian) trek, therefore, you don’t need to carry much weight on your back, all your meals can be provided in the Rifugios. Because we chose to do the trek with a tent and we had to carry all of our food and equipment on our backs we chose to only do a part of the trek (the part with the prettiest views). The trek itself is not easy at all, every day you need to climb mountains and descend. The highest elevation point of the trek is 2752m and in general, you climb 6665m throughout the whole trek. There are 4 Alta vias and number 1 is the easiest of them, but indeed it's not easy at all.
Season & Weather
The recommended season for the trek is from the beginning of July until the end of September. That’s only when the huts are open. The weather is usually warm with an hour or two of thunderstorms in the afternoon. September is the most stable month and the less rainy one. If you do the trek at the beginning of July you might still have some snow in the mountain passes.
You can find the weather forecast here.
Accommodations
The trek itself is a rifugio to rifugio (hut to hut). That’s the common way. There are 29 rifugios in different stages and locations, you can divide the trek by yourself however you see fit, the big problem is that it’s such a popular trek that you have to book your stay around December/January already (the winter before), otherwise there won’t be any rooms left. In order to book your stay you need to send an email to each rifugio or call them. You can find the list of the huts and the methods to book your stay by pressing here. Prices and meal prices will be explained below. There are private rooms and public rooms, rifugio depended. Some are new and renovated and some are really old.
Because the rifugios are expensive and you must book all of your accommodations half a year before, we’ve decided we’ll sleep in a tent. It gives you the flexibility of walking as long as you want every day and takes the pressure of having to make it on time to the hut for dinner, and then again, as I mentioned before, the main reason is money, especially for a young couple starting their life together.
I must mention that “Camping” is officially illegal in Italy but the official definition of camping is sleeping in the wild for more than 12 hours or with a bonfire. What is allowed though is to open up a tent from 20:00 until 8:00 if you don’t litter and clean everything before you leave. My advice is to just find a nice spot every night not too close to the trail and there are plenty. We weren’t the only hikers camping and I never heard or read about anyone getting a fine. Simple as it gets — respect and place and leave it clean.
Maps & Trail Marking
The official trail marking is a triangle with the digit 1 inside it. You must take maps or navigation tools with you, there are some different variations of Alta Via 1, and it’s very common to cut/add segways according to your plan, There are some crossings and parts that the markings are confusing and that’s why you must carry a map or have a navigation tool with you.
The 3 maps that cover the whole trek are:
• TABACCO 03 — Cortina d’Ampezzo Dolomiti Ampezzane.
• TABACCO 025 — Dolomiti di Zoldo Cardorine e Agordine.
• TABACCO 031 — Pragser Dolomiten Enneberg Dolomiti di Brais Marebbe.
The maps are available in the towns that are near the beginning of the trek like Villabassa or Dobiacco (that’s where we bought them) or in any hut along the way. You can order the maps online beforehand from here.
I personally used the maps and downloaded the GPX trail to my phone and used the Outdooractive app to navigate with flight mode. It helps a lot to see where you at and to plan for the next day.
Prices
As I’ve said before, the trek isn’t cheap at all and you need to preorder your stayings. The average price for a night with dinner and breakfast the next morning is around 80–90 Euro per person, private rooms cost even more. The price is differentiates from rifugio to rifugio. We’ve decided to eat our lunches in the rifugios so we planned our sleeping spots according to that.
The average price for a couple was around 40 Euro. Including a main dish and a beverage. 1.5L water bottle costs 4.5 Euro, there are sections you cannot refill your bottles so you’ll have to buy.
Arrival
We took a flight to Vienna, Austria, and took a 4 hours train straight to Innsbruck from the airport. We spent there 2 nights. We rented a car from a private person through an app called Getaround (it’s much cheaper than renting from a company, another similar app is GoMore). We traveled the area for 2 days, bought our gas canister from a store called SPORTLER (they have any kind of camping/trekking equipment you might need), and drove to the north of Italy.
We slept in a small town called Dobbiaco the night before leaving for the trek in Hotel Tschurtschenthaler, a great guesthouse, with a nice sauna and pool. The owners are super nice they let us park our car for free at the back of the hotel for the whole time we were trekking. The bus stop for the line that takes you to Lake Lago di Brais where the trek starts is located right next to the the hotel.
We went to gear up with food from CONARD CITY supermarket which is located next to the church of Dobbiaco and also bought the maps for the trek and some lighters from the tobacco store next to it (the only place in Dobbiaco I found the maps), we took the 442 bus schedule from reception and went to sleep.
We woke up in the morning for a delicious breakfast, we packed our bags and through our other suitcases and gear that we don’t need in the trunk of our car that was parked at the back. We took bus 442 to Lake Lago di Brais at 9:02 from the stop next to the hotel and the bus was completely full. Lake Lago di Brais is where the trek begins and is a very touristy place, many people go there for day hikes or to just spend a few hours on the lake.
The tickets are only buyable online or as later was known to me are buyable locally at the station from where the bus leaves which is Dobbiaco, Autostazione. My suggestion is to go from there if you don’t want to stand the whole way, it's only 10 minutes walk from the hotel.
Day 1 — Lake Lago di Brais until 2 kilometers after Rifugio Biella
- Distance: 11.5 kilometers.
- Elevation gain: 937 meters.
- Elevation loss: 120 meters.
- Path numbers: 1, 6, 6A.
We arrived at Lake Lago di Brais, a mystical bright turquoise water lake. The place was packed with people, it's a very popular spot in the Dolomites. Here begins our trek, the official starting point. Our bags were fully packed, Tintti carried 15 kilos and I had 21 kilos. There are 2 options, to circle the lake clockwise or anticlockwise, we chose the less crowded way which is clockwise but was longer. We circled the lake until we arrived on the other side where a long, steep uphill was starting (path number 1 on the map). The beginning was the toughest, a few kilometers of steep, gravel rocky road with no tiny drop of shade, after more climbing and some altitude we finally got some shade from trees and the road became more alive with plants all around. The higher we climbed to the more amazing view we had behind us. It was a long climb until we reached the mountain pass. In some parts, you had to hold some iron chains because it was really steep, generally the climb was really tough, especially with the weight on our bags but if you take it slow and have enough breaks you will enjoy it.
After reaching the mountain pass there is a bit more climbing to do which is way easier and plain until you reach the top and see Rifugio Biella underneath.
We descended to the rifugio. Lunch was between 12–15. We arrived right on time, tired and hungry at 14:30. We both had delicious funghi pasta and I had a cold frisky beer. We bought 2 more water bottles because there was nowhere to fill them up. After a good long rest, we continued on path number 6. We walked until we reached the crossings with path 6A and continued on 6A for a kilometer or 2 until we found a nice quiet spot to camp for the night. We made some dinner and went to sleep.
Day 2 — 2 kilometers after Rifugio Biella until Lake Le de Limo
- Distance: 17 kilometers.
- Elevation gain: 654 meters.
- Elevation loss: 908 meters.
- Path numbers: 6, 6A, 7, 11
We woke up at 6:30, made breakfast, gathered our stuff, and continued walking a few kilometers on path number 6 until we reached Rifugio Sennes. We made a small break and ordered a cappuccino. There was a water trough right in front of the rifugio where we refilled our bottles (we asked if it is drinkable beforehand). We continued on path number 7 which was easy and flat until we started descending on paths 7A/7 after a long downhill and some steep zigzagging we arrived exactly on time to Rifugio Pedero right on time for lunch. I had some good homemade ravioli and Tintti order pasta, with a cold beer of course. After the break, we started ascending in a long exhausting uphill, all the elevation we lost we had to climb back again. We had a small coffee break in the middle. It's important to note that this whole uphill didn’t have any shade so if it’s a hot day like we had you should definitely have a hat and some sunscreen with you. After some hours we arrived to Ucia de Fanes there we did a small break and ordered a cake. We refilled our bottles from the water trough (most of the rifugios have one) and continued on path number 11, it was again an uphill but a short one this time, we continued walking until we reached Lake Le de Limo, a beautiful private lake, we were the only ones there most of the time, we found a nice private spot, went swimming, had some dinner and went to sleep.
Day 3 — Lake Le de Limo until Lake Lech de Lagacio
- Distance: 10.5 kilometers.
- Elevation gain: 1086 meters.
- Elevation loss: 418 meters.
- Path numbers: 11, 20, 20B.
We woke up at 6:30, folded our stuff, and continued on path number 11 until we reached Utia de Gran Fanes where we ordered coffee and had our breakfast. We refilled our water again from the water trough, it was a beautiful place full of cows and horses. We continued on the same path, a few kilometers of plain easy walking surrounded by cows until we reached the crossings with path 20B, There begins a long uphill ascend until you reach the mountain pass — Forcela di Lech. We had a small break at that top after a long exhausting climb and then continued for the steepest descent of the trek, a long downhill that looks scary but is well maintained. When we started going down a crazy breathtaking view opened up before us, seeing Lake Lech de Lagacio with all the mountains surrounding it in the background. This part and the view we will see tomorrow were the most beautiful views of the trek and one of the prettiest views I've seen in my life. After a long downhill we arrived at the lake and decided to sleep here (the flexibility of having a tent). We arrived quite early so we decided we will rest and take it easy because tomorrow we have even more climbing to do. We spent the rest of the day swimming and relaxing. The lake was full of people because everyone has their break there after the long climb and descent, some even come for day hikes. Around 17–18, we and fellow campers were the only people left there. We filtered some water from the lake using our Sawyer Mini, cooked some dinner, and went to sleep.
Day 4 — Lake Lech de Lagacio until 2 kilometers before Rifugio Averau
- Distance: 9.5 kilometers.
- Elevation gain: 370 meters.
- Elevation loss: 700 meters.
- Path numbers: 20, 401, 441.
We woke up at 7 next to the lake, made some breakfast, folded our stuff, and started walking. We continued on path number 20, a long tough climb until the mountain pass — Forc Lagazuoi, we started early so the sun was still hiding behind the mountains and the weather was chilly and nice for a climb. After reaching the pass we took path number 401 which made us climb even more on a snake shape road until we reached Rifugio Lagazuoi. That’s the highest point of the trek, 2752 meters altitude. On the climb up there are some tunnels from World War I, we went through some of them, super cool experience, you must be really careful and have a flashlight with you in some of them. We arrived at the rifugio right on time for lunch and ordered the usual. From the rifugio, you have a breathtaking 360-degree view of mountain tops and valleys, your eyes can’t really grasp what you see. We decided to have to have a shorter day so we took the cablecar down from the rifugio and not the walking path down. From there we crossed the road and started to climb again on path number 441 until we reached Lake Lago di Lemedes where we had a long break. We made some coffee, swam, and filtered more water before continuing to walk. We continued to climb until we reach the midway point, we found a nice private spot with beautiful views to open our tent and finished our day at 16. Last night on the trek, we wanted to take it easy, relax and enjoy nature and grasp the moments as much as we can. We cooked dinner and decided we will wake up for the sunrise for our last morning.
Day 5 — 2 kilometers before Rifugio Averau until Selva di Cadore
- Distance: 12 kilometers.
- Elevation gain: 164 meters.
- Elevation loss: 1068 meters.
- Path numbers: 441, 452, 436, 462.
We woke up at 5 and we saw the sunrise at 5:30. It was amazing, the sun slowly rose from behind the misty foggy mountains, should have started our morning like this every morning. We made some black coffee and breakfast while being mesmerized by the view, appreciating the crazy nature God created, and enjoying the moment. We gathered our stuff and continued climbing on path number 441 to Rifugio Averau. Steep uphill again but it was still chilly outside so it was a nice climb. We arrived at Rifugio Averau at 8:30, we ordered coffee and a second breakfast (it’s our last day so why not spoil ourselves). The rifugio was on the mountain pass and a beautiful view of the whole valley opened up upon us, we were in clouds high. From there we walked down path number 452 until Passo Giau. Another steep downhill which this time was not well maintained, in a rainy muddy day you must be super slow and careful and I would even suggest taking a different path around. From Passo Giau we continued on path 436 until we arrived at the crossings with path number 462, here officially we diverged from Alta Via 1 in order to get to our destination. We walked down the valley on path 463 until we almost reached down, the path connected to the road that leads to the small town of Selva di Cadore and we hitchhiked from there (took 20 minutes until someone stopped).
We arrived at Selva di Cadore had our lunch there and took a bus to Belluno where we stayed the night in a cheap B&B. The next day we took buses the whole day all the way back to the hotel in Dobbiaco where we parked our car and continued traveling around with the car for a few more days.
Conclusion
Alta Via 1 is a fantastic trek, the pictures we took couldn’t even describe the real views we saw with our eyes that never ceased to amaze and surprise us every new day. The trek itself is not easy and the level actually surprised me ( I thought it would be way easier), if you planning this as your first trek I would suggest booking the huts and getting in shape beforehand. I you are experienced do it with a tent, it's a whole different experience and you can be flexible. Me and Tintti did 2 treks this summer, Karhunkierros in Lapland, Finland, and this one. Those were her first 2 treks, but by what I feel those won’t be the lasts one, we will start a tradition. When you think of it, it all comes down to this — there is nothing better than disconnecting from everything for a few days and just hiking and enjoying the crazy nature God created for us.
