Page 34 - Wish Stream Year of 2016

Exercise DOLOMITEN CADET
(Rock climbing and via ferrata in Italy) OCdt Smith
Ex DOLOMITEN CADET was a nine day multi-pitch rock climbing expedition in the Dolomites in August 2016. Four Of cer
Cadets and one instructor spent ve days tick- ing off classic multi-pitch routes and via ferrata routes, whilst also immersing themselves in the World War One history in the Dolomites region.
Routes accomplished included: the South Arete at the Vajolet Towers, Via Maria at Sass Pordoi, the South Arete of Sass de Stria, and the hard- est via ferrata in the Dolomites, Magni ci Quattro. The route culminated at a stunning setting, Tre Cime, the icon of the Dolomites. We were all in awe of the WWI trench networks that dug deep into the mountainsides throughout the region. They made us feel lucky that we
There were some testing times during the expe- dition and all team members came away with various highlights and valuable experiences.
With limited climbing experience, OCdt Pou- lain found himself being ‘chucked in at the deep end’ from the outset with our ascent of the Vajolet Towers via the South Arete, a route that takes in a breathtaking 400m vertical drop and, therefore, a great sense of exposure. OCdt Rushby found himself in constant admin turmoil (not unusual) as he prepared for early morning ‘alpine starts’ each day. He learnt the value of carrying a decent head torch during approaches the hard way (having left his back at RMAS) and had to rely on a far less powerful back-up torch
only had to dig into the sandy soils of Stanford Training Area during Ex SLIM’S STAND and not solid rock as was the case in the Dolomites during World War One!
We were all in awe of the WWI trench networks...
too many times. This, combined with forgetting his rucksack (con- taining his passport) at one of
the trailheads, having driven
30 minutes up the valley, meant that he was at
32 SANDHURST