Sports climbing in the Dolomites

Climbing in the Dolomites is priceless: be it sports climbing or great mountaineering routes, the environment of the Dolomites is among the most stimulating and adrenaline filled of all the Alps and not only. From the sunny rock faces at altitude facing the sun to the cold north faces which never see the light of day, to the wide green valleys and the narrower shady valleys, the Dolomites cover a vast territory which range from the provinces of Trento and Bolzano, reaching all the way to Udine in Friuli and Belluno in Veneto, for a total of over 2300 square kilometres. The 105 crags chosen for this volume have been divided into 9 different macro areas which each represent a main valley and their relative secondary valleys. In this way it has been possible to cover all the territory of the Dolomites except for the only group which lies beyond the Adige river: and that is the Brenta Dolmites. To get information on most of the Brenta crags it is possible to consult the guide book “Arco crags” (Versante Sud). In terms of the type of rock, it is commonplace to think that climbing in the Dolomites means only climbing on dolomite rock. In this guide book there are 4 different types of rock where dolomite rock is present in roughly 70% of the crags. There are also interesting walls of porphyry, conglomerate and limestone, among which the famous “Marmolada limestone” its quality is appreciated by climbers from all over the world. In terms of the vastness of the territory described, not only horizontally speaking but also vertically- the lowest crag is situated at 500 metres of altitude and the highest at 2700m – the crags described in this guide book are different one from another even inside the same area: for example in Alta Val Pusteria the walls you climb on are all similar, but it is enough to move into the bordering Cadore area to find a more varied offer which ranges from conglomerate rock on the walls nearby the Piave river, to the dolomite rock of the crags further up high, to the limestone of the lower valley, where as well as the different rock, even the climate and the landscape change radically. The Dolomites run along a vast area and inside the same territory the climatic and environmental conditions can be very different. For this reason, at the beginning of each chapter a short introduction to the area illustrates all of its main climatic characteristics as well as some concise information on the viability and a quick description of the chosen crags. In this way, even for anyone coming to climb in the Dolomites for a limited period of time, it is possible to choose the most interesting areas depending on the season and one’s preferences. One thing is certain, anywhere you choose to go in the Dolomites, you will find a lot of rock on which to vent off all your climbing energy!

DOLOMITE ROCK…THIS DARK HORSE…

The Dolomites were born in the sea and their geological origin is clearly visible even with the naked eye: it is enough to observe the sedimentary layers which make up the Tre Cime di Lavaredo or Seceda, the many fossils which can be found along the paths which are less trodden, or the bizarre shape of the summits and pinnacles to realise that the mountain-sea relationship has never been so powerful over such a wide mountain territory. In climbing terms the walls of dolomite rock are very similar to limestone, both in terms of the structure and the climbing technique which is the same in many respects. For those used to limestone, climbing on dolomite rock is not as different as for example it can be climbing on granite or gneiss. It would be absurd and scientifically wrong to say that “dolomite rock is like limestone” but it is understandable to hear this sentence from those who have climbed on both types of rock. The difference between dolomite rock and limestone is simply at a chemical-physical level: in dolomite rock a mineral is present with a base of calcium carbonate and magnesium which makes this rock different from limestone. The scientific discovery of dolomite rock was made by the Marquis Déodat de Dolomieu (1750-1801), an important French naturalist from whom the Dolomites got their name.

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