During the First World War the Austrians and the Italians fought over and inside Mount Lagazuoi in the Dolomites. In an attempt to win the war, the Italian built a extensive tunneling system to transport large amount of explosive to destroy Austrian post. The trenches, machine gun posts, barracks, and tunnels have now been restored as some sort of an open air eco-museum. Visitors can now hike these tunnels and get a small sense of what soldiers during WW1 have to go through in order to win the war.
Our reaction says it all. This is not an ordinary hike especially with kids below 12. This hike is sometimes classed as a 1A Via Ferrata (a beginner level). The whole hike took us around 3 hours with 1 hour inside a dark tunnel.
Cable Car to Rifugio Lagazuoi
We drove a mountain road up to Passo Falzarego (SR48) from the town of Cortina D’Ampezzo. Directly at Passo Falzarego there is a gondola station that quickly transport us up to Rifugio Lagazuoi where the trail to the Lagazuoi Tunnels begins. I would personally recommend taking cabin car up to the top and then walk down.
Getting to the Tunnel Entrance
It will take around 30 minutes to reach the tunnel entrance from the cable car station. We took way longer as the view is awesome.
Lagazuoi War Tunnel
Going through the tunnels gives us a sense of what the soldiers went through during the challenging time in history… the damp and cold air, the little openings they peered from, and the difficulty navigating through the tunnels. We took an hour going through the tunnels and I must say it is not a comfortable experience at all. I can only imagine how difficult it is to live and survive in the tunnels.
On steep sections a cable is provided and useful as the rock underfoot can be slippery in places.
There are a number of places where you have the choice of different route. Since it is complete darkness at times you wont really know if you are taking the right path. It quite nerve wrecking not knowing where you are.
After the Tunnel
There is a huge sense of relief coming out from the dark tunnels. But that feeling does not last long after seeing the steep path ahead. For a moment we were thinking of climbing back up through the tunnels again.
It’s a very exposed walk at certain section. Although ferrata equipment is not absolutely necessary, I recommend renting the via ferrata kit for beginners and children. We managed to complete the hike with only torch lights.
A cute interview video about the challenge of this hike. William gave it 6/10 and Vincent gave 10/10. But next time Vincent wants a hike with rating of 20. Your wish did indeed came true few years later.
Thrilling Descent
This section is quite dangerous. Seeing other hikers, including adults hikers, using full equipment is pretty scary. Having said that, we are able to complete this trail without any problem.
If you need climbing equipment, there is shop at the bottom of the station that rent out these equipment for a fee.
Climbing down a steep section.
Would we do this hike again?
My wife says no.
Awesome Hike
The rain comes towards the end of our hike. If it comes earlier, it would certainly add more challenges to our descend.
I think this hike inspire us to take on more challenging hikes and adventure in future. The sense of thrill and achievement we experienced is something that makes our lives more magical and colorful. Looking back, this trip is the start of our journey beyond the ordinary. Why waste time doing normal things if we can do something more unique?
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