Ferrata Roda di Vael and Ferrata Masare', from Rifugio Nigritella

Access

From the Brenner motorway, exit at Egna-Ora and continue along the Fiemme / Fassa valley. Once in Vigo, turn left towards the village centre and the road to the Costalunga Pass. The Catinaccio cable car is well signposted and offers ample parking.

Description

 At Rif Negritella we take the path on the right which climbs up to the Pra Martin hut. We continue to climb, leaving the arrival point of the chairlift on the right and continue along a comfortable path that allows us to admire the beautiful view of the valley below and the Monzoni group. We arrive at a fork in the road, which is not marked on the older maps. The fork indicates Rif Roda di Vael on the left, Passo Vajolon on the right. In fact, the two paths come together further on, so you can either take one or the other. Beware that if you take the path to the right, at the next fork you must take the path to the right that leads ar Rif Gardeccia passing between the Zigolade and the Pale Rabbiose. We continue on the easy path towards Rif Roda di Vael, ignore path 541 and finally arrive at the junction with path 551 where we turn right and begin to climb first on a gravel path, then on large stones. At an altitude of 2450m, the first part of the ascent ends. We must continue a little more on a now flatter path to reach the 2560m Vajolon pass, where the first ferrata begins. This pass is rather beaten up, as the path up the Carezza side also arrives here. The Roda di Vael ferrata is simple, never exposed, on safe rock and (with dry rock) the cable is there more for psychological safety than for real necessity. We have seen people walk this ferrata both up and down, without any kind of equipment (grade I climbing). Some even in trainers and with a few beers in them! (drunk before tackling the ferrata...........). In return, however, there was also a gentleman teaching his 8-year-old son to climb 'correctly', finding holds in the rock and not hoisting himself up with the cable except where strictly necessary :-) The view from the 2806m summit is spectacular. But the route is still long; a quick sandwich and it's time to descend using the cable and a ladder. A signpost shows us the direct route to Rif Roda di Vael, but we continue along the Masare' ferrata. We immediately begin with a smooth little wall equipped with a cable and some artificial support, which allows us to reach Pian del Diavolo 2625m. We then continue between ledges, exposed traverses and more vertical passages over narrow gullies and arrive at the narrow ridge. A ritual photo and we start to descend again (cable). In front of us is the tower to be climbed by exploiting the crack on its right side. To get there, you have to descend a little further between gullies and ledges to reach the base of the gully, which you ascend using natural holds and metal stirrups. (Beware of bulky rucksacks). We still descend vertically. Three more rocky jumps await us and we are at the end of the ferrata. From there we reach the refuge in about 30 minutes. We follow the signs for Vigo and return to the village on the comfortable trail 547 and a few short cuts). Total time approx. 8hr30h incl. stops Note. If you decide to climb only the Masare' ferrata by ascending to the Roda di Vael refuge from the Paolina chairlift, the recommended route is still counter-clockwise, i.e. from the Roda di Vael refuge you follow the clear signs leading to the start of the ferrata in about 40 minutes. The Roda di Vael ferrata is easy, the Masare' ferrata is moderately difficult with some more challenging passages. There are several exposed sections, gullies and equipped ledges. Do not underestimate the physical commitment if you do both ferratas. Starting from Vigo, it takes approximately 2hr - 2hr15 to reach the start of the first ferrata from Gardeccia and you then have another one and a half to two hours to return to the village.