Tofane | |
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Tofana di Dentro, Tofana di Mezzo and Tofana di Rozes |
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Elevation | 3,244 m (10,643 ft) (Tofana di Mezzo) |
Location | |
Tofane
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Range | Dolomites |
Climbing | |
First ascent | 29 August 1863 Paul Grohmann, Francesco Lacedelli |
Tofane is a mountain group in the Italian Dolomites, west of Cortina d'Ampezzo, in the province of Belluno, Veneto, northern Italy. Most of the Tofane lies within Parco naturale delle Dolomiti d'Ampezzo, a nature park.
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The highest peaks of the Tofane group are Tofana di Mezzo (3,244 m), Tofana di Dentro (3,238), and Tofana di Rozes (3,225 m). Tofana di Mezzo is the third highest peak in the Dolomites, after Marmolada (3,343 m) and Antelao (3,262 m). All the three highest peaks were first conquered by Paul Grohmann along with local mountain guides, in 1863 (di Mezzo), 1864 (di Rozes) and 1865 (di Dentro).[1][2][3]
The Dolomites were formed during the Cretaceous Period, approximately 60 million years ago, due to the collision of the African and European continents. The Tofane is largely formed from the Upper Triassic rock Dolomia principale. The stratas are perceptibly folded, and the mountains are finally formed by wind, rain, glaciers and rivers.
A cable lift system (Freccia nel Cielo, "Arrow in the sky") goes from Cortina almost to the top of Tofane di Mezzo. There is only a short walk from the top cable car to the summit. Alternatively the via ferratas VF Punta Anna and VF Gianna Aglio can be used to reach Tofane di Mezzo.
Some of the cabins in the Tofane are the Rifugio Angelo Dibona (2.083 m), the Rifugio Giussani (2.580 m), the Rifugio Duca d'Aosta (2.098 m), and the Rifugio Pomedes (2.303 m).
The via ferratas of Tofane are VF Punta Anna and VF Gianna Aglio on Tofana di Mezzo, VF Lamon and VF Formenton on Tofana di Dentro, and VF Giovanni Lipella on Tofana di Rozes, where there also are tunnel systems from World War I.
During the First World War the Tofane was a battlefield for clashes between the Italian and Austrian forces. The front lines went through the mountains. Mount Tofane itself hosted the alpine skiing events at the 1956 Winter Olympics.
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