Campanile Basso

Campanile Basso, 2,883 metres, is a near-perfect rock tower in the Brenta Dolomites of Trentino, an isolated pillar of vertical limestone that has become one of the most iconic climbing objectives in the Alps. Its clean, symmetrical shape rises free on all sides like a natural bell tower.

Nicknamed the Guglia by Italian climbers, it is surrounded by drops of hundreds of metres and has been a symbol of Dolomite climbing since the earliest days of the sport. Its first ascent in 1899 and the bold early routes that followed made it a place of pilgrimage for generations of alpinists.

There is no walk-up. Every route to the summit is a multi-pitch rock climb. The classic ascent, largely following the 1899 Ampferer line and the Fehrmann crack, is graded around IV to V on solid limestone, with sustained exposure and a committing final tower; harder modern routes reach far higher grades. Climbers need a full trad rack, ropes and confident abseil skills for the descent, which is itself a series of exposed rappels down the tower.

The Rifugio Alimonta, Rifugio Pedrotti and Rifugio Brentei in the Brenta serve as bases, linked by the famous Bocchette via ferrata network that lets non-climbers view the tower from close by. The reliable season is June to September, when the rock is dry and the huts staffed. Madonna di Campiglio is the valley resort, with lifts easing the approach and guides available. This is a peak for experienced rock climbers; for everyone else it is one of the great spectacles of the Brenta, admired from the surrounding ledges.