Valle Di Cadore: Mountain Landscape, Trails and History

Valle di Cadore lies on the green valley floor at the foot of Monte Antelao. Archaeological finds and votive objects of Roman and pre-Roman origin attest to a history of Valle di Cadore dating back to the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. This allows you to combine landscape, trails and cultural history in a single stay – especially if you would like to combine experiences in nature with historical observations.

Mountain Landscape and Trails around Costapiana

From Valle di Cadore, follow the paved road to Rifugio Costapiana, which climbs to the upper part of the town. At a marked bend with a spring and the refuge sign, you can continue on foot in about two hours or by car. Rifugio Costapiana can be reached on foot, with snowshoes or with ski touring skis. From there, you can enjoy views of Monte Antelao and the upper Valle del Boite.

S. Dionisio is an almost 2,000-metre-high hill offering a 360-degree panoramic view. From Rifugio Costapiana, S. Dionisio can be reached on foot in about one and a half hours. This gives you different trail lengths and ways of getting around to choose from when planning your trip, without limiting the alpine landscape to a single type of excursion.

The Lunga Via delle Dolomiti

The Lunga Via delle Dolomiti cycle path runs through Valle di Cadore. The Lunga Via delle Dolomiti is completely closed to motorised traffic, paved and has even, manageable gradients. It can be walked or cycled, combining a clear route with varied outdoor use.

Historic Townscapes and San Martino

Costa is a historic village where houses with distinctive Venetian features stand alongside traditional mountain houses of Cadore and buildings from the first centuries AD. The historic Via Romana runs through Costa; along the route there are buildings with vaulted ceilings, balconies, coats of arms and artistically designed corners. San Martino stands on a rocky promontory above the Valle del Boite. The 18th-century Church of San Martino was built on the ruins of a castle of Roman origin and is currently closed for safety reasons. The church contains paintings by Antonio Lazzarini and an altarpiece by Francesco da Milano.

Archaeological Traces in the Town

Archaeological finds from Valle di Cadore indicate an early medieval necropolis dating from the late 6th to the early 7th century AD. In Rusecco, three bronze situlae were found in 1910. One of them bore a Venetic inscription with a dedication to Loudera, a deity equated with the Roman Libera and associated with the cycles of death and rebirth in nature.

In Fies, in the higher part of the town, a stone slab with a Latin inscription from the 1st century AD was found. It attests that Lucius Saufeius donated a schola, that is, an assembly and ceremonial room, as well as a solarium, a terrace, to an association or corporation. In the districts of Stean and Villa, four buildings from Roman times were discovered, probably to be interpreted as villas. Two buildings in Villa had rooms with floral-decorated plaster and mosaic floors. One of these buildings contained a room measuring 15 × 11 m, the other a room measuring 9 × 9 m; the buildings are dated to the 1st to 2nd centuries AD.

At Rifugio Costapiana stands a chapel of the same name, built and consecrated in 1508 to provide shelter to people who fled the Battle of Rusecco and took refuge in the high mountains.

Discover More Destinations

Discover more destinations: Villanova, San Nicolò Di Comelico, San Vito Di Cadore, Tignes, Rocca Pietore, Castello Lavazzo, Forno Di Zoldo, Soverzene.

To the higher-level travel overview: Belluno.