At the foot of the Queen of the Dolomites, the Marmolada, Passo Fedaia is one of the hardest and most legendary climbs in Italian cycling, often chosen as the Cima Coppi of the Giro d’Italia.
Route data
- Start: Caprile (Rocca Pietore)
- Finish: Passo Fedaia (2,057 m)
- Length: 12.7 km
- Elevation gain: 1,001 m
- Average gradient: 7.8% (max 15.8%)
- Surface: asphalt
- Difficulty: extreme
From Caprile the road climbs at moderate gradients as far as Malga Ciapela, but it is after that point that the Fedaia shows its harshest face: four almost dead-straight kilometres, nicknamed the “graveyard of champions”, where the gradient hardly ever drops below 10% and peaks above 15%. Once the final ramp is behind you, Lake Fedaia opens up ahead with the north face of the Marmolada and its glacier as a backdrop, one of the most striking sights in the whole Dolomites. Traffic is generally light and the road surface excellent, but the climb calls for easy gears and well-trained legs.
Did you know?
Passo Fedaia has decided the fate of the Giro d’Italia more than once: this is where Marco Pantani produced one of his most celebrated rides in 1998, and in later years the Cima Coppi has been claimed by champions such as Ivan Basso and Vincenzo Nibali.
All the cycling routes
What does Fedaia mean? In all likelihood “sheep pasture”. The explanation, with sources, is on the page Why the Dolomite passes have the names they do.