That same afternoon, we drove over to Passo Sella, to catch the one-person gondolas up to Rifugio Toni Demetz. You can see it in the notch between the two formations. One could also hike, but… why?
These things probably wouldn’t be good if you were claustrophobic. We did see the folks cram couples into them <3
Once we got up there, we lounged around, and did research on the various climbs that were accessible from the hut. We met the son of Giovanni Demetz, who now runs the rifugio, and he was full of great climbing beta. We eventually decided on Spigolo del Pollice, with the option to do something on Punta Delle Cinque Dita if weather permitted.
The views from the rifugio were pretty solid. It started raining just as we arrived, but they eventually cleared out.
Five star mountain lodging, and our objective for the next day
Looking out behind the rifugio before dinner.
So the next day, we woke up early to beat the crowds, ate breakfast, and walked about 3-minutes to the base of the climb, and off we went!
At the start of P2.
At P3 I think?
We encountered a lot of traffic here, as teams caught up. Most of the locals who were leading this climb were solo-ing this, so we let them pass us.
At the belay spot of P4, an Italian guide showed up, and needed a way to relax…
Belaying his client…
Stephen working his way up!
On the ridge!
v(^_^)V
Belay of P5?
More ridgeline!
😀
We eventually had to hurry up to beat the storm that was moving in. Here’s Keith setting up the rappels at the summit.
One rappels into this canyon between the two towers, and then scrambles/traverses back out.
This is followed by more rappels.
The clouds starting moving away… phew.
Views from the last rappel.
You can see more folks heading up the ridge
We had celebratory beers after the climb, ate a snack, and headed down so we could drive to our next objective. We ate lunch along the way, and had an amazing plate of tagliatelle with mushrooms and truffle. Italy is the best…
Stats:
- Date: 21-August 2018
- Objective: Sassolungo Group – Spigolo del Pollice (Thumb of the Five Fingers)
- Grade: IV (5.6)
- Height: 9688-ft / 2953m
- Length of climb: 8 pitches (~1148-ft / 350m)
- Accomodations: Rifugio Toni Demetz