Dawn over Lagazuoi

Dawn on the summit of Piccolo Lagazuoi (2,778 m) on this autumn day in October is breathtaking. Against the glowing strip of light on the horizon and the pastel-coloured cirrus clouds, the mountain groups of the Ampezzo Dolomites rise dark and massive; behind me the Tofane and to the south Averau and Nuvolau, 5 Torri, Ra Gusela. Behind them follows the panorama with Hexenstein, Settsass, Antelao, Monte Pelmo, Monte Civetta and many more melodious peaks.

Between the summer and winter seasons, the Lagazuoi Hut is closed. In summer, it is a base on the Dolomites High Route No. 1 between Lake Braies and Belluno. In winter, the spectacular 8.5-kilometre-long Armentarola run starts here. The Lagazuoi cable car from the Falzarego Pass, 600 metres below the summit, runs all year round, but its first trip isn’t until much later at 9 am. So I spent the night in the roof tent at the top of the pass, not without having enjoyed a glowing sunset beforehand.

The alarm went off at 3 am. Out of the cosy, warm sleeping bag and quickly dressed. I soon warm up on the easy ascent. The light of the half-moon illuminates the landscape and the path along the ski slope brightly enough that I don’t need a headlamp. The route goes through a cirque to the Travenanzes saddle, then crossing and in zig-zags past the cable car mountain station and to the mountain hut. I reach the summit well before dawn and can explore suitable locations for photos. On the Averau, I saw moving lights; someone else was on their way to the summit for the sunrise there too. Directly below me, cold air mist – which was pushing in from the north through the entire Val Badia (Alta Badia) and Puster Valley – flowed down over the Valparola Pass in front of the Settsass. Behind it, the Sella Massif and the Marmolada glowed; to the north-west, the Puez-Geisler Group and the main chain of the Alps were visible. I even thought I could recognise the Cup House, which I visited a few years ago.

The events of recent history that I passed on the way are sad. Lagazuoi, like the entire region, is still scarred by the conflicts of the First World War. A section of the front of the mountain war between Austria-Hungary and Italy ran through here. On the summit, in the rock faces and ledges, the positions, connecting tunnels and paths, which were carved and laid into the rocks by both sides, can be visited and partially walked.

To the south, the Passo di Giau peeks out between the rocks of Nuvolau and Averau. At 2,236 m, it is slightly higher than the Falzarego (2,105 m) and offers a 360-degree panorama of the Dolomites from a viewing peak. That is my destination for the coming night. I didn’t expect to be photographing alone there, as I was today.

When I then packed up my gear and went back to the hut and the cable car station, the cable car staff were just coming up on the first trip. They began preparing the café and other rooms for the guests. So I sat on the terrace in the sun for a while to enjoy the panorama along with a strong cappuccino before the descent.