Via del Veterano 23 pitches, 5a

My Swiss friend Dieter and I climbed this. Via del Veterano is famous as the longest sport route in Ticnio. Actually I had been wanting to do this for a very long time, but for some reason I could never get down to climbing this and I lost interest. Then when Dieter asked me whether I can join him this weekend I said OK, I am not too keen but I will come for your sake. I am glad I agreed, because it was really a fine climb and I felt proud after climbing this, Thanks Dieter :-)

Well, Dieter had planned everything, so I just had to join him at the appointed hour in the train. We reached Faido ar 5:18 pm on Saturday. We hiked up to Osco in about 1-1.5 hours to reach Hotel Marti. It is a nice hotel with a separate dormitory. A dorm bed costs 50 CHf including excellent halfpension (B/f and dinner). We had dinner, paid the amount, collected packed breakfast/coffee in thermos for the next day and "checked out".

Sunday I woke Dieter up at 4:30, had breakfast and collected all our stuff and set out of Hotel Marti at 5:20 am and hiked to Freggio. We hid our excess baggage at a point where the approach trail and the descent trail intersect. We took about 2 litres of water each and lunch, about 25 expresses, and 2X60 m half ropes and started the climb at 7:00 am. The pitches are:
4a, 2a, 3c, 3c, 5a, 4b, 3b, 4b, 5a, 4b, 5a, 3c, 3a, 5a, 3c, 3c, 4a, 4a, 3c, 3a, 3b, 4b.

The first four pitches, we simul-climbed. Then we mostly did alternate leads. I found it a bit difficult to climb with a heavy pack but that is life :-( Barring that, the climb was very nice. Solid rock, no looseness or moisture, it was very pleasant climbing. Despite that, I can say it is a pretty endurance climb and its length should not be underestimated. The guidebook time is 6-8 hours, and we finished in exactly 7 hours at 2pm. I must say the bolts are fabulously laid out, the route is very well-marked and you can't miss the route. However in the upper half, you notice that the runouts become increasingly longer, which is fine as the last pitches are easier. Also note, there are several exit options in case you want to bail out due to weather or fatigue.

At the end of the 23rd pitch, you walkup another 80m in a T4 or T5 hike and follow the well-marked trail for the descent. Again, the descent trail is very well-marked (without which it is impossible to locate it), and the trickier sections are equipped with via ferrata. We came down, picked up our remaining stuff, and hiked (ran) down all the way to Faido, just in time to catch the 4:40 pm train.

Tips:

1. We carried half ropes at my behest. I now feel a 50 m or 60 m single rope would be ideal (we didn't have these lengths though).
2. We carried about 25 expresses thinking we would simul-climb most of the route. However it is much harder to climb with packs, and didn't feel like simul climbing, so 12 expresses would have been sufficient for belayed climbing.
3. We started early, however (and especially if you have a car or bivouac in Freggio) if possible start even earlier. This is because the later you start, the more you are exposed to sunlight, the more water you need to avoid dehydration, and the heavier your pack, and the longer you will take to climb and ...sorry for boring you, but you got the idea :-)
4. You can find additional info in English on SP and many reports such as this on Hikr