Epic Hikes of the World ( PDFDrive )

© Sven Hansche | Shutterstock
British war graves on Isandlwana Hill, South Africa
ALTA VIA 1, ITALY
During WWI, the spiky grey peaks of the Dolomites became the most beautiful – if
hostile – of battlefields. Between 1915 and 1918, Italian and Austro-
Hungarian/German forces faced off in these magnificent mountains, enduring the
freezing cold, precipitous terrain and lung-testing altitudes while also fighting for
their countries and their lives. In order to be able to wage war here, they
constructed tunnels, trenches and encampments, as well as via ferrata (iron roads),
a network of metal ladders, rungs and fixed lines that enabled them to move across
the mountainsides. Thankfully the long-distance Alta Via 1 hike is a much more
serene way to roam amid these peaks. The route combines the Dolomites’
spectacular lakes, wildflower meadows, high passes and welcoming rifugios with
fascinating relics of the mountains’ tragic past.
Start // Lago di Bráies
End // Belluno
Distance // 75 miles (120km)