Hiking the Belluno Dolomites

The Parco Nazionale delle Dolomiti Bellunesi (The National Park of the Belluno Dolomites) has numerous hiking trails crisscrossing the two 2000 meter high mountains that rise up between Belluno and Feltre. Hiking Belluno offers nature lovers beautiful panoramas, particularly on the stretch of the Dolomites Alta Via 13 marked as trail 13 between Rifguio La Casera and Rifugio Col Visentin, the highest point in this stretch of the mountains.

The trail is great for hikers of any level. It starts as a rocky semi-paved forest road from the parking lot of the Rifugio La Casera at 1400 meters on Alpe del Nevegal. The trail has an immediate 8% gradient, but within minutes we were rewarded with beautiful views of the turquoise and emerald waters of Lake Santa Croce.

The well marked trail quickly makes its way through the forest and continues up a grassy ridge with views of the lake, the Piave River, and the Alps to the right. To the left, the houses of Belluno dot the valley and the Dolomiti Bellunesi rising up behind. There are plenty of grassy plains spotted with colorful mountain wildflowers perfect for a picnic and we saw plenty of families doing just that.

Rifugio Bristot

If you don’t want to pack a lunch up, you could easily hike up to Rifugio Bristot. It was opened in 1950 and got its name from Lieutenant Angelo degli Alpini Bristot. The rifugio serves pasta and local dishes and the picnic tables outside have a stellar view over Valbelluna, the Cadore and some of the most beautiful peaks of the Dolomites. Since the rifugio is served by the ski lifts, it is open and accessible all year round.

We continued on the trail toward Rifugio Visentin 100 meters higher at 1765 meters. There are two ways up: you can take a dirt forest service road or you can hike the mostly grassy ridge up. We took the ridge, which though steeper is a more direct route and much easier under the feet than a rocky road. We were again afforded beautiful views, even with hiking through some of the clouds that were beginning to roll in.

If hiking this trail in August, you might even want to bring a container. The trail is covered with ground blueberry bushes and we were more than happy to join in with hikers collecting up blueberries. We didn’t have a container since we weren’t expecting this wonderful treat, but we picked handful and ate them right then and there. My hands are still stained purple, but those were some delicious blueberries!

The trail descends down off the ridge and meets up with the forest road. You again have a choice of climbing the rest of the way to Rifugio Visentin on the road or on a steep climb up a rocky hill. Tim never wants to take the easy way and I dragged myself up what I swear was the full 100 meters of elevation gain in just 50 meters of trail. But with the rifugio in sight and the promise of a hot meal and wine, I never hiked so quickly.

Rifugio Visentin

Tagliatelle with mushrooms and mountain herbs and apple strudel

Refugio Vistentin is at 1765 meters and is positioned at the end of the Dolomites Alta Via 1, a long distance hike through the mountains for 90 some miles that Tim did last summer, and as part of the Alta Via 3. It’s also part of the famous Munich to Venice long distance hike and memorabilia decorate the walls. The rifugio is at the highest point in this stretch of the mountains, hence the radio and cellular towers that also top the hill. But pay no matter to the towers because the panoramas are breathtaking. You can see all the way to the sea, the Venice lagoon, and the Dolomites on a clear day from up top. The rifugio is only open May through September and is known for its simple dishes like homemade pasta noodles with fresh mushrooms and mountains herbs. You can also sleep here on request in one of the two dorms (they have 12 beds each with two bathrooms).

We did take the forest service road back down, which creates a loop back to Rifugio Bristot. Even on the road, the views are stunning. The hike from Rifugio La Casera to Rifugio Visentin round trip is 7 miles with 350 meters elevation gain and is suitable for all levels of hikers.

Know Before You Go