Sant'Uberto - Col Bechei

Access to starting point:
Via the border crossing Rateče we drive to Trbiž / Tarvisio, where we head onto the motorway in the direction of Vidma / Udine. We leave the motorway at the exit for Tolmezzo and follow the road to the mentioned settlement. From Tolmezzo we continue in the direction of the settlement Ampezzo and the mountain pass Passo della Mauria. The road then starts descending and brings us into the Cadore valley, where we continue right (left Belluno and Cortina d'Ampezzo) in the direction of the settlement Auronzo. After a few additional km of driving, we come to the next bigger crossroad, where we go right in the direction of the settlement Misurina (left pass Tre Croci). From here we descend along the road to a bigger crossroad where we continue left towards Cortina d'Ampezzo (right Austria). From the mentioned crossroad we continue for approximately 10 km towards Cortina d'Ampezzo, and then in a sharp left turn we go right on the road towards the mountain hut Rifugio Ra Stua. We park on the parking lot, which is located at the very beginning of the mentioned road.

Path description:
From the parking lot, we go left on a cart track following the signs »Valle di Fanes« (path number 10). The cart track starts descending from the parking lot and quickly brings us to a marked junction. At the junction, we go right on a footpath following the signs »Valle di Fanes«. From the junction, the path starts descending through the forest and brings us to an asphalt road.
We continue right on the road and cross a bridge over the stream Rio di Fanes. The road, which runs along the stream, then brings us to a junction.
Right leads a more demanding path named Sentiero dei Canyons, but we go left (path number 10) on a road which is asphalt-paved for a short time longer and then becomes macadam. Further on, the road mostly gently ascends through the forest, and occasionally views open up on the nearby peaks.
Later a footpath branches off to the left towards the saddle Posporcora, but we continue along the macadam road. The road then turns slightly to the right and crosses the deep gorge Gola di Fanes over a bridge. We continue along the road and soon reach another junction. Near the junction there are also some benches and tables.
At the junction we continue left on the road, straight ahead leads the path Scorciatoia (shortcut), which is somewhat steeper and later rejoins the road. From the mentioned shortcut the path Sentiero dei Canyons also branches off. To the right at the junction leads the path to the waterfall Cascata di Fanes, which is just a few minutes' walk along an exposed ledge (recommended use of self-belaying).
We therefore continue left and continue ascending along the macadam road, which is also suitable for mountain bikers. After a short ascent we reach another junction where path 401 branches off to the left towards the notch Forcella Posporcora. We continue right and keep ascending along the road through the forest, from which views of the surrounding peaks open up more and more frequently. Further on the road ascends more steeply in places and is occasionally concreted. Higher up the path Sentiero dei Canyons branches off to the left, which also leads towards the valley Val Travenanzes.
Our path then slowly turns right and approaches the stream Rio di Fanes again. Here the path Scorciatoia joins from the right, and shortly after the path to the last waterfall on the stream Rio di Fanes branches off to the right. The waterfall is just a few minutes' walk along an exposed path. Self-belaying is also recommended here.
At the junction the road turns slightly left and further runs along the mentioned stream. The path soon takes us out of the forest and wonderful views open up on the surrounding peaks. The panoramic path then brings us to the lake Lago di Fanes.
At the end of the lake we cross a bridge and continue along a gentle cart track beside the stream. The path brings us to a fence where we leave the nature park Dolomiti d'Ampezzo and enter the nature park Fanes-Senes-Braies. Here also runs the border between the region Veneto and South Tyrol (Trentino - Alto Adige). We continue along the cart track, which briefly still runs beside the stream and then ascends somewhat more steeply, bringing us from grassy slopes into the forest. The forest becomes sparser and from the path we have a nice view of the peaks above the valley Valle di Fanes. Our path runs beside the stream again for a while and brings us to a junction.
Left leads the road towards the pasture Malga Fanes Grande, but here we leave the road and go right onto path 10A, which leads towards the hut Rifugio Fanes. This is followed by an ascent across grassy slopes amid sparse dwarf pines, after which we rejoin the macadam road. We continue right and follow the panoramic road to the lake Lago di Limo.
At the lake we leave the macadam road leading towards the hut Rifugio Fanes and go right onto a footpath indicated by the signs »Col Bechei«. The path first leads along the lake and then begins to ascend the slope on the eastern side of the lake. Here the path mostly runs across grassy slopes and somewhat higher turns slightly right, bringing us to the southern slopes. Along the path there are also some benches here and a spring with drinking water. Further on we ascend through a small valley towards the east and from the path increasingly beautiful views begin to open up, especially towards the south where the mountain group Tofana is clearly visible. We continue ascending mostly across grassy terrain towards the east all the way to a small saddle on the south side of the peak Col Bechei where there are also signposts.
At the junction where a somewhat less frequented eastern path joins, we continue left towards the peak Col Bechei as indicated by the signposts. From the junction we begin to ascend somewhat more steeply across grassy slopes, which higher up transition into rocky terrain. Here the path turns slightly right and runs across somewhat steeper slopes. Since there is quite a bit of scree on the path, some caution is needed on this section. Technically, however, the ascent is not demanding. The path then brings us to the ridge from where a view also opens onto the northern side, and to the summit already visible ahead only a short ascent remains.
We can descend via the ascent path or via the eastern path, which branches off from the described path at the already mentioned small grassy saddle on the south side of the peak.

On the way: Lago di Fanes (1832m), Lago di Limo (2159m)