Ferrata Tissi al Civetta

Introduction:

The challenging Ferrata Tissi climbs the south-west side of Monte Civetta in the Zoldo Dolomites. A long itinerary covering a high gap and which, due to some environmental difficulties due to generally permanent snowfields, requires good mountain experience. Itinerary that can take us to the top of the Civetta with descent from the normal route.

Starting location:

The ideal starting point to take the Ferrata Tissi uphill to the Civetta is Malga Grava. Going up the Val Agordina to the height of the built-up area of Chiesa, turn left onto Via Grava until its end near a hut surrounded by large green meadows. Directions for Google Maps available here.

Approach:

From Casera di Grava (1627 m) follow the wide path 557 in north-west direction sweet climb up to Forcella del Pecol / Grava (1784 m). We continue on the path 557 - called "Tivan" path that we will use more when we return. We continue on this path until we reach a saddle to the Forcella della Grava which we reach in a short time. Keep left on 558 in the direction of Rifugio Vazzoler, ignoring on the right the directions for the Ferrata degli Alleghesi. The trail initially turns south to then turn right again towards the west showing the first goal straight to us: Forcella delle Sasse (2475 m). The ascent to the saddle is rather laborious and the 600-meter difference in height is bridged on a gravel ground that rises with a rather decisive line. In about 2h from the start we reach Forcella delle Sasse and continue ignoring the track that branches off to the left and continue around the high eastern walls of the Civetta. We follow the track that initially loses altitude to then climb up the gravelly gully and not excessively stable until reaching thestart of the Ferrata Tissi indicated by a written on stone rather faded under the impressive south-east bastions of the Civetta (45 'from Forcella Sasse - 2h 45' total).

Via Ferrata:

The via ferrata begins with a diagonal stretch to climb to the left that does not present any particular problems. We climb a few meters diagonally and then climb on one vertical wall but supported with good holds. We climb a few meters and walk along one narrow and unprotected ledge to the left where some red signs indicate the direction to keep. Attention in this section to passages where there may be snow even in high season.

After the ledge we meet one inclined wall to climb up. This stretch is not too difficult, the cable runs to our right and the rather jagged rock offers good holds. We reach in about twenty meters one inclined ramp that rises to the left. Perhaps the most characteristic passage of the Ferrata Tissi. The ramp rises offering some pegs as a support for the feet and yet staying quite wide, on left we have accumulated a good exposure. Once the last few meters of the ramp have been completed, we continue along the road that goes around a small rocky roof.

Now let's climb rather vertically an exposed but not excessively difficult stretch that we climb using the good grips for the feet present. After the first vertical meters we bend to the right going around a small rocky outcrop. We now climb a passage in a chimney. We stay on the left side of the chimney where some pegs help the progression. Let's continue on some rocks fairly supported which attenuate the exposure and we go up to a short vertical leap where some metal frames help us to win the 4 meter jump.

We are now in a stretch of via ferrata which is often damp due to water melting from the snowfields above the via ferrata. The first section to be addressed is one inclined slab to be traced in adherence to which one follows first aided ledge to the left, a short vertical section and then a traverse to the left short but made more challenging by the slippery wall. The subsequent steps are composed of short stretches of ledge to which a vertical leap follows. Some traits of this type follow one another and it reaches the last long and wide ledge towards the left. One last step with a vertical leap and we are at the end of the Ferrata Tissi in the so-called Pian della Tenda (1h 15 'from the start - 4h total).

To end the climb on our itinerary we reach the Torrani Hut. Before going uphill to the hut we can see behind us the impressive jump where below is the Val Sasse. The hut is located upstream of the Pian della Tenda where there is often a snowfield to be traced which could be more difficult in case of fog. We climb looking for the line of maximum slope staying in the center until it comes out and, shortly after, we meet the descent saddle for the normal route (also aided) at the Civetta. We continue uphill for another few minutes reaching the Torrani hut (2984 m - 1h 30 'from the start - ca 4h 15 total).

Descent:

Our itinerary ends at Torrani hut. At this point you can go up to the Civetta (3220 m) by path (about 45 'from the Torrani hut). The climb is not difficult and you go up the east slope. The descent takes the normal route to the Civetta. From the hut we return to the signposted junction encountered on the way out. The normal route for the Civetta consists in a rapid succession of exposed sections not protected with non-trivial aided sections to be covered in climbing. Attention therefore it must be placed for the descent of this route. For a more precise report on the descent, we invite you to read our report on the Ferrata degli Alleghesi.

From the end of the equipment we find ourselves in front of a scree and then a saddle on path 557. On the left we continue towards the Coldai Hut and the start of the Ferrata Alleghesi. Instead, we will continue straight down the scree following the Pecol / Grava from which we will then descend backwards along the path towards the Casera di Grava (2h 30 'from Rifugio Torrani - 6h 45' without ascent to Civetta - 8h with climb to Civetta ).

Notes:

The Ferrata Tissi extends on the south-east side of the Civetta and due to its position it appears in large sections in the shade. There are three stretches of the road that are often covered with snow even in the late season: before the start of the via ferrata, shortly after the start and finally at the end of the road near the Torrani Hut. It might make sense to have crampons with you to avoid potentially dangerous situations in the event of frozen snow, especially for the pace after the start.

Storia:

La Ferrata Tissi è una delle ferrate storiche delle Dolomiti orientali ed è stata realizzata nel 1938. La via è dedicata alla memoria di Attilio Tissi. Tissi, originario dell'Agordo - è stato alpinista, politico e partigiano italiano morto a 59 durante una discesa in montagna. Tissi fu un forte alpinista del suo tempo che dedicò gran parte della sua carriera ai monti dell'Agordo e del Cadore. Alla sua memoria è intitolato anche il Rifugio al Col Rean.

Opportunities:

As mentioned above, the Ferrata Tissi extends on the Civetta going up on the opposite side from the more famous Ferrata degli Alleghesi. Due to the length of the Alleghesi itinerary, the Ferrata Tissi, if combined with the other itinerary, is preferred in descent despite being technically more demanding. The Civetta area is very interesting from the point of view of the aided routes and offers challenging and interesting via ferrata for enthusiasts. On the nearby Moiazza group there is a long line Ferrata Gianni Costantini while the Vazzoler Hut is a point of arrival for those traveling the difficult Via Ferrata Fiamme Gialle at the Palazza Alta. If you wanted to take a simpler route you can go up to Ferrata Sora El Sass in Forni di Zoldo or go up in the direction of theAverau for the homonymous ferrata or the Via Ferrata Ra Gusela at Nuvolau. Moving towards Agordo, you can reach the starting point of the challenging route ascending to the Agner with the Ferrata Stella Alpina.