Via degli Inglesi

Via degli Inglesi

Page Type Page Type: Route
Location Lat/Lon: 46.29503°N / 9.58669°E
Additional Information Route Type: Mountaineering
Seasons Season: Summer
Additional Information Time Required: A long day
Additional Information Rock Difficulty: 5.10a (YDS)
Additional Information Difficulty: ED (VI+ UIAA)
Additional Information Number of Pitches: 18
Additional Information Grade: V
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Overview

Back in 1968, July, two young gentlement from UK, named Dick Isherwood and Mike Kosterlitz, spent few days in Val Masino. After some short but nice climb they headed for the their real project of the season: the first repetition of the Corti-Battaglia route on the Piz Badile East face.
After few pitches, when the Corti-Battaglia takes on the very left, the two continued straight up, following a unique and long crack until almost the summit of the East wall. They spent a quite uncomfortable night on the wall and the day after they completed what since then has been known as the "via degli Inlgesi" that is "the English men route".

Don't miss the true story told by Dick Isherwood on the Alpine Journal in 1969. Find it here in PDF format

Via degli Inglesi, Piz Badile East face

Getting There

From Bagni di Masino in Val Masino, Italy, you reach the Giannetti hut in about 2.5 hours. The day after you walk until the Cengalo Col along the Piz Cengalo normal route (about 1.5 hours). From the col you have a beatiful look on the north side and on the Piz Badile East face.
From here follow a fixed rope for about 200 meters towards the East face. At its end you start rappeling. They are 6 pretty long rappels (60 meters ropes required) all quite in diagonal towards the East face. The last rappel takes you at the starting point of the route (about 2 hours from the Cengalo col)

Via degli Inglesi, Piz Badile East face

Route Description

From the starting point, you simply can't get wrong as you have to follow the looooong crack until its end where there's a big roof to be avoided on its left. Then there's one last pitch that takes you out of the difficult part. From here, there are still about 200 meters on easier and loose rocks (pay attention!!!) before reaching the Piz Badile summit.
From the beginning until the end of the difficult part, the route becomes more and more steeper, therefore the hardest pitches are the last ones.

Aid climbing is required if you don't climb it free (up to 7a / 7b according to others).

Consider 10 to 14 hours from start to summit.

Essential Gear

60 meters ropes, 5 to 6 pitons, two complete sets of cams, stoppers

Descent

From the Piz Badile summit you rappel down along the normal route and reach again the Giannetti hut.

External link

A complete report with pictures can be found here on Climberland

Parents 

Parents

Parents refers to a larger category under which an object falls. For example, theAconcagua mountain page has the 'Aconcagua Group' and the 'Seven Summits' asparents and is a parent itself to many routes, photos, and Trip Reports.