Course Clear?

The motorhome is purring; U2’s “Raised by Wolves“ accompanies our drive along the western shore of Lake Garda. After a fantastic day at Pizzo Tambo in Grisons, Mäx and I set our sights on the second destination of our motorhome trip. We are heading for the Tre Cime region. Mäx smiles when I tell him that at least the last 300 feet of the shady, north-facing 5,600-foot ascent through the steep gully system of the Northern Haunold Couloir should be south-facing and perhaps “comfortably warm,“ knowing too well that it is rarely warm in San Candido. As a young racer, I spent many cold December training days in this small but exquisite ski resort. When I reached my 40s, I qualified as a ski crosser for the Olympics in this resort.

I had no idea that, as race director of Ski Cross in San Candido at the foot of the Haunold, I would be allowed to spend eight more years – always in December – freezing and looking at this cheeky northern couloir. Neither did I suspect that I would need three attempts to find the right conditions to ski it. First things first, though. Before we would ski it, it was necessary to find an open café somewhere on Lake Garda to enjoy the view of the Lago with a cappuccino. Not an easy task in February and during a Covid lockdown. It’s still dark outside when the alarm clock goes off. Mäx peels himself out of his sleeping bag and checks the weather. It’s cloudy and warm. I pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming.

Yes, we are at the foot of the Haunold, at the Caravan Park Sexten. And it’s warm. We have breakfast and check the weather app one last time. We know that we won’t find great conditions in the lower part of the climb, but we do hope that the upper 2,600 feet of the “Rocca dei Baranci – Canale Nord,“ up to 45 degrees steep, will be ok. And that we can see the Tre Cime from the summit. We start hiking at dusk. After an hour, we reach the first steep section, and the only track for the ascent soon becomes too steep due to unfavorable conditions. We discuss the most accessible way up and struggle to the plateau at the foot of the northern gully. I realize that I must be conservative with my one liter of water.

Once at the plateau, the conditions change abruptly. A stable snow cover allows us to move faster, but soon we have to get the crampons out. The conditions are unpleasantly slippery as we head for the entrance to the gully system. Our hope for good conditions is at its lowest point when we finally reach the couloir. Looking up we sigh in relief: there’s a good 8 inches of powder in the gully. And not a single track! One switchback after another, we slowly hike towards the top. The backdrop does justice to the Dolomites. Steep rock faces frame the northern gully. It becomes progressively steeper. Before an exposed traverse we take off our skis, put on the crampons and cross gently uphill to reach the now visible summit cross.

But our altimeters dampen the euphoria. There are still 1,300 vertical feet left to climb; the terrain is challenging, and my water bottle is empty. This is all but easy. About 650 feet below the summit, we set up a ski depot. The snowless winter salutes us: steep, rocky and icy terrain makes us appreciate our crampons and directs us via some light climbing sections to the prominent col. Mäx is excited about the promised view of the Tre Cime, but visibility puts a spoke in our wheel. The last 100 vertical feet are challenging; the snow layer is susceptible to disruption due to the southern exposure. We scramble to the summit, sometimes waist-deep in the snow, sometimes climbing on easy rock. At the summit, the weather finally turns bad.

Fog and wind are moving in. We quickly descend carefully to where we left our skis and look forward to the beautiful, powdery 1,650 vertical feet in the lower part of the couloir. It does not disappoint. An hour later, at the lift station in the valley, I meet Tschuppa, a long-time “chief of course“ for the Innichen Ski Cross World Cup. He laughs loudly when he sees me, and before even greeting me he says, “Well, well, have you finally skied it, the Haunold?“ I laugh and respond: “Do we have the course clear?“ It’s nice to finally have skied the northern couloir of Haunold with Mäx. And it was also great to see old friends – Gabriel, Kurt and Hanna – from my Ski Cross days. Thank you for another exceptional adventure in San Candido!