Mountains of my Mind
I spent my childhood summers and many winter holidays spectating this mountain ridge from the western shore of Lake Garda. It formed the literal backdrop to our daily comings and goings for as long as I can remember. My grandmother never set foot in the mountains on either side of the lake, but she viewed them from her lakeside village, where she lived for close to a century. Her lifetime spanned the building of the Gardesana road, the arrival of electricity, sanitation (before this, a man’s job would be to periodically come and take away the mounds of human waste), healthcare, education, and eventually tourism. Monte Baldo was a constant and reliable feature in otherwise turbulent times. She rejoiced in the varying textures of the lake surface or the effect of light and atmosphere on the changing mood of the mountains. A summer storm would transform a distant two dimensional haze into a ridge line so near and crisp you tricked yourself into making out individual trees, or spot cars as they raced along the Gardesana at shore level.
The mountains on the western side of the lake are spectacular in their own way. I learnt to respect and navigate mountain terrain by exploring these with my father. Dreams of traversing the Monte Baldo ridge would form in my mind.
Fast-forward 30 years to a perfect late autumn day, where I completed the Monte Baldo traverse for the first time. I congratulate Michael Geisler for uploading this route to FKT as it motivated me to finally do it. I tried it one year ago in August 2025 but bailed at the Cima delle Pozette after getting hydration wrong and overheating.
Knowing that the Rifugi would have just closed for the winter, I decided on an unsupported solo effort, although I admit that the blistering self-supported time set by Philipp Ausserhofer last year also played its part in this decision (Chapeau!).
I set off from Piazza Goethe in Torbole shortly before 7am on 27th October 2026 with half a litre of water, 3 x 90g gels and five empty 500ml flasks, of which three were pre-filled with 125g carbs + electrolytes. I filled up all 6 flasks at the Acqua d’Oro water source at the Capanna Caduti del Monte Baldo, totalling 3 litres. This kept me going until one of the villages on the outskirts of Garda at around 45k, where I filled up half a flask at a public water fountain to see me through to the end. Conditions on the day (2-10C at 2000m elevation, 10hr sunlight) meant this strategy worked out pretty well, but on a warmer autumn (let alone hot summer) day, it would have probably failed badly. Other kit: La Sportiva Prodigio Pro running shoes, Leki poles (Neo Trail Pro), Coros Apex Pro watch, AirTag, waterproof shell and trousers, spare merino wool top, multiple snoods, waterproof gloves, warm hat, basic first aid kit with whistle, survival bag, survival blanket.
The route up to Cima Altissimo was known to me from last year and went smoothly. The ground was frozen solid on the western side of the final approach. Snow that fell a few days ago had partly melted and refrozen, adding a layer of excitement to some of the more exposed sections of the ridge later on in the day. Cresting Altissimo, I felt fresh and looked forward to the work ahead. I took the descent to the Bocca di Navene and the climb up to Colma di Malcesine pretty conservatively. After passing the Monte Baldo cable car terminus, the official footpath deteriorates, and I reached Cima delle Pozette at almost exactly 4hrs elapsed. I have recced the next section to Valdritta before, and it is the sketchiest part of the whole route. Some might call it technical, I would call it rough. I was apprehensive that it would continue in this vein all the way to Passo del Camino. I needn’t have worried. As soon as I passed the Valdritta turn, the path widened and flattened and become instantly runnable practically all the way to the finish.
The final 10k on tarmacked road were an absolute slog. I agree with the route designer’s decision to follow the ridge line as closely as possible to its conclusion, but an alternative could be to continue on to Baito Cola Lunga instead of descending left into La Fabbrica. One could then skirt to the west of Rubiana before descending between Boi and Pesina to join the original route. Next time perhaps!
As seems to be tradition, I took the 484 bus back to Torbole, basking in the late autumn sun together with the school children and late-season tourists.