Trip to the Mandrone refuge - Città di Trento

The route that leads us to the Rifugio Mandrone in Val di Genova is not too difficult, but save up your energy because it takes a whole day. You might already know Val Genova for the famous Nardis Waterfalls, so you can imagine how much nature you will be able to observe while walking up to the Rifugio Mandrone.

From Val di Genova to Rifugio Bedole

The Natural Park shuttle takes us to the Bedole plain, where you take the dirt road towards the Bedole refuge. Once reached, you can easily find the start of trail 212, which leads directly to our destination.
The trail immediately climbs up the side of the mountain and, with a beautiful path through the trees, goes up steeply to quickly gain the altitude difference of about 600 meters that leads to the Mandrone refuge. As you emerge from the vegetation, the trail tends to level out and the terrain takes on a more distinct "Adamello" characteristic. A final steep stretch finally leads to the refuge.

Discovering the Adamello glaciers

Upon arrival, you will be greeted by a wonderful panorama towards the "Vedretta del Mandrone", from which the Adamello glacier (located just beyond the glacier tongue) gives birth to one of the three branches of the Sarca river, a tributary of Lake Garda.
Near the Rifugio Mandrone, inside a decommissioned structure, a glaciological study center dedicated to Julius Payer (an eminent scholar of the late 19th century) has been set up, where extensive information and documentation on the life of the Dolomites' glaciers, their changes, and their importance for the Alpine ecosystem are collected.
Also around the refuge, there are numerous glacial lakes, abundantly fed by the glacier above, especially in spring and summer, when the warm climate favors the melting of the ice.

The Rifugio Mandrone and its history

The scene of important military clashes during the First World War, a small Austro-Hungarian cemetery is located near the refuge, and numerous military installations still survive in the surroundings: walkways, lookout posts, and trenches.
During the Great War, the Rifugio Mandrone (existing since 1878 and called Lepzigerhuette at the time) became an important Austro-Hungarian logistical base, until May 1916 when it was definitively conquered by the Italian Alpini who descended there from the Adamello glacier.

Route characteristics:

Tiring but not difficult itinerary.
Route that develops on well-marked trails

Start and end of the route:

The described itinerary starts and ends at the Bedole refuge (at the end of Val Genova)

Technical data:

• Total vertical drop (ascent+descent) of about 1,200 meters
• Duration of the route about 6 hours.
• Trail 212

Means of transport:

Shuttle or car from Madonna di Campiglio to Val Genova (with the limits imposed by the traffic regulations for cars in Val Genova).

Necessary equipment:

Trekking boots, possibly high on the ankle, appropriate "layered" clothing for any cold drafts or excessive heat, rain cape, sun hat, trekking poles.
A water bottle and some chocolate are useful to quench your thirst and restore energy!

Refreshment points and refuges:

Rifugio Bedole, Rifugio Mandrone – Città di Trento.