Passo Duran
Pass · 1605 m · Dolomites
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From Agordo it is 12.2 km at 8.1%, steepening to 14, and what waits at 1601 m is a skyline of Monte Pelmo and Antelao, the throne of God the Father and the King of the Dolomites. Look back down the valley and Agner fills the view. Two refuges and a small church sit at the top.
A small chapel stands at the summit, built in 1975 at the initiative of Fiori De Cassan, a decorated veteran of the Italian campaign in Russia, working with a handful of local masons and carpenters. The whole valley turned out for its inauguration that August, and the alpini still gather there every second Sunday of the month. One of the two refuges at the pass carries the name of Cesare Tomè, an Agordo native who made first ascents of Agner, Moiazza and Piz di Sagron and took part in the historic 1906 climb of Civetta's northwest face before serving as the town's mayor. The refuge itself dates to 1948, raised by the Agordo section of the Club Alpino Italiano to replace an earlier hut built in 1928 that burned down four years later.
What you see
Monte Pelmo, known locally as the throne of God the Father, and Antelao, the King of the Dolomites, dominate the skyline from the pass, with Agner filling the view back toward Agordo.
Practical
Two refuges at the summit, San Sebastiano and Cesare Tomè, serve food and offer overnight beds.
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