Tre Cime Di Lavaredo Loop

The famous Italy Dolomites are littered with numerous great hikes to showcase them, however, this trail is the cream of the crop. It will not disappoint. You have the option of hiking up to Rifugio Auronzo from Misurina, which is detailed out here. The other option that makes it easier if you're on a time crunch is to drive up to Rifugio Auronzo and park, where I've placed my GPS marker above. There is a toll fee to access this road that, as of June 2017, increased to 30 euros from 25 euros previously stated. It does seem like a lot, but it is worth it to be able to enjoy the hike if you only have a day or two. You also have the option of staying multiple days with camping or staying in the huts. 

For hiking the trail, you'll first have to choose which direction you want to go. Traditionally and the more popular way is to go counterclockwise. Starting at Rifugio Auronzo, you'll take the trail to the right side and go toward Rifugio Lavaredo. This direction lets you have the least amount of elevation gain, about 950 ft total. Our group decided to do the opposite and go clockwise, as we wanted to be able to photograph the sunset from the beautiful lakes with the Tre Cime three points in the background and camp at Rifugio Locatelli for sunrise. The trail is very well marked with the Italy flag symbols, as well as, trail markers pointing you to the next Rifugio. They will all say you are on trail number 101. From Auronzo you will hike about 3.5 miles to Locatelli. You will have a pleasant, flat to downhill hike, till you reach the lakes in front of Tre Cime. There is a cafe next to the lakes that we were told to stop at, but they were closed by the time we got there. From the lakes you'll start hiking toward the uphill climb to Rifugio Locatelli. Here is where it goes up quick, almost 930 ft in the last 1.1 miles. We set up our tents right beside the main building. There are two buildings at this location and a church. The smaller building stays open all year round, but it is basically only a shelter with wooden bunk beds. The bigger building is the main refuge that is only open during the busy season, the end of June and into July. There are options to camp in the caves above the church next to the refuge. Unfortunately, those get taken pretty quick because of their spectacular view of Tre Cime and the refuge below. If you aren't camping, get back on the trail once you've gotten your fill of the views and follow the markers pointing you to Rifugio Lavaredo. The trail stays up high and crosses over right beside Tre Cime. Once you reach the crest of the mountain side, you'll have full view of Rifugio Lavaredo and will be gradually descending until you get to Rifugio Auronzo. Rifugio Locatelli to Lavaredo and then on to Auronzo is a little over 2.7 miles with 882 feet of descending and 606 feet ascending. 

I would plan for at least two days here. It's worth more, but we were crammed for time. There are no trash cans on this trail, so please pack out all trash and practice Leave No Trace. There's also rock climbing spots behind the church, where the caves are at Rifugio Locatelli. There are pitons/anchors already in the mountain sides from previous rock climbers. If you're up for it, try out some climbing for even better views from up high!