homeForcella Nuvolau/Rifugio Averau
Forcella Nuvolau/Rifugio Averau Height Climbing height
2413m 1214m (Cortina d’Ampezzo)
910m (Pocōl)
Difficulty Beauty
4-5 (5) 5 (5)
How to get there From the east one starts in the old olympic ski resort town of Cortina d’Ampezzo (1199m) or at Pocōl (1540m (1503m)), if coming down from Passo Giau. If coming down from Passo Falzārego/Fouzargo one starts the climb from above Pocōl where a small road leads off south. The small road on the road from Cortina to the Falzārego pass could be missed. It looks like it must be a gravel road from the main road, but is in fact tarmacced all the way to Rifugio Cinque Torri. It starts at the flatter section before the last pull up to the Falzārego pass. This road is one of the steepest asphalt roads in the Dolomites with several sections of around 20% on a very narrow road. At the Cinque Torri mountain hut a gravel road leads to another hut and then you take left up a road to the pass. The road up from the Cinque Torri hut might be improved so that it could be cycled with a mountainbike, but the road up to the Nuvolau pass is not even possible with a mountainbike to cycle (R2). The road down the southwest side of the Giau pass is at first mostly a steep path on a ski slope and then a mostly uncyclable (with a road bike) jeep road. Walking time was 1 h 45 min.
Other comments It is not very beautiful until you get up past the Rifugio Cinque Torri, but then it gets very beautiful! There is actually an unnamed pass on the way to Forcella Nuvolau, where this photo is taken. I had a photo at the Nuvolau pass also, but it only shows me and a parked jeep. The views from the Nuvolau pass are quite fantastic though. You can look down at Passo Pordoi and Passo di Fedāia. The views are very far reaching over this very impressive area.
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