 Poster: A snowHead
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Been to the Dolomites a few times but not last year and I only just learned about the Cortina Skyline! Never skied Cortina either which has got me wondering: has anyone done Canazei–Tofana–Canazei in a day? I'm sure it's doable but I would like to have an idea of approximately what tempo I would be looking at. Also whether the snow on Stratofana is likely to be any good by the time one gets there... I'll be in Canazei 11th to 15th December so who knows what will even be open but I thought I'd ask around since I couldn't find anyone writing up this specific circuit. Thanks in advance 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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unlikley that the hidden valley will be open before christmas, so no taxi to the pass, no return route
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Oh, bummer. I could go a week later but not after xmas.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I probably won't be able to convince my friend to do it if a really high pace is required though admittedly it would be cool to be the first snowHead to attempt it, haha. I'll take a look at the video, seems like a fun tour as well! I was originally inspired to do this by an FT article I read back in January (https://on.ft.com/3SWOk34) though those guys didn't do a round-trip. I'm sure this has been posted about here though. Lovely write-up as well!
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It's quite doable. You wouldn't be able to hang around in Cortina for long or dawdle over lunch however. We did it from Selva with a sleepover at the Lagazoui Rifugio. Very civilised. 
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| gregorspv wrote: |
| I probably won't be able to convince my friend to do it if a really high pace is required though admittedly it would be cool to be the first snowHead to attempt it, haha. I'll take a look at the video, seems like a fun tour as well! I was originally inspired to do this by an FT article I read back in January (https://on.ft.com/3SWOk34) though those guys didn't do a round-trip. I'm sure this has been posted about here though. Lovely write-up as well! |
You need to make sure all the links and runs are open that early in the season, otherwise it will be difficult or impossible.
I'd suggest a dry run to the Hidden Valley first to check timings to see how much leeway there would be to get to Cortina and back. The route is a bit tricky, so would be good to get that bit under your belt first. I reckon you would need to allow 30-40mins each way to the start of the Tofana sector from Falzarego, plus whatever time you wanted to spend there, it could take an hour or more to get to the top and back skiing fast.
The guys in the video are doing what you would be looking to do, just a different start point that is a bit closer to Cortina. They started in Badia (Pedraces), know the way intimately and ski like demons.
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Good call, thanks. I hope the Hidden Valley will be open at least. If not, I'll be tempted to come back in March.
At the risk of jinxing it, the fellas in the video don't seem to be going that fast to me? I've only looked at the first 10 minutes or so though. And anyway, they keep reiterating how they are waiting for the rest of the family to catch up with them. But it is also true that they barely have to queue anywhere and they could also fill up the taxi straight away as a family.
So far I'm not completely discouraged: conditions permitting, I might decide to attempt it if my friend agrees. 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Hah, I knew I shouldn't have said anything. I'm sure they're fine skiers. Maybe I'm reading the video wrong if everyone else thinks they are going so fast.
Anyway, I asked the author of the video if the same tour could be done starting from Canazei and here is his take:
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Da Canazei siete molto al limite come tempistiche. Sicuramente dovreste rinunciare ad andare a Ra Valles e saltare la pausa pranzo. Alla fine l'Alta Badia rimane sempre la localitá piú centrale per sciare in tutte le aree del Dolomiti Superski.
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Essentially doesn't want to either say yes or no. But definitely no Ra Valles or lunch to be had—which I had figured already.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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I'd love to stay in Igor's hotel, had it booked but covid hit.
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He's a good sport, he replies to pretty much every question in the comments box, as far as I see. I'd never heard of him before I started researching this topic but I'll definitely consider his place for my next trip. Though 7 days minimum stay is a bit long for me.
I would go for it on my own but I don't want to mislead the other party on my trip if it's really so tight. Thank you for all your help though—hopefully someone is inspired to try this and will report on it here
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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I realise that I’ve missed your holiday but thought I’d reply for the benefit of anyone else.
So a friend and I skied from Selva to Cortina and back last year (Feb 2023). We are both competent but not especially fast skiers. Although we both had the benefit of having worked 2 seasons in the Dollies so know it like the back of our hands. No wasting time with piste maps !
We did get delayed by 40 mins waiting for a taxi from Armentarola to Lagazuoi. So that was weighing slightly on our minds. We didn’t stop for lunch, but we did get 2 hours of skiing in Cortina (at the Tofana side) before we headed back. We skied the Hidden Valley on the way back, took the horse tow and probably made the last lifts on the way back from Corvara up to Dantercepies with just 10 mins or so to spare.
And then had a well earned rest and refuel at the top of Dantercepies before the final ski back to Selva.
So yes, it is doable if you don’t dawdle and don’t stop for a big lunch! But just keep a close eye on your watch. It’s an expensive mistake to get stuck in the wrong valley, or if not expensive it’s a long hike!
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Poster: A snowHead
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And I just realised that the previous responder had found my friend’s YouTube video which includes the Cortina day that I described above  . I could have saved myself all that typing haha
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Ah, that's hilarious. I've got to say, that sounds like a perfect day! I would have guessed that the taxicab is the bottleneck, especially if there is only two of you. Unfortunately for me, Lagazuoi wasn't even open when I was in Canazei from 10-15 December. Hopefully I'll be able to pop back in late March but I think that's just around the time they start closing it back, haha.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I will  . We’re going to meet up in Selva again this March (2024) for a week, so I’m sure there will be another YouTube video soon. It’s all his video stops that make us so close to last lifts! But I have to admit, the videos are fun to look back on our adventures.
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