The Comici-Dimai is the most famous route in the Dolomites. Striking an unlikely line up the north face of Cima Grande one of the six classic north faces of the Alps.

The route was climbed over three days by Emilio Comici, with brothers Angelo and Giuseppe Dimai, in a style of ‘semi-aid semi-free’ in 1933. Not freed until 1974, and given a grade of VII/+, this article will lay out exactly how to go about climbing it today.

A visionary line, the Comici-Dimai route can be broken into two halves. The first, links discontinuous features, finding its way up the steep initial wall which overhangs the base of the route by ~20m, before escaping up the always damp, often wet ‘exit chimneys’.

The second half are a series of shallow chimneys and ramps which lead to two exceptionally damp corners guarding the exceptionally airy pitch 15, a traverse along the lip of a roof and marks the last tricky pitch of the route. Comici once said “I would like to plan a route like the one a drop of water would trace if it was dropped from the top of the mountain”. Those who climb the route in damp conditions would struggle not to appreciate the irony.

When

The route is climbable in winter conditions, and most notably was solo’d by British alpinist Tom Ballard over two days in December 2015. However, most climbers will appreciate the warmer temperatures of summer, both from a comfort and speed perspective.

The route is high and north facing so can be cold early in the season (late May and June). The snow patch below the initial ramp can also be large. Late in September the route can also be unpleasantly cold. Through the mid-summer months although temperatures are warmer, the Tre Cime are subject to frequent and intense afternoon thunderstorms. Climbers should start early, climb quickly and aim to be off before late afternoon/evening to avoid these and the dark.

The upper corner pitches are almost always wet, and will be found damp even following prolonged dry spells. As such, climbers should avoid the route after major rain events. Alternatively the tougher, but drier, Constantini-Direct finish which breaks right after the initial steep wall, avoiding the upper corners may be preferable.

Where

Cime Grande stands at the centre of the Tre Cime di Laveredo formation in the Tre Cime nature park, and designated as a UNESCO world heritage site. The wall rises 568m from its base to 2,999m.

There is a large amount of infrastructure in the park. Both the parking and refuge are accessed via a toll road. Prices vary by vehicle and change from year to year, but it is rumoured financially efficient climbers can avoid paying by entering and leaving the park at anti-social hours.

The toll road is well signposted as ‘Tre Cime’ from Misiurna and can be reached in two hours from Venice Marco Polo and Innsbruck airports.

Overnight parking and creative sleep solutions are available at the Rifugio Auronzo which sits beneath the south face of Cima Grade.

What to Wear

The Comici-Dimai is a north facing alpine rock climb at altitude, climbers should dress appropriately.

For summer ascents, lightweight soft shell trousers and a fleece top will like provide the most comfortable solution for climbing in. Climbers will be glad of an insulated jacket early in the morning, if waiting at cold stances, and as insurance policy in the case of benightment. For more on what to wear for alpine rock climbing, see our article on it here.

Similarly, in the summer months, ‘Big boots’ and ice tools are not necessary, and candidates are best served by a lightweight approach shoe.

Some teams may opt to pack light bivvy gear, however this may just increase your chance of needing to bivvy. As the old adage goes, ‘if you carry bivvy gear you’ll need it, if you don’t you might not’.

Gear

The route is generously equipped with pitons of varying age and quality, climbers need a total of 18 quickdraws to clip each piece on the crux VII pitch. A single rack of cams (#0.3-#3), small to medium nuts and a handful of offsets are useful on the more sparsely protected upper pitches, and to supplement pegs on the lower wall.

Long slings (240cm) are useful at many belays where there are multiple difficult to equalise pegs. Climbers may also be thankful for trad gear to supplement these pieces at particularly poor belays.

As always, check the quality of in situ protection before committing load to it. Just because it’s there doesn’t mean it’s good, even if it’s at belay.

Grades

The route is graded using the traditional grading system now adopted by the UIAA.

All free the route weighs in at VII/+, equivalent to about YDS 5.11-, UK E3 6a, French 6b+. However these conversions can feel unhelpful, and it is difficult to accurately capture quite how sustained the nature of the climbing on the wall is. The climbing can and does often feel hard for the grade. Generally speaking, credible free candidates would do well to have a traditional grade or two in hand.

Alternatively the route can be climbed at A1, with mandatory free moves of V+. Although most moves can be pulled A0, given the steep nature of certain pitches and spacing between pegs, climbers may find the experience more pleasant with a lightweight lanyard and improvised foot loop.

It should be stated that even if climbers are seeking to climb the route in a style of semi-aid semi-free, there are unavoidable move of UIAA V+, so climbers should have a traditional grade or two above V+ in their given currency (YDS 5.9-, UK VS 5a, French 5/+).

Guidebooks and Topos

Unfortuately no single resources free or paid-for is helpful if used on its own. Almost all contain errors and points of vagueness, which range from unhelpful to dangerous. This is not helped by the fact that there are a number of offline pitons and belays left-behind by other parties who were also victims of route finding errors.

The same is true of the descent which is itself long, complex and requires detailed description.

The best approach is to compile a photo-topo and symbol line drawing along with detailed descriptions that you can match up with both.

That’s why we put together our own resource with our own photo-topo, symbol line drawing, and detailed descriptions which you can download here. Our guide is the single most comprehensive resource for getting up and down the Cima Grande via the Comici-Dimai route.

Getting Down

The descent is via the South face and generally follows the Via Normale (III+) but is still is long, complex and loose. A descent topo, is not just helpful, but virtually necessary for any party unfamiliar with the south face of the Cima Grande.

A competent team should take between 2 and 3 hours. A lost, tired, inexperienced and/or benighted team could take far longer. If dusk is approaching and you find yourself on the ringband, consider spending a shivery but safe night in one of the many bivvies built into the south face of the mountain.

Want to climb it? Download our guide.

Enjoyed it? Buy the No Thrills team a coffee to say thanks!