Sass Rigais (east-west traverse)

Being located within 20 minutes of the Col Raiser cable car, the large, well-equipped Regensburger Hütte is quite a contrast to the much more rustic Swiss SAC huts that I'm used to. Still, spending the night here is an excellent way to be on the popular Sass Rigais route long before the crowds arrive by gondola. As a bonus, the mountains of the Geisler and Stevia groups show themselves in a stunning light around sunset and sunrise.

We decide to do the Sass Rigais traverse from east to west. The eastern approach goes through the Val dla Salieries to the saddle between Sass Rigais and Furchetta. We put on our via ferrata-set in the saddle. The east ridge ascent is marked with red paint and stays mostly a little south of the ridge itself. It consists of a mix of via ferrata (K3) and also several longer unprotected scrambles (T4 / I). We reach the Sass Rigais summit at 10:30. Thanks to our early start, we have the spectacular views all to ourselves for over half an hour.

Descending along the via ferrata on the other side (south-west face), we now meet the crowds coming up from this side. This route is a little easier than the east ridge. It is also more continuously secured with fixed cables. At an altitude of ca. 2780m the path splits in two. The easier route descends further down into the south-west face. We pick the more challenging route that stays higher up and heads to the Mittagsscharte. The beautiful traversing path is interrupted by a few short but relatively challenging sections of via ferrata (K3+) and a few easy scrambles. After the last fixed cables, the descent into the Mittagsscharte over steep scree is somewhat unconfortable (T4). The path from the Mittagsscharte through a wide scree-gully back down towards the Regensburger Hütte is generally quick and easy, except in a few spots where it is damaged or heavily eroded.