Wednesday 29th August: Weather 6°C to 15°C at Col Rosset: 5°C at Savoia: sunny morning, snow after lunch
Rifugio Benevelo to Rifugio Savoia DAY 10: 8.8k: 6hrs: 8.30am to 2.30pm: Ascent 700m Descent 400m
Accommodation: Rifugio Savoia at Altitude of 2534m
Hikers leaving Rifugio Benevelo
Clump of Edelweiss
Close up Edelweiss
Views down Val della Gran Vaudala
First morning tea on way Col Rosset
Mountain bikers racing down col
Mad mountain bikers race past
Blue skies on way to Col Rosset
Col Rosset at 3025 Metres
Mist in Val dell Orco
Panorama from Col Rosset
second morning tea at Col Rosset
Peaks of teh Gran Paradiso
A storm brewing
Getting closer
Amongst the Edelweiss
Lago Rosset on desolate plain
Clouds part to reveal Gran Paradiso
And it’s snowing
And the great days keep coming, not even spoilt by a snow storm after lunch. Highlight was reaching Col Rosset at 3025 metres, our fourth 3000 metre col in the past few days. More edelweiss, then a snow storm after lunch, the first time we have used any rain gear in 10 days.
Fred, the French tour guide is up early and gone by 7am. He’s heading back the way we came yesterday to Col Bassac Dere, Rifugio Chalet Epee then Rhemes Notre dame. But we’re awake at 6.30am, so waking early doesn’t bother us, except it’s so cramped and it’s too precarious to use our jetboil for our usual morning cup of tea. Neither of have slept much as the room was cold - not freezing cold, just cold enough to not be cosy in our bunk. We may as well go down to an early breakfast but it’s typical of this basic refuge - the tea/coffee is luke warm, about the same temperature as the beer yesterday, and the bread is stale. Wouldn’t recommend this refuge, which is disappointing because for in some basic refuges, we’ve had cold beer, hot tea/coffee and freshly made bread and cake.
We leave at 8.30am along with most other hikers heading in all directions. It’s a very cold 6°C when we leave, all rugged up, as the track is still in the shade, despite the blue skies above. A short distance up the track, we see edelweiss sitting upright just waiting for Ian’s camera. The views back down Val della Gran Vaudala are stunning as we look for a spot for a real cup of tea. Normally I’ll have 3 or 4 cups of tea/coffee before we leave so I don ’t have to carry so much water through the day, but to day, there was no pre brekkie cuppa, and teh tea/coffee at breakfast wasn’t worth drinking.
There’s a nice spot in the sun on a flat rock where we sit for our first hot cuppa for the day. Four mad mountain bikers come whizzing past at breakneck speed. I suppose they look at us and say two mad hikers carrying a camp stove, tea and coffee. For another hour and a half it’s a really hard slog up the steep track to Col Rosset at 3085 metres, where there’s already a group of English hikers who have saved us a flat rock for our second morning tea. A tour group arrives. We had passed them earlier taking a break on the way up. It’s so lovely in the sun out of the breeze, so we sit and stare for 30 minutes - probably 15 minutes too long as it turns out.
We can see the clouds ahead in the next valley, Val dell Orco, where we’ll be in a few days time. Time to move from our perch on the col down a steep rocky slippery track to the flat plain below. The mist rolls in, and the clouds part just enough for us to see the mountain Gran Paradiso. It’s getting colder as we descend, but there’s a patch of Edelweiss which beckons for another photoshoot.
Descending down to Lago Rosset, it’s cold and the mist is rolling in. There’s no time to look for ibex or chamois, just time enough to stop and grab our ponchos as it’s starts to rain which soon turns to hail/snow - lots of little ice drops rattling on our plastic ponchos. Luckily it only lasts for 15 minutes and the sun comes out again to reveal what we think is Rifugio Savoia, but as we approach the many stone buildings on the hill, and smell the animal smells, we realise it’s not our Rifugio. Then we see it down below overlooking Lago di Novolet. We also see Rifugio Chivasso on the hill side about 1 k away, but hopefully the Savoia is better.
In ten minutes we arrive damp and cold and shown to our room. It’s only 2.30 pm, an early day and Yes! We have a largish room with a basin and hot running water, and despite there being 4 beds, we’re told it’s all ours. Yes! And there’s hot showers up the corridor. Time to have a hot shower and wash all our clothes, hanging them to dry on our shoe string clothes line strung across our room. Then it’s time for lunch - a hot cup of tea from the jet boil parked on the tile floor, with 4 day old fruit and nut loaf, crusty biscuits and butter.
The bar is in the adjoining building where we retreat for a cold draught beer with time to blog and check out our walks for teh next 2 days. Rifugio Savoia is turning out to be pretty good so far. Dinner is at 7pm and is sooooo nice. The Cheesy pasta entre is not heavily sauced and very yummy - even for me who doesn’t like pasta. The main course is one of the best we’ve had in Italy so far - sliced roast something or other, boiled potatoes and the most amazing green beans and chopped tomatoes salad, followed by creme caramel and apricot tart. We don’t finish dinner til 8.30pm then there’s nothing to do as everyone is in bed by 9pm.