HIKING SECEDA IN THE DOLOMITES

Table of Contents

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FirstHeading

OVERVIEW
HOW TO VISIT SECEDA

Ortisei Cable Car
Santa Cristina Cable Car

SECEDA HIKING STATISTICS
OUR EXPERIENCE AT SECEDA

Getting there
Cable Car Station to Seceda Ridge
Seceda Ridge to Pieralongia
Pieralongia to Rifugio Ferenze
Ascent to the Cable Car Station

FINAL IMPRESSION

OVERVIEW

We spent a week hiking through the Dolomites in June of 2023 where there are endless trails and opportunities for adventure.

When researching this trip, the same image repeatedly popped up online – an immense 45 degree jagged ridge, often shrouded in clouds. One side drops straight down to the valley below. The opposite side is covered in green grass and gently slopes down to lush pastures, dotted with cabins and covered in wildflowers.

This area is called Seceda, and it’s spectacular.

We hiked nearly every day on our trip to the Dolomites, but our day spent at Seceda was my favorite. The famous Seceda ridge isn’t the only attraction.

A maze of trails weaves through the landscape, going through fields and around alpine lakes, while connecting mountain huts that serve cold beverages and delicious Italian food. Most of the huts have small playgrounds and farm animals that are perfect for amusing the little hikers while waiting for the meal.

Seceda is the highlight of any trip to the Dolomites and leaves visitors in awe of its incredible scenery.

*An amazing view across the Seceda plateau near the Ortisei Cable Car station.*

HOW TO VISIT SECEDA

Seceda is found within the Dolomite mountains of northern Italy. It is about 200 km (3 hr 10 min drive) from Venice and 350 km (3 h 40 min drive) from Milan.

Seceda is generally accessed using cable cars and gondolas from Ortisei or Santa Cristina. Ortisei is the largest town in this region of the Dolomites and a common location for visitors to base themselves.

Ortisei has many lodging and food options. If looking for a slightly smaller town in this area, consider Selva di Val Gardena. It’s more charming, but still has ample hotels and restaurants.

Seceda, found in Puez Odle Nature Park, is a mountain plateau rising to an elevation of 2,500 meters (8,200 feet). There is an enormous network of hiking and mountain biking trails on this plateau.

Although visitors can access Seceda by hiking up from the valleys below, most people take the cable cars from either Ortisei or Santa Cristina.

Stone chapel in the green meadows of Seceda. — *The lush green meadow at Seceda dotted with mountain huts and a lovely stone Chapel.*

Ortisei Cable Car

Route: Ortisei – Furnes – Seceda. A gondola is used on the first ascent and a cable car is used for the second ascent.

Hours: 8:30 AM – 6 PM from late May to early November.

Cost: €31 adult one way ticket and €41 round trip ticket.

Santa Cristina Cable Car

Route: Col Raiser.

Hours: 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM from mid June to mid September. Hours may differ outside of peak season.

Cost: €19 adult one way ticket and €28 round trip ticket.

A nice feature of Seceda is that hours of hiking are not necessary in order to obtain a huge reward. The main attraction, Odle ridgeline, is accessible via a 10 minute easy path right from the Ortisei cable car station.

More challenging hikes can be done high up into the jagged teeth of the ridgeline or through the beautiful valleys below.

The paths are well marked and in excellent condition. Signs are posted identifying the different routes and none of the trails are technically demanding.

There were numerous hiking paths for us to choose from, but we eventually settled on Seceda – Malga Pieralongia – Rifugio Firenze – Baita Troier Trail.

Rustic brown shack at the lush grassy plateau of Seceda in the Italian Dolomites.

SECEDA HIKING STATISTICS

Distance: 10 km (6.2 miles) loop trail.

Elevation Gain: 540 meters (1,770 feet).

Difficulty: Moderate. There are no technical aspects to the trail, but its length and elevation gain will make it challenging toward the end.

Duration: 5-7 hours, at a leisurely pace with several photo stops and time for lunch at one of the amazing mountain huts.

When: Late May to early November.

*Trail map of Seceda – Malga Pieralongia – Rifugio Firenze – Baita Troier, courtesy of AllTrails.com.*

OUR EXPERIENCE AT SECEDA

Getting there

We were thrilled to get this day started. I had been obsessing about hiking at Seceda for months as I was creating the itinerary for our week in the Dolomites.

We were staying in Ortisei and arrived at the cable car station shortly after it opened. There was a large multi-level parking ramp at the station and a line had already formed for tickets.

The line for the gondola moved quickly. It brought us to the second lift station, Furnes, where we transferred to a cable car for the final ascent. The views back to Ortisei were already fantastic and the total ride only took about 15 minutes.

Immediately upon disembarking the cable car, there were amazing panoramas of the Sassolungo and Marmolada massifs, and the Alpe di Siusi. We visited In June so the alpine meadows were bursting with vibrant wildflowers.

Oliver and Maddie looking over Seceda in the Dolomites. — *Gorgeous view at the Ortisei Cable Car station, with Seceda ridge in the distance.*

Cable Car Station to Seceda Ridge

To the left of the lift station was a small playground and slide where Oliver and Maddie played for a few minutes while Shirlee and I awed at the views in every direction.

We began the hike to the left of the cable car station and took Trail no. 1. There was a gentle 10 minute ascent up toward a viewing platform to see a group of jagged pinnacles. This is the iconic Odle Ridge.

*Leaving the top viewing platform and staring to hike across the ridgeline.* *This kids loved the playground near the cable car station.*

To fully appreciate the incredible clouds that floated up the far side of Seceda ridge, we hiked down a small path that led out to a fantastic vantage point. The trail was a bit precarious but the views were absolutely amazing.

I would have been happy to sit there for hours, watching the clouds glide up from the valley along the side of the cliff, before dispersing into the sky at the top. To the left of the ridge was the Val di Funes, where we would tour 2 days later.

*The trail as it cuts across the grassy base of Seceda ridge.*

Seceda Ridge to Pieralongia

After getting our fill of the iconic ridge we continued in the direction of the peaks. The path descended down to a small platform where people were lining up for family photos. However, The views from where we had just come from were far better.

The trail narrowed to single file width as it cut across the grassy base of the ridge. At the end of the ridge, a detour onto trail no. 6 ascended further to the steep Forcella Pana providing a unique view of the area from the edge of the ridge.

*The viewpoint right before we started our hike across the base of Seceda ridge.*

We continued on trail no. 1 as it descended, initially quite steeply but soon leveled out, to a charming mountain restaurant, Troier Hut. The hut was set in an alpine meadow, with ample outdoor seating and spectacular views over the Sassolungo massif.

We continued eastward, joining Trail no. 2B, down the rocky trail toward Pieralongia. This was another popular mountain hut surrounded by fascinating rock formations and a meadow carpeted with yellow and white flowers.

John hiking through Seceda with its green meadows and rocky terrain in the Dolomites. — *There were many interesting rock formations near Pieralongia. While eating lunch we saw a few people climbing to the top of these triangular rocks.*

Shirlee in a pink shirt standing on a large rock near Pieralongia at Seceda. — *There were many interesting rock formations near Pieralongia. While eating lunch we saw a few people climbing to the top of these triangular rocks.*

Pieralongia to Rifugio Ferenze

Pieralongia served food made from its own farm and the outdoor seating meant we could enjoy it amidst a backdrop of mountains. We ordered a charcuterie board for lunch while watching other hikers pose for pictures on the rocks.

*Many of the mountain huts had small pastures with farm animals such as cattle, donkeys, and alpaca.*

Oliver in a green shirt high on a swing at Seceda with rugged mountains in the distance. — *Many of the mountain huts had small pastures with farm animals such as cattle, donkeys, and alpaca.*

Oliver and Maddie took turns on the swing set and investigated animals at the hut’s mini zoo before we continued our hike across the Seceda plateau.

The larger rock formations then gave way to flatter terrain. We had finally reached the far end of the trail at the Alpe di Cisles. This area was characterized by a vast expanse of open landscape covered with wildflowers around a small alpine lake framed by the surrounding mountains.

*The terrain transformed as we left Pieralongia.*

Three kids walking through a green meadow near Alpe di Cisles at Seceda in the Dolomites. — *The terrain transformed as we left Pieralongia.*

The trail looped back and began its return to the Ortisei cable car station. It descended about 900 feet through a few cattle pastures until reaching Rifugio Firenze.

This was another impressive mountain restaurant and lodge. Similar to other huts it served traditional Tyrolean dishes. We had a small snack here and then rejoined Trail no. 1.

*At the far end of the trail was a wide open meadow with bright yellow wildflowers. It then gradually descended toward Troier Hut.*

Ascent to the Cable Car Station

The trail cut through an evergreen forest before opening back up into the meadows we had seen earlier from the trail above.

After spending most of the day either hiking level ground or descending, the ascent finally began and it was relentless. The trail was in good condition and the ascent wasn’t technical, but it was constant and long.

Maddie skipping down a narrow gravel path at the Seceda plateau in the Dolomites with green meadows and jacked peaks in the distance. — *Approaching Troier Hut.*

We passed by Troier Hut again and greeted the farm animals once more but pushed on as we were anxious to get the ascent behind us.

We made it back to the Ortisei cable car station by late afternoon, which brought us back down to our car in Ortesie.

Oliver and Maddie hiking through an evergreen forest in Seceda.

John and Maddie walking through the Seceda plateau high in the Dolomites with a green meadow behind.

FINAL IMPRESSION

We were nearly a week into our Dolomites trip by the time we hiked through Seceda. We had already experienced countless spectacular views of the Dolomites, but the whole family agreed that Seceda was particularly special.

The views from the cable car station were spectacular, with panoramas of Alpe di Siusi and the various mountain ranges of the region.

Seeing the Odle ridgeline encased in clouds was absolutely amazing. From the top viewpoint we could see the ridge dissect Val di Funes from the long green meadow that gradually sloped down to Santa Cristina.

White cow grazing in a flowery meadow at Seceda in the Dolomites.

It was very convenient having several mountain huts scattered throughout the plateau where we could sit outside and take in the views while enjoying cold beverages and delicious food. In particular, the kids loved playing in the small playgrounds and visiting the farm animals at each stop.

Overall the route that we took worked well for us. We had phenomenal views, many food options, and saw variable terrain throughout the plateau. With the exception of the final ascent, the trail was pretty easy.

This was a truly magical day in the Dolomites and hiking at Seceda is a must do activity when traveling through this incredible region.