Nestled in the heart of the Dolomites, lies the spectacular mountain town of Cortina d’Ampezzo. Known for its sensational beauty, high-mountain charm, and easy access to hundreds of fabulous hiking trails, it is no surprise that we chose Cortina as our last stop on our family hiking trip this past July.

I discovered the lure of Cortina last year when I went on a hiking trip with my Dad in early May just three months after a total hip replacement. Unfortunately, the timing was all wrong. There was still thick, fluffy snow coating the high mountain trails, almost the entire town had shut down after ski season and would not reopen until June, and my physical recovery and stamina from a full-blown surgery made hiking anything longer than three hours impossible. But I went on the trip, and I fell in love with the place, promising I’d come back again with my family.

Fast forward fourteen months later, I was back with a new lease on my athletic life and my desire to explore the high alpine, challenging trails that I could only dream of the year before. Over the week, we did plenty of awe-inspiring hikes with our favorite to date being the glorious hike to Lake Coldai to Rifugio Tissi (near Alleghe) and the stunning loop hike around the Sassolungo near Val di Gardena Selva. Each hike was magical, special, and unique.

We had thought we had gotten all of the long, challenging hikes out of our system until we decided to do the Circuit hike around the Croda da Lago. Rated a moderate-hard hike, this 12.5 km/7.7 mile was a beast of a hike given the field of boulders and endless scree.  Yet the wild, rough, and dramatic scenery was worth every effort and sore knees. If you are an avid, experienced hiker, then this hike is for you.

Getting to the trailhead

The trailhead is located only about a fifteen-minute drive outside of Cortina d’Ampezzo along SP638. There is a small parking lot that fills up fast, so arrive early if possible. The start of the hike is at the Ponte di Rocurto bridge.

The first 45 minutes is going uphill starting at roughly 1700 m (5577 ft) through a beautiful forest. Unfortunately, my daughter was feeling nauseous so we were not sure if we were even going to make the hike. We took many stops along the way and arrived at the lookout in time for a family photo. The views were astounding and it was only going to get better as the hike went on.

A little before reaching the viewpoint, you arrive at the junction, Cason di Forman, where you can either go left (clockwise) or right (counterclockwise). We found a lot of debate about which way you prefer. We opted to go clockwise on path 434 towards the Lago Federa and were glad we did because the hardest part of the hike which involved over an hour of steep descending through large boulders and scree was at the end. Although it was hard on the knees, we all agreed it was better to end with a bang than start with a push, especially since my daughter wasn’t feeling well at the start of the hike.

After the lookout, it is approximately another fifteen minutes until you reach Lago Federa and the picturesque Rifugio Palmieri, a delightful place to stop for lunch or spend the night.

For us, it was too early for lunch however since my daughter still wasn’t feeling well we decided to take a rest and enjoy a cappuccino before continuing. I could have spent the entire day here relaxing and drinking wine, it was so beautiful.

After our rest, it was the long hike up on path 434 below the dramatic Forcella Ambrizzola until you reach a passage between the Croda da Lago and Becco di Mezzodi. Once you go through the cattle gate, you enter a fairytale high-altitude pasture filled with colorful wildflowers.

Once you turn, be sure to take path 436 towards Passo Giau. There you run into a lot of long-distance hikers who are doing week or month-long treks throughout the Alta Via 1.

We forked to the right, continuing up a reach a high-altitude plateau with views that knocked our socks off. It was time for a much-needed rest. Little did we know what awaited ahead. The dreaded boulders and scree descent through some of the wildest, most rugged trail we’d experienced in the Dolomites.

The descent down was brutal and a little crazy as the trail was hard to follow save for the red arrows painted across the boulders. The landscape was wild and raw.

This part of the hike took about an hour and a half and we took our time as the scree was slippery.

We had some funny moments along the way that brought us joy. A couple was hiking up the trail and had just started the hike since they went counterclockwise. The woman did not smile or say a word however her partner asked my daughter what way the hike went and how much farther. We got out our new sign to the rifugio and pointed up. It got a laugh out of him! We also chucked at the guidebook I bought called “Shorter Walks in the Dolomites”. While it is an amazing resource, I would not call this hike a “walk”!

Photos left to write: Arrow pointing up (the only trail marker), Sophia showing the way, and my beloved trekking guide, “Shorter Walks in the Dolomites” which I bought after my hip surgery thinking it would list some easy walks while I was recovering. The joke was on me! But a great resource which we used a lot throughout our trip. 

Finally, after an hour of trudging down the boulder and scree field, we saw greenery! The end wasn’t much further and we had done the hike in a little over five hours. Not bad.

Despite the rough start, we made it. It was rough, rugged, and wild but an adventure to remember. And I am so grateful that I got to do this one with three of my favorite people. I am so thankful I got my children to love hiking and the outdoors as much as I do. What a gift.

If you go:

Here are the trail details and description on AllTrails for the Forcella Ambrizzola via Lago Federa hike. As I mentioned above, we opted to go clockwise.