Foreword by Reinhold Messner

It was an honor to take part in the inauguration of the Dolomites without Borders project in the summer of 2018. The project connects 12 via ferratas that lead to the mountain huts of the High Puster Valley (Alta Pusteria) in South Tyrol, Comelico in Veneto, and others in Austria, providing breath taking views across the most beautiful mountains in the world. It was in these same mountains that Italian, Austrian and German youths fought during the First World War, which ended exactly 100 years ago. For this reason, the project realized by Bepi Monti, owner of the Carducci Refuge, is particularly important: mountains have no borders, on the contrary, they connect. On 9 June 2018, the day of the official ceremony at the Kreuzbergpass/Passo Monte Croce di Comelico, we mountaineers met at the trenches of the Sella dei Frugnoni, making a symbolic ascent from the three sides of the mountain at sunrise. From the north the Austrian Hans Wenzel, from the side of the Comelico our friend Fausto De Stefani, whereas I came from the Puster Valley’s side. Here we unveiled the monument that, together with the Dolomites Without Borders trails, represents the ability of the mountains to connect, just as today’s Europe brings us together. A Europe

Statue of Dolomites without Borders near Sella dei Frugnoni (© Harald Wisthaler)

without which our countries would quickly lose their way.

The paths that nowadays bring so many people “into” the mountains are a symbol of peace: the most important value of a united Europe. A value that is threatened by the neo-nationalist movements currently budding in various countries. To create a community, we must be able to feel empathy for others. Just as occurs when we meet, tired but happy, in the mountains.

Reinhold Messner