Storia del boulder in Trentino

TECHNICAL INTRODUCTION. Climbing in Trentino means the possibility to try all the styles of climbing. Thanks to the several rock layers characterizing each valley, you will have the possibility to find different kinds of rock and to enjoy various styles of climbing, always surrounded by a wonderful Alpine setting. This region, alongside the countless crags and multi-pitch routes making it famous at the international level, offers many bouldering areas scattered all over its territory. This guide book presents 27 bouldering areas from the Sarca Valley up to the heart of the Dolomites. Limestone is the most common kind of rock, characterizing the southern part of Trentino: Arco, the Sarca Valley and Vallagarina. The boulders often have jagged holds and sharp crimps, as well as flat holds and slopers. They are located in screes and have the most diverse dimensions. The best season to climb on boulders of limestone, often situated in clearings at low altitudes, is winter. Although it is possible to climb there also in the other periods of the year, summer is not recommended. The Val di Cembra and the touristic Val di Fiemme are characterized by boulders of porphyry, a very solid and porous reddish rock, with a rough grain that is very appreciated by climbers. The boulders are generally situated inside woods, therefore it is possible to boulder there all year round, even though winter is not recommended due to possible snowfalls and high humidity. The Val di Genova and Valsugana are characterized by granite rock, their altitude varies by sector, between 1000 and 1800 m. This granite in particularly rough-grained, which is perfect for those who are looking for optimum friction. You can climb there all year round, temperatures and snow permitting. At the end of this guide book you will find the Val di Pejo, with its beautiful bouldering area at 1200 metres’ altitude. This area has a unique and very solid kind of rock, gneiss, with fine problems on crimps. The area of Val Daone, the most famous and touristic bouldering area of Trentino, is not described in this guide book since a dedicated guide book is already available (Daone Boulder, Versante Sud). Many of the areas described in this guide book had never been described before and their constant development required to organize them in a practical way. We started from the largest areas, but we decided to include also the smaller and less-known spots. Our philosophy aims at giving other people the possibility to enjoy these bouldering areas, promoting the territory at the same time. The weather in Trentino can change very quickly, therefore we recommend you to always check the local forecasts. The temperatures can also vary considerably, with a strong temperature range during the night, depending on where you are. During the summer season pay attention to ticks and to the pine processionary: we suggest you to wear long-sleeve cloths. The boulders usually have good landings, but it is always recommended to be careful and to bring enough crash pads with you.Trentino Boulder includes bouldering areas that are scattered all over the territory, from the most famous ones in the Sarca Valley, to the less touristic areas, such as the Val di Cembra, Valsugana and Val di Pejo. The Val di Genova, in the national park of Adamello Brenta, is not be missed: you will find many boulders, as well as many beautiful hikes, starting from the waterfalls of Nardis. We strongly recommend families to visit the limestone areas of Marocche and the Lavini of Marco, where it is possible to admire the characteristic dinosaur footprints. Many of these areas are located in natural parks or reserves. Climbing is allowed, but you should respect the environment, without damaging or disturbing the local flora and fauna. In all these areas it is strictly forbidden to remove lichens from the boulders and to pick up flowers or plants.

Impossibile determinare una data di nascita esatta e puntuale del bouldering, le aree blocchi più antiche sono frequentate già dai primi decenni del 1900, quando questa attività veniva considerata solamente come forma d’allenamento per potenziare forza ed esplosività propedeutiche alle salite in montagna. A partire dagli anni 70 il bouldering, chiamato sassismo, iniziò a essere praticato in Italia come una vera e propria attività a sé stante, con l’obbiettivo di salire passaggi logici e linee sempre più dure, tecniche, esplosive ed estetiche. Anche in Trentino le prime testimonianze di questo nuovo approccio risalgono a quel periodo. Nella prima metà degli anni 80, dopo le prime esperienze in Francia, Roberto Bassi e un gruppo di ragazzi di Mori tra cui Giuliano Dorigatti, Domenico Tonelli e i fratelli Ermanno e Cesare Dossi, valorizzarono l’area di Montal- Loris Manzana 1984

bano, chiodando i massi più grandi e liberando linee di notevole difficoltà per l’epoca, su quelli di più ridotte dimensioni. Nei primi anni 90 nello scenario trentino subentra una seconda generazione con Loris Manzana, Maurizio Righi, Stefano Angelini e Carlo Bona che, oltre a ripetere i blocchi di Roberto Bassi a Montalbano, realizzano nuovi passaggi, sfiorando, già allora, il 7c. Ai primi anni 2000 si diede il via alla valorizzazione della Val Daone grazie al lavoro dell’aquilano Roberto Parisse che insieme al gruppo bresciano della Banda del Pannello liberò linee storiche come il 7c+ Campari Soda o il 7c high ball Janes Hutton. A questo lavoro di scoperta e pulitura presero parte, a distanza di pochi anni, i trentini Massimo Faletti, Matthias Basetti, Alessandro Gandolfo e altri pionieri, realizzando quella che oggi è considerata una delle aree Boulder più belle e ampie d’Italia. Nei due decenni a seguire, dalla Valle del Sarca al cuore delle Dolomiti, il progresso fece passi da gigante. Furono scoperte svariate aree come Prabi e Passo San Giovanni nei pressi di Arco, mentre Stefano Ghidini scopriva e puliva l’area dei Lavini di Marco; in seguito vennero puliti blocchi nelle Valli di Fiemme e Cembra grazie al lavoro di Efrem Giovannella, Ivan Savoi, Nicola Sartori e Sergio Monauni, per arrivare in questi ultimi anni alla valorizzazione di aree boulder di alta quota. Il boulder su roccia crebbe così molto rapidamente, arrivando a stimolare l’organizzazione del primo raduno boulder cittadino della regione, sulle case di un paese in Val di Cembra: il Portek Contest di Lisignago. Il bouldering trentino vive tuttora un enorme e continuo progresso soprattutto in Val Daone, che al momento è l’area che offre il numero più alto di passaggi sopra l’8a. Su questo blocchi nel 2018 è stata liberata la prima linea di 8b da Lorenzo Puri, L’Avenir Nous Reserve Big Bamboo, e nel 2020 la prima salita di grado 8c, Big Illusion, liberata da Stefano Scarperi.

THE HISTORY OF BOULDERING IN TRENTINO It is impossible to determine exactly when the practice of bouldering was born, but people have been climbing in the first bouldering areas since the beginning of 1900, when this activity was only considered as a form of training aimed at improving strength and power, in preparation for mountain ascents. However, from the 70s, bouldering – called “sassismo” – became a separate sports discipline, with the aim of climbing logical and increasingly hard, technical, powerful and aesthetic lines. The first accounts of this new approach in Trentino come from that period. In the first half of the 80s, after the first experiences in France, Roberto Bassi and a group of climbers from Mori, among which Giuliano Dorigatti, Domenico Tonelli and the brothers Ermanno and Cesare Dossi, started to explore the area of Mantalbano, bolting new routes on the higher boulders and, on the smaller ones, establishing problems that were already very hard for that period. At the beginning of the 90s, a second generation of climbers took over: Loris Manzana, Maurizio Righi, Stefano Angelini and Carlo Bona repeated the lines established by Roberto Bassi at Montalbano and discovered new problems, climbing up to 7c already at that time. At the beginning of the 2000s, the exploration of Val Daone kicked off, thanks to the work carried out by Roberto Parisse, from the city of L’Aquila, together with the group of climbers “La Banda del Pannello” from Brescia. They established iconic lines, such as the 7c+ Campari Soda or the 7c highball Janes Hutton. After a few years, some climbers from Trentino, Massimo Faletti, Matthias Basetti, Alessandro Gandolfo and other pioneers, joined this clearing and discovering activity, taking part in the creation of one of the most beautiful and largest bouldering areas in Italy. For the following two decades, from the Sarca Valley to the heart of the Dolomites, bouldering has made impressive strides. Several new areas have been discovered, such as Prabi and Passo San Giovanni near Arco, while Stefano Ghidini discovered and cleared the area of Lavini of Marco. Later, more boulders have been cleared in the valleys of Fiemme and Cembra, thanks to the work of Efrem Giovannella, Ivan Savoi, Nicola Sartori and Sergio Monauni, and new high altitude areas have been discovered over the last few years. The expansion of this discipline was so quick that the first boulder meeting in Trentino was organized on the house walls of a small village in Val di Cembra: the Portek Contest of Lisignago. Bouldering is still going through an intense and constant development, especially in Val Daone, the area with the higher number of the problems above 8a. Here, in 2018 Lorenzo Puri climbed the first line of 8b, L’Avenir Nous Reserve Big Bamboo, and in 2020 Stefano Scarperi climbed the first 8c, Big Illusion.