Ferrata Brigata Alpina Tridentina

Length is what defines this route. The cable is well set, the moves are straightforward, and hours of the day are spent on rock high in the Sella group with the valley open below. But it keeps going. One party carrying 15 kg packs reached the halfway point with three hours still ahead of them and finished in six; they came off saying it is the wrong choice for anyone with a full rucksack and no climbing behind them. Someone else did it as their first via ferrata and came away hooked. Fitness and the weight on your back decide which of those two days you get. The finish is a refuge, and from there the walk down to the car is long and steep.

• Not a first via ferrata. With no climbing experience and a full rucksack it becomes a very hard day; a guide or prior ferrata mileage helps.
• Travel light. One party carried 15 kg and called it the hardest thing they had done — the weight tells over the length of the route.
• Helmet and a full ferrata set. Loose rock is a real hazard here, and worst on the descent.
• Toilets and water. Both are free and sit by the car park at the start; carry what you need for the climb itself.

Almost everyone drives. The car park is a gravel one beside the road, and from it a walk of a few hundred metres leads to the foot of the rock, past information boards set close to the start. A bus stop carries the name of the same car park, so the route can be reached without a car. The day ends the same way it began: down from the refuge and back to the car park, and that stretch is long and steep.

Better: a full day set aside, and an early start.

Avoid: an afternoon departure, and any plan that has you descending on empty legs.

The climb runs for hours and the steep drop back from the refuge comes at the end of it. One party that set off at 13:00 found the route quiet, but spent the whole afternoon and evening on the cable.