MONTE PATERNO ferrata´s cache
ABOUT MONTE PATERNO
The Paternkofel (it: Monte Paterno) is a mountain in the Sexten Dolomites on the border between South Tyrol and Province of Belluno, in Italy. It is 2744m high. I know, all eyes are looking at Tre Cime (Drei Zinnen) which is local the most inportant view point. But look at Monte Paterno-
It's a beautiful mountain, having also a rich history - not so much a climbing one but a more sad one - from the World War I. Paternkofel rises north-east of Tre Cime di Lavaredo / Drei Zinnen and belongs to a broader group of Sexten Dolomites. The mountain rises only a few hundred meters from the high plateau, but is beautifully shaped. It has 3 strong ridges (N, S, E) and over all three nice and popular ferratas go.
The mountain is popular because of its famous view on Drei Zinnen and because of its short ascent. It is for hikers with good experience in rock so they can overcome steep sections, secured by pegs and steel ropes. In Paternkofel's walls there's probably not many harder climbing routes.
Ferrata which get to the top it is not hard, it is suitable for begginers. We saw there also a few childrens. It takes abou two hours to the top, but it depends on your condition and experince. Keep in mind that it is mountain! Weather changes quickly!! Matter of course is ferrata´s set, helmet, harness, highlows and don´t be alone. Ferrata starts near the Derizinnen Hütte.
EASY TO GET THERE
The Dolomites are situated in the north-east Italy, among the italian regions of Trentino-Alto Adige and Veneto They are reaching easily by car, bus and somewhere also by train from all parts of Italy and from Austria (through the pass of Brennero and Tarvisio). An excellent service to travel inside the region is that one of Dolomiti Bus. By train you can arrive in the Trentino-Alto Adige area by the line Verona-Innsbruck and in Veneto (Cortina-Cadore area) by the line Venezia-Calalzo.
DOLOMITI DI SESTO
Dolomiti di Sesto - Sexten Dolomites: these mountains are situated in Alto Adige, but very near to Veneto and Austria. You can reach Sesto (Sexten) or from Sappada (half an hour through Monte Croce Comelico pass) or from Bressanone (on highway Innsbruck-Verona exit at north of Bolzano and south of Brennero) by local route.
The main mountain of these group are the Tre Cime of Lavaredo (Drei Zinnen) , the symbol of Dolomites, with many difficult climbing routes and a beautiful path that go around (better to do in the early morning!).
Other beautiful mountains with a lot of routes to reach the peak is “Monte Paterno” (the path to the peak starts from the path taht go around Tre Cime and has some tunnels created by soldiers during WW I), “Punta dei 3 Scarperi”, and a beautiful place where spend a quiet day is the lake of Braies, with around trees and mountains.
ORIGIN AND MORPHOLOGY
The geological history behind this exceptional landscape is rather complex and not isolable from the general geologic events that have involved the whole of the southern alpine area. The development of this upheaval included a great number of fragmentary collapses of rock masses, elevations, hydrologic, oceanographic, climatic, volcanic and biologic variations.
All this can be found in the physical evidence of the strata that constitute an indisputable record of the succession of the events in chronological order, the oldest at the bottom and the more recent at the top. This succession is, however, far from being a regular spatial order, indeed its complexity is divided among areas of limited settlement and often presents considerable discordance with the surrounding zones.
In an attempt to define an average situation of the stratigraphic conditions, it may be observed that the deep and rather uniform base, on which all the rest is placed, consists of metamorphic rocks, or crystalline schists belonging to the remotest formation derived from pre-existing lithic masses, the appearance of which has been cancelled by successive episodes of compression due to the high pressure and temperatures in the very deep layers.
Above this base extends a huge plate of porphyritic rock (ignimbrite, tuff and lava) deposited in consequence of a vast and long period of volcanic activity during the Permian (about 250 million years ago). The present outcrops of this constitute the so-called "porphyritic plate of Bolzano", the largest porphyry area in the Alps and Europe, which extends on the left of the Valle dell'Adige from Merano to Pergine and continues east to Agordo, forming a huge plateau of about 1500 square kilometres.
Immediately above this porphyritic plate, there are the arenaceous deposits with cemented fluvial sands that contribute to the deltic strands, intercalated with calcareous deposits derived from the increasing extension of the ancient sea called Thetis which existed for over 180 million years, that is until 40-50 million years ago. On the bottom of this sea, in diverse conditions of depth, saltiness and temperature and mostly variant in time and intercalated by new episodes of volcanism, the rocks that constitute the Dolomites today were gradually formed.
The dolomite, chemically consisting of double carbonate of calcium and magnesium, are carbonate rocks composed of at least 50 to 90 per cent of dolomite material which has replaced the calcium carbonate by a process of exchange called diagenesis, subsequent to the formation The present morphology of the Dolomites, which arouses so much interest, is characterized by the spectacularity of their spires, peaks and towers alternated with ledges, summital plateaus, etc..
The considerations made for the Western Dolomites (Sella Range, Sassolungo, Catinaccio, Sciliar, Latemar, Siusi, calcareous Marmolada Range, Pale di San Martino) cannot readily be applied to the Brenta Dolomites, neither from a geological point of view nor a morphological one.
Lastly, it should be mentioned that in more recent times, that is starting about one million years ago, the Quaternary glacial period began which covered our territory with ice at least four times.
The action of the glacial flows, variously divided within the valleys at both a low and high altitude, gave the finishing touch to the alpine morphology, rejuvenating the landscape and, at the same time, increasing the tendency of the slopes to collapse.
In conclusion four structural elements, with all their reciprocal prevalences and interferences, of the landscape may be observed in the dolomite morphology:
1. the tendency of the rocks to collapse at high altitudes privileging the vertical line rather than the horizontal one
2. intercalation of the ledges creating vast balconies which interrupt the rock walls at rather uniform altitudes
3. the presence of huge detrital mantles that surround and bury the base of the rock elevations
4. the glacial modelling that can be seen especially where the valleys widen, accentuating the verticality of the flanking rock walls.
HISTORY
Paternkofel saw its most sad and also brave days during the World War I. As all three routes follow military routes, many relics from that time can be even now seen: caves, tunnels, guns nests. You need only a little imagination to see soldiers fighting on these rock needles - no pause allowed, for many years, in summer and winter.
The most prominent victim of Paternkofel was the famous mountain guide and climber from Sexten, the legendary Sepp Innerkofler (1865-1915), who lost his life during a summer attack on Italian summit positions. A group of 40 carefully chosen soldiers was approaching the summit from north. Early in the morning a patrouille, led by Sepp tried the summit ascent through a chimney. Sepp was climbing as first. He was spotted by Italian soldiers and shot. Not only Austrians, also Italian soldiers (many of them were local climbers) were horrified, realising who was shot. Innerkofler's body was put to rest on the summit of Paternkofel / Monte Paterno and was taken in Sexten only after the war.
ABOUT THE CACHE
The idea to open this EC was borned of our holliday ferrata´s trip in Sexten Dolomites, basically under the Monte Paterno. We are from Czech Republic and beside climbing and other adrenaline activites we are too cachers. So we were before climb and I said: „ It is a cache on high?“ My friends answered me that not...- it is not possible, I said!! So beautiful way on the top, great interesting ferrata, amazing scenic view there and no cache there?? And when we were sitting on the top of Monte Paterno, it was resolved that we open here the cache :-).
I would like to thanks my friends- Pú and Davejavor for give me this nice idea about the cache nad help me to realise it!
I hope that you enjoy this great mountain so much like us. Greetings from Czech Republic :-).
TO LOG THIS CACHE YOU NEED TO
1.Take a photo with you and the view on Drei Zinnen behind you (like our picture in listing). In poor visibility take a photo with the base of the crucifix (not all crucifix= spoiler!!).
Send me an email through my profile with answers to these questions:
2. Who´s face is on the wood crucifix?
3. What title is written over this face? (please whole sentence)
4. When died Katya Mazzeto?
5. Please estimate using your gps the altitude in front of you (on the top by the crucifix)
All answers can be found easily on the top of Monte Paterno. Logs without sending the correct answers and uploading photo will be deleted immediately!!!
