Cengia delle Tre Sorelle from San Vito di Cadore to Cresta dei Nani

Premise

This route was done on August 29, 2024, and all subsequent observations and considerations fully apply only to that day.

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Approach to the start of the Cengia delle Tre Sorelle from San Vito di Cadore

You comfortably climb up to Rifugio San Marco (today done... in the cool with a headlamp and in company with some climbers) and follow the CAI 226 signs to Forcella Grande.

From the sign “FORCELLA GRANDE MT 2255” continue circling to the left (along CAI 246) the basin that closes the upper Val di San Vito, and pass a second sign “FON DE RU SECCO MT 2445” with a clearly wrong altitude (it is a few dozen meters higher than the previous one).

Now continue climbing easy steps on a well-marked path up to the large plateau of Fond de Rusecco or Ruseco (at a height just over 2,500 meters) where you leave the path that continues towards Bivacco Slataper.

On the right in the direction of arrival there is a fairly obvious trail with cairns from the first meters, and it is the one that goes towards the scree at the base of the normal route to Ponta del Sorapíš.

You continue on this trail until a few meters before the scree start where, on the right, there are low rocky bastions.

There is a large cairn a little off to the right between the first and second low bastion: here you leave the normal route to Ponta del Sorapíš and enter between the two bastions, also finding some old and faded paint marks of the Sentiero Carlo Minazio.

Shortly, following the ground path and the cairns, you reach the end of the bastions and notice – at a slightly lower altitude to the left – a visible scree ledge with a trace of ledge.

(Up to here you can reach even without exactly guessing the trace of the old Sentiero Carlo Minazio: just turn right among the previous low rocky bastions, even after the second one.)

You leave the continuation of the old Sentiero Carlo Minazio and enter the ledge following the not difficult ledge path.

This initial ledge-scree ends inside the large gully descending from Forcella della Caccia Grande, and to cross it you first descend a few meters on steep "green steps."

The first meters of crossing “may be annoying” because there is almost no trace, and it is advisable to stop a moment to understand where to put your feet and reach the good route.

Then you climb up the other side still on a ledge-like trace, and immediately (following a couple of cairns carefully) bypass a rounded rocky hump with an exposed passage of good first grade horizontal difficulty: holds and grips are sufficient but you must hold on a bit and be careful – if it seems more than first grade with some jumps the line is wrong.

You enter a green section so you climb up, then the cairns guide along a nice almost flat traverse.

At the end of the traverse there is a diagonal little climb approaching the rock band without reaching it, and then the cairns guide to a longer diagonal traverse with a slight ascending tendency.

You come in sight of an incredible yellow pyramidal tower with a large cave at the base to the right, and here you climb directly up the steep to reach it, always with plenty of guiding cairns.

The cairns lead more to the left of the yellow pyramidal tower and below the rock band at the base of the Prima Sorella: here begins the Cengia delle Tre Sorelle.

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Traversing the Cengia delle Tre Sorelle up to the key passage

From the arrival point on the ledge line you quickly pass below the yellow pyramidal tower with the large cave, which is well lit and “colored” by mid-morning.

Then there is a small descent of about 2.5 meters on first grade, and you arrive below the exit slope of the normal route to the peaks of the Tre Sorelle.

On the other side of the amphitheater you are in begins the most characteristic part in “wide suspended ledge” style, which is easily recognizable (for those who know where it is) already from Forcella Grande passed much earlier on the approach.

Bypassing the exit edge of the amphitheater you find another one, to be bypassed again on a wide ledge not difficult if you stay on the chamois paths near the rock band.

The exit edge from the second amphitheater changes solar exposure from south to east (and indeed will be partially shaded on the return), and it is the start of a more constant and continuous climb.

You find a “quasi cat’s step” and then continue to a short gully where you need to use your hands to support yourself: on the ascent I stayed on the right and I don’t think it can be defined as a “graded climb” in the sense that the best line barely reaches first grade (though there are some pebbles dirtying the passages).

After the gully, the ledge turns right and you continue climbing without particular problems up to the key passage, preceded by a “disk-shaped rock”, resting on the ground on the ledge, with a cairn on top.

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Key passage of the Cengia delle Tre Sorelle

After the “disk boulder” continue a few meters on a flat ledge where the helping cord is already present (not necessary here but... you have to find the best anchor points).

Then the ledge abruptly ends and a narrow notch forms that drops into the void.

Where the notch originates there is a niche accessible using quite good holds, meaning they are wide enough even for a half shoe but always very exposed and reachable with extreme caution: here the helping cable can be a “good balancer.”

Then from the niche there are two options:

• 1^ option → external in ABSOLUTE EXPOSURE where various guides give very different difficulty ratings, from II+ to IV – I abstain: I just say that to face this solution you must be actively climbing climbers meaning it’s not necessary to be used to extreme grades but you can’t have climbed in the past and be totally inactive for some years; the current helping cord doesn’t seem able to definitely hold a fall, and has also a frayed section
• 2^ option → above the super-exposed traverse line, there is a mini ledge closed under a very low sloping roof, almost a tunnel, accessible climbing a couple of small steps from the niche where you descended; it is a “worm step” slightly ascending going forward, and is done only without backpack on the back pushing it forward; here I used the helping cable to secure the backpack: it’s not much needed while pushing forward but can be useful at the end of the “almost tunnel” when you have to turn your body to put the backpack back on the shoulders; you can put the backpack on in a “quasi niche” more open than the initial one, and you must lower yourself on a small jump that deposits onto a NARROW but solid ledge (I don’t comment on the exposure); from here you stay very close to the wall and, guided by the cable, climb up on solid yet still narrow holds where the Cengia delle Tre Sorelle widens again and poses no worries; on the return the same technique, but more attention because “the worm goes down” and it is a bit more complicated the moment to put the backpack on the shoulders

As always in these cases, everyone makes their own choices❗

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Completion of the Cengia delle Tre Sorelle to Forcella Sortsch and then on the Cresta dei Nani

After the key passage the rest of the climb is, so to speak, almost relaxing: again wide but always pay attention to the right lines because not all the wide ledge is good.

With one last stretch you reach Forcella Sortsch, with a cairn and its two characteristic and photogenic towers.

From here, to the right, in a short time you climb the rounded highest bump of the Cresta dei Nani with exceptional panorama.

Beyond the bump you notice a trail that in a few meters leads to another slightly lower elevation, a bit shifted on the Rifugio Vandelli side, and indeed... there is a great “vertical view” on the Laghetto del Sorapis: photos 📷 as much as you want❗😉