Cima Tosa
3,136 m
Italy
Also known as Чима ТосаAlso known as
Чима Тоса
- Elevation
- 3,136 m
- Prominence
- 589 m
- Difficulty
- 5/10
- Easy alpine
- Best Season
- Jul–Aug
- Routes
- 1
WorksReported 12 May 2026
Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti was closed for the whole 2025 season for renovation (new roof, solar panels, 4–6 bed rooms) and reopened on 20 June 2026 with 120 beds. A new water cistern is still planned pending geological assessment after rockfalls on Cima Falkner.
ladige.it
Routes
1Sources differ: II–III (Camptocamp (3a))
The line of the 1865 first ascent: from Bocca di Brenta and Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti along the Sentiero Brentari into the cirque of the Vedretta della Tosa, up a polished 25 m chimney (II+), then easy rock steps, scree and old snow to the broad summit dome. About 650 m of ascent from the hut; usually two days from Madonna di Campiglio.
Elevation Profile
approximate line- Distance
- 11.4 km
- one way
- Ascent
- +1,878 m
- −254 m lost on the way up
- High Point
- 3,152 m
- Time Up
- 8h 11m
- DIN 33466
- Time Down
- 6h 01m
- DIN 33466 · same way back
From the Vallesinella car park (1,513 m) above Madonna di Campiglio take path 317 to Rifugio Casinei (45 minutes) and the Sentiero Bogani (318) to Rifugio Brentei (about 2¼ hours). Path 318 continues up the Val Brenta Alta beneath the Crozzon di Brenta, with some cables and a final snowfield, to the Bocca di Brenta (2,552 m, about 3¾ hours), from where a ledge drops in 10 minutes to Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti (2,491 m). From Molveno the hut is reached via the Val delle Seghe and Rifugio Selvata in about 4½ hours. Most parties sleep here. From the hut follow the Sentiero attrezzato Livio Brentari (358) towards Rifugio Agostini, round the Brenta Bassa and below the Cima Margherita, across the cirque of the lower Vedretta della Tosa and up into the upper one. At about 2,800 m, where the path bends sharply left towards the Sella della Tosa, a red star and inscription mark the start. Grade I rock steps lead to the lowest point of the wall, about 1 hour from the hut. Rope up for the 25 m wall: two parallel chimneys, often wet; the left is easier, with short steps of II and II+ on solid but very polished rock, bolts at the base and above. The yellow-black wall to the right (III+/IV-) avoids the chimney. Above, follow cairns over easy steps (I) trending left, a short wall of II-, then long diagonal gravel ledges and patches of snow to the summit slope (snow early in the season, scree later) and across the wide summit dome, past the top of the Canalone Neri, to the highest point with its statue of the Madonna: 2½–3 hours from the hut. In fog the featureless summit plateau makes navigation hard. Descend the same way with one or two abseils of 20–25 m from the bolts above the chimney; allow 2–3 hours back to the hut. Start around 05:00 to avoid queues at the chimney.
Start
Vallesinella1,515 m
- Buses from Trento and Pinzolo to Madonna di Campiglio; in summer a shuttle bus has served Vallesinella (check the current Adamello Brenta Park mobility scheme).
- Parking at the trailhead
Stages
| Day | Stage | km | m ascent | m descent | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vallesinella → Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti | 8.4 | 1,183 | 213 | 5h 25m |
| 2 | Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti → Cima Tosa | 2.9 | 695 | 41 | 2h 46m |
Waypoints
- Parking: Vallesinella1,515 m
- Hut: Rifugio Casinei1,829 m
- Hut: Rifugio Brentei2,171 m
- Col: Bocca di Brenta2,558 m
- Hut: Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti2,484 m
- Summit: Cima Tosa3,136 m
Key Passages
- Cables and snowfield below Bocca di Brenta
- Sentiero Brentari across the Vedretta della Tosa
- Camino della Tosa (25 m, II+)
- Summit dome and snow slope
Equipment
0/8 packedDownloads
Route confidence 80%Overview
The broad, once ice-capped dome at the heart of the Brenta Dolomites, long counted as their highest summit. The normal route from Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti is a short alpine climb with one polished II+ chimney and an abseil descent.
Cima Tosa rises in the centre of the Brenta Dolomites in western Trentino, between Val Rendena and Madonna di Campiglio to the west and Molveno to the east, with the Crozzon di Brenta as its northern buttress. Its name means 'shaven head' in local dialect, after the snow cap that covered the summit dome. As that cap has melted the measured height has dropped: a 2015 survey for the Trentino geocartographic portal gave 3,136 m, against the traditional 3,173 m on IGM maps and in guidebooks, which leaves it second in the group to Cima Brenta.
The normal route follows the line of the first ascent from the south-east. After a long hut approach it involves about an hour of glacier-cirque walking on the Sentiero Brentari, a 25 m chimney of II+ on polished rock, then easy cairned steps and snow or scree to the summit plateau, with abseils on the way down. It is a classic first Dolomite summit for those with basic rope skills.
The 800 m north face holds the Canalone Neri, a couloir once called the classic ice climb of the Dolomites and an extreme-skiing test piece; it is now often out of condition. From the top the view takes in Lake Garda, the Adamello and Presanella and the central Brenta spires. The area lies in the Adamello Brenta Nature Park and the Brenta Dolomites component of the Dolomites UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Climbing Notes
Suitable for fit hillwalkers with via ferrata experience who can climb II+ on polished rock, belay and abseil, or for anyone with a local guide. Plan two days: Vallesinella to Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti (about 4 hours, 1,000 m) on day one; summit and descent on day two, with an early start to avoid queues at the chimney. Some parties return the same day to Vallesinella, a 6–7 hour descent day in total.
Carry a helmet, harness, rope for the abseils and a ferrata set for the cabled approach sections. Snow lingers on the Vedretta della Tosa, the summit slope and below Bocca di Brenta into July, when crampons and an axe are often needed; later in summer the upper slopes turn to loose scree. In fog the broad summit plateau is disorienting, so note the line on the way up. Afternoon thunderstorms are common.
Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti reopened on 20 June 2026 after a year-long renovation; book ahead, as it is one of the busiest huts in the Brenta and on the Bocchette ferrata circuit.
History
The first ascent was made in July 1865 by the Primiero botanist Giuseppe Loss and companions from San Lorenzo in Banale via the Val d'Ambiez and the south-east side, the line of today's normal route; John Ball made one of the next ascents and publicised it in the Alpine Journal. Adolf Migotti soloed the south face route that bears his name on 9 August 1886. Tita Piaz climbed the north-east face in 1911 and Virgilio Neri soloed the north couloir, now named after him, in 1929; Heini Holzer and A. Tscholl skied it in 1970. The novelist Antonio Fogazzaro climbed the peak in 1890 and wrote the poem 'Il Pianto della Tosa'.
Season
Best Jul–Aug- January: Not advisable
- February: Not advisable
- March: Not advisable
- April: Not advisable
- May: Not advisable
- June: Possible
- July: Best (best window)
- August: Best (best window)
- September: Good
- October: Not advisable
- November: Not advisable
- December: Not advisable
- Jan
- Winter; huts closed except winter rooms
- Feb
- Winter; ski mountaineering only for experienced parties
- Mar
- Winter conditions; avalanche risk on approaches
- Apr
- Spring snow; ski mountaineering
- May
- Heavy snow on the approaches; huts closed
- Jun
- Huts open around 20 June; snow on the Vedretta della Tosa and summit slope, crampons needed
- Jul
- Main season; queues at the chimney; afternoon storms
- Aug
- Main season; summit slope mostly scree
- Sep
- Huts close around 20 September; quieter
- Oct
- Huts closed (winter rooms only); early snow and ice in the chimney
- Nov
- Winter conditions
- Dec
- Winter conditions
Access & Permits
- Hut Booking
- Rifugio Tosa e Pedrotti (SAT): book with the hut (+39 0461 948115, manager +39 329 2195167) or via rifugiotosapedrotti.it. Summer weekends fill early because the hut is also a stage of the Bocchette ferrata circuit.
- Fees
- Toll road from Madonna di Campiglio to Vallesinella
- Hut overnight fees, with reductions for SAT/CAI and reciprocal club members
- Rules
- Adamello Brenta Nature Park rules apply (stay on paths, no camping outside designated areas)
- Getting There
Madonna di Campiglio; Molveno on the east side
Verona (VRN); Bergamo (BGY) and Innsbruck (INN) are alternatives
- By car or bus to Madonna di Campiglio, then the toll road to the Vallesinella car park (1,513 m); a seasonal shuttle has replaced private cars at times
- From Molveno: walk via the Val delle Seghe and Rifugio Selvata to the hut (about 4½ hours)
- Trento is the nearest main railway station; buses run to Madonna di Campiglio and Molveno
Hazards
- Rockfall
- Exposure
- Weather
- Glacier
Huts & Shelters
3- 1,825 m
Rifugio CasineiHutStaffed
Summer
- 2,182 m
- 2,491 m
Rifugio Tosa e PedrottiHutStaffedBooking required
120 beds · About 20 June to 20 September (reopened 20 June 2026 after renovation); winter room