Getting up early to stand on a mountain peak for sunrise is always worthwhile – especially in the Dolomites. When the rugged rock faces are bathed in the soft morning light and the sky turns pink-orange, you can’t help but be amazed. We mastered the popular hike up the Peitlerkofel near the holiday resort Kronplatz at sunrise and would definitely like to recommend this tour to you in this article.
Admittedly, the hike with an ensured path to the Peitlerkofel summit is not a walk and, with 1,000 metres of altitude difference, is not necessarily predestined for a sunrise hike. After all, it is a moderately difficult mountain tour that definitely requires surefootedness. Our previous sunrise tours were rather shorter and also technically easier because with a headlamp you naturally have to watch where you step.
René, the Experience Concierge at the Falkensteiner Hotel Kronplatz, however, recommended the hike up the Peitlerkofel at sunrise. He himself has been to the summit countless times with guests. When he showed us pictures of this tour, we were convinced – “Okay, let’s set the alarm tomorrow at 2am, let’s do it!”. We hope you are thinking the same thing about the pictures in this article right now.
We went to bed a little earlier that night so we could at least get a few hours of sleep. The alarm clock rang at 2am and we left the underground car park at 2:15am. It takes about 40 minutes to drive from the hotel to the starting point of the hike. After setting off at 3 a.m. and a 2.5-hour climb, we were at the summit at 5.30 a.m. on the dot for sunrise (as of the end of June) and couldn’t stop being amazed.
TOUR DATA
Distance: 11,8km Walking time ascent: 2:30h Walking time descent: 2:00h Metres in altitude: approx. 1,000hm Technique: 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴⚪ Physical condition: 🔴🔴⚪⚪⚪ Landscape: 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 Starting point: Würzjoch/Börz hikers’ car park (open in Google Maps). The starting point of the hike is the hikers’ car park at Würzjoch, for which a fee is charged. At 3 a.m. there was still no one there, but from 7 a.m. the parking attendant collects €5. The first hiking sign is quickly found with the headlamp. In the beginning, you follow a wide forest road (path 8A) for about 20 minutes to the Munt de Fornella hut. In the dark, you can only guess at the hut and the brilliant view of the mighty north faces of the Peitlerkofel, but on the descent, you are all the more amazed that you were just standing up there. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
The trail continues along an initially narrow, partly sloping hiking path and then a steep saddle that leads halfway around the Peitlerkofel. Here you definitely work up a good sweat, even if the thermometer only shows a few degrees. At the crossroads at the Peitlerscharte, follow trail 4B to the left. Now you have to climb even more metres in altitude over some steep hairpin bends.
It becomes more and more alpine and after about 2 hours you reach the saddle between Großer and Kleiner Peitlerkofel. The last stretch up to the Großer Peitlerkofel now leads along a path secured with steel ropes and steps. At this point, you need to be absolutely free from vertigo and have good surefootedness.
Note: If you do not have much mountain experience, you should use a via Ferrata set for the secured path and/or book a guided tour. Alternatively, you can also just climb the Kleiner Peitlerkofel and save yourself the climbing, but then you won’t really see the sunrise.
MAGICAL SUMMIT MOMENT
Climbing up, we could finally turn off our headlamps, as it was getting brighter and brighter. Behind us, the entire sky turned rose-orange and from a distance, we could even make out the glacier-covered Marmolada, the highest mountain range in the Dolomites. We had to keep turning around, as we have rarely seen such a unique light in the Dolomites. After about 20 minutes of climbing, we reached the summit. Finally, we could take a look towards the east and be overjoyed that we had not yet missed the first rays of sunshine of the day. From the 2,875 metre-high summit of the Peitlerkofel, the view was gigantic. In the valley, a few clouds still hung in places and the sky around the mountain ranges in the south was simply magical. After the sun rose, the pink-orange light quickly disappeared again and we were allowed to feel the first rays of the day on our skin. That did quite a bit of good because at the summit it was much windier and colder than on the ascent. It was just 5 degrees for us. So don’t forget to pack a warm and windproof jacket, as well as a hat and gloves. After we had taken this summit moment deeply into our hearts, the descent followed. Except for the secured climb, the way downhill was very brisk. It was great to suddenly see the mountain scenery and the path again in daylight. It took us about 2 hours to get back to the car. When we arrived at the hotel, we were delighted with the fantastic breakfast at the Falkensteiner Hotel Kronplatz and the huge spa area, where we relaxed for the rest of the day and caught up on some sleep.
EQUIPMENT FOR A SUNRISE HIKE ON THE PEITLERKOFEL
- Headlamp
- Good shoes
- Warm clothes (windbreaker, it is always colder at the summit)
- A change of shirt (so you don’t freeze at the summit)
- Snacks
- Hiking poles
- Climbing gloves, hat/headband
- Via Ferrata set (for the last rope-secured section)
