Cima Viola
3,374 m
Italy
- Elevation
- 3,374 m
- Prominence
- 1,073 m
- Difficulty
- 5/10
- Easy alpine
- Best Season
- Jun
- Routes
- 1
Routes
1Approximate line — not for navigation
An automated check found that parts of this line could not be matched to mapped trails, so it may stray far from the real route. Use it for planning only, with a map and a guidebook.
Why? 6 check notes
- danger scan: Capanna Dosdè → Cima Viola: straight line 1184 m (limit 200 m)
- danger scan: Capanna Dosdè → Cima Viola: straight line 1184 m above the last hut/bivouac
- danger scan: Capanna Dosdè → Cima Viola: sustained 53° > 40° on a straight line
- last routed vertex 1184 m from the summit (closed by straight)
- Capanna Dosdè → Cima Viola: straight (snap_failed; DEM rejected: DEM path 2818 m > 1.8× straight 1184 m + slack, 1.2 km)
- unresolved waypoints: West ridge gully, Val Cantone di Dosdè (OSM match off-route)
Sources differ: F (VieNormali.it (early season with good snow cover)) · EE-A-I+-PD (VieNormali.it)
The normal route from Val Viola: an easy valley walk past Alpe Dosdè and up Val Cantone di Dosdè to the Capanna Dosdè bivouac on Passo Dosdè (2,824 m), then boulders, a hidden snow gully through the west ridge, a 40–45° glacier slope and easy summit rocks. About 1,275 m of ascent, 5 h 15 min up; best in early summer while snow covers the gullies and glacier.
Elevation Profile
approximate line- Distance
- ≈ 9.7 km
- one way
- Ascent
- ≈ +1,374 m
- −68 m lost on the way up
- High Point
- 3,374 m
- Time Up
- ≈ 5h 56m
- DIN 33466
- Time Down
- ≈ 4h 11m
- DIN 33466 · same way back
From the Arnoga hairpin on the Bormio–Livigno road, the Val Viola road (path 290) leads about 5 km to the P4 car park before the Baite Altumeira (about 2,100 m); driving it requires a paid ticket and is subject to available spaces, and a shuttle runs in July and August. Just beyond Altumeira fork left and descend to Alpe Dosdè (2,129 m) by Rifugio Federico in Dosdè (2,133 m). Follow the flat track south, climb the slope on the right into Val Cantone di Dosdè and follow the valley floor, then bear left over alluvial ground below the eastern slopes of Cima di Saoseo and cross scree, small gullies and old snow to Passo Dosdè and the Capanna Dosdè bivouac (2,824 m). From the pass head east across a broad boulder field to the basin between the west and south-west ridges and climb the only accessible slope, steep fine debris heading north. Traverse left to one of two narrow rocky gullies through the west ridge, snow-filled until late in the season (a large cairn marks the top); crampons are needed. At the exit climb the rocks on the right (easy steps of I–II) or follow the ridge left, then steep scree and snow lead to the glacier. Climb its right side, where snow lasts longest, at up to 40–45° to the notch at the base of the summit's west ridge, and finish over the summit rocks, keeping left of the crest, to the cross. VieNormali gives 5 h 15 min up and 9 h 30 min in total; descend the same way. Conditions decide the difficulty: early in the season continuous snow makes it close to F, but later the glacier turns to bare ice and the gullies to loose rock and old snow, and the route becomes a serious PD. Crevasses lie further east, above the north face.
Start
Altumeira car park (P4)2,068 m
- Val Viola shuttle from Arnoga in July and August; a bus stop at Arnoga on the Bormio–Livigno road was not verified
- Parking at the trailhead
Stages
| Day | Stage | km | m ascent | m descent | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Altumeira car park (P4) → Cima Viola | 9.7 | 1,374 | 68 | 5h 56m |
Waypoints
- Parking: Altumeira car park (P4)2,068 m
- Feature: Alpe Dosdè2,134 m
- Hut: Rifugio Federico in Dosdè2,134 m
- Bivouac: Capanna Dosdè2,820 m
- Summit: Cima Viola3,374 m
Key Passages
- Boulder field east of Passo Dosdè
- Hidden snow gully through the west ridge
- 40–45° glacier slope
- Summit rocks
Equipment
0/6 packedDownloads
Route confidence 75%Overview
A 3,374 m rock-and-ice peak between Val Viola and Val Grosina in the Alta Valtellina, highest of the Cime di Lago Spalmo. The normal route from Passo Dosdè is short but steep: a hidden snow gully, a 40–45° glacier slope and easy summit rocks, best done in early summer.
Cima Viola is the highest of the Cime di Lago Spalmo and, after Cima de' Piazzi, the second-highest summit between the Bernina and the Ortles–Cevedale groups. It rises above three valleys: Val Viola and the Dosdè basin to the north, Val Grosina to the south and the Val Cantone di Dosdè to the west. Its south face is a vertical wall of more than 500 m, and the north side once held a 350 m icy chute linking the Dosdè glacier plateau to the valley tongue below, a well-known ice climb until the early 1990s; today only a thin ice plate and heavy moraine remain.
The normal route starts from the Val Viola car park at Altumeira, passes Rifugio Federico in Dosdè and climbs Val Cantone di Dosdè to the Capanna Dosdè bivouac on Passo Dosdè (2,824 m). From there a short but varied climb crosses the west ridge by a narrow gully and finishes up a steep glacier slope and the summit rocks. In early summer, with continuous snow, it is close to F; later the glacier is bare ice and the route becomes a proper PD. In spring it is a demanding ski-mountaineering objective.
Climbing Notes
Allow 5–5.5 hours up and about 9.5 hours for the round trip from the Altumeira car park (about 1,275 m of ascent), or split the day with a night at Rifugio Federico in Dosdè or the Capanna Dosdè bivouac on the pass. Crampons and an ice axe are needed for the gully and the glacier; carry a rope for the steep glacier step, especially once it is bare ice. Basic glacier and crampon skills are essential; the summit rocks are easy (I+) when dry.
The best time is June to early July, when snow still fills the gullies and covers the glacier; by late summer the glacier is often bare ice and the gullies loose. The summer approach from the south via Eita and Val d'Avedo (Val Grosina) is longer. Driving up Val Viola needs a paid ticket; in July and August a shuttle runs from Arnoga.
History
The first ascent was made on 27 September 1875 by Bartolomeo Sassella, alone.
Season
Best Jun- January: Not advisable
- February: Not advisable
- March: Possible
- April: Possible
- May: Possible
- June: Best (best window)
- July: Good
- August: Possible
- September: Possible
- October: Not advisable
- November: Not advisable
- December: Not advisable
- Jan
- Winter; Val Viola road closed by snow
- Feb
- Winter; ski-mountaineering only
- Mar
- Ski-mountaineering for experienced parties (steep, exposed summit slopes)
- Apr
- Spring ski-mountaineering
- May
- Spring snow; avalanche risk on the approach
- Jun
- Best: snow fills the gullies and covers the glacier; Rifugio Federico opens around 20 June
- Jul
- Good early in the month; glacier becomes icy later
- Aug
- Glacier often bare ice; loose gullies
- Sep
- Bare ice; Rifugio Federico closes around 20 September
- Oct
- Early snow and ice; hut closed
- Nov
- Winter conditions
- Dec
- Winter conditions
Access & Permits
- Permits
- Val Viola road ticketRequired
Driving from Arnoga to the Altumeira car park (P4) requires a paid ticket from the machine at the valley entrance; in summer access depends on available spaces. The road is classed as an agro-silvo-pastoral route with specific municipal rules.
valdidentroturismo.it
- Hut Booking
- Rifugio Federico in Dosdè is staffed from about 20 June to 20 September (30 places; 10-place winter room); phone +39 340 4680054. The Capanna Dosdè bivouac (CAI Bormio, 12 places) on the pass is always open and unstaffed.
- Fees
- Val Viola road ticket (price not published on the tourism page)
- Overnight fees at Rifugio Federico in Dosdè
- Rules
- The Val Viola road is closed in winter because of snow
- Getting There
Bormio (Valdidentro, Arnoga)
Milan Bergamo (BGY)
- By car from Bormio on the Livigno road to the Arnoga hairpin, then the Val Viola road to the P4 car park at Altumeira (paid ticket)
- Shuttle bus up Val Viola from Arnoga in July and August
- South side: by car up Val Grosina to Eita (paid ticket at Fusino according to Camptocamp)
Hazards
- Glacier
- Crevasses
- Rockfall
- Avalanche
- Weather
Huts & Shelters
2- 2,133 m
Rifugio Federico in DosdèHutStaffed
30 beds · About 20 June – 20 September; winter room with 10 places
- 2,824 m