Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become sports in their own right. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, and bouldering are also considered variants of mountaineering by some, but are part of a wide group of mountain sports.
South Tyrol, officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, is an autonomous province in Northern Italy, one of the two that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province is the northernmost of Italy, the second largest, with an area of 7,400 square kilometres (2,857 sq mi) and has a total population of about 534,000 inhabitants as of 2021. Its capital and largest city is Bolzano.
Bolzano is the capital city of the province of South Tyrol in northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third largest in historical Tyrol. The greater metro area has about 250,000 inhabitants and is one of the urban centers within the Alps.
Reinhold Andreas Messner is an Italian mountaineer, explorer, and author from South Tyrol. He made the first solo ascent of Mount Everest and, along with Peter Habeler, the first ascent of Everest without supplemental oxygen. He was the first climber to ascend all 14 peaks over 8,000 metres (26,000 ft) above sea level and he also did it without supplementary oxygen. Messner was the first to cross Antarctica and Greenland with neither snowmobiles nor dog sleds and also crossed the Gobi Desert alone. He is widely considered as the greatest mountaineer of all time.
Cortina d'Ampezzo is a town and comune in the heart of the southern (Dolomitic) Alps in the Province of Belluno, in the Veneto region of Northern Italy. Situated on the Boite river, in an alpine valley, it is an upscale summer and winter sport resort known for its skiing trails, scenery, accommodation, shops and après-ski scene, and for its jet set and Italian aristocratic crowd.
The Grossglockner, or just Glockner, is, at 3,798 metres above the Adriatic (12,461 ft), the highest mountain in Austria and the highest mountain in the Alps east of the Brenner Pass. It is part of the larger Glockner Group of the Hohe Tauern range, situated along the main ridge of the Central Eastern Alps and the Alpine divide. The Pasterze, Austria's most extended glacier, lies on the Grossglockner's eastern slope.
The Austrian Alpine Club has about 573,000 members in 196 sections and is the largest mountaineering organisation in Austria. It is responsible for the upkeep of over 234 alpine huts in Austria and neighbouring countries. It also maintains over 26,000 kilometres of footpaths, and produces detailed maps of key mountain areas within Austria. Much of this work is done by the association's 22,000 volunteers. The association has a museum in Innsbruck dedicated to the history of alpinism. It also has sections in Belgium and the United Kingdom, and a group in Poland.
Trentino, officially the Autonomous Province of Trento, is an autonomous province of Italy, in the country's far north. The Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, an autonomous region under the constitution. The province is composed of 166 comuni (municipalities). Its capital is the city of Trento (Trent). The province covers an area of more than 6,000 km2 (2,300 sq mi), with a total population of 541,098 in 2019. Trentino is renowned for its mountains, such as the Dolomites, which are part of the Alps.
The Province of Belluno is a province in the Veneto region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Belluno.
A mountain hut is a building located high in the mountains, generally accessible only by foot, intended to provide food and shelter to mountaineers, climbers and hikers. Mountain huts are usually operated by an Alpine Club or some organization dedicated to hiking or mountain recreation. They are known by many names, including alpine hut, mountain shelter, mountain refuge, mountain lodge, and mountain hostel. It may also be called a refuge hut, although these occur in lowland areas too.
Bruneck is the largest town in the Puster Valley in the Italian province of South Tyrol.
Cadore is a historical region in the Italian region of Veneto, in the northernmost part of the province of Belluno bordering on Austria, the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol and Friuli-Venezia Giulia. It is watered by the Piave River which has its source in the Carnic Alps. Once an undeveloped and poor district, the former contado (countship) of Cadore now has a thriving economy based on tourism and a small manufacturing industry, specialising in the production of glasses.
Badia is a comune (municipality) in South Tyrol, northern Italy. It is one of the five Ladin-speaking communities of the Val Badia which is part of the Ladinia region.
Naturns is a comune (municipality) and a village in the province of South Tyrol in northern Italy, located about 40 kilometres (25 mi) northwest of the city of Bolzano.
Monte Piana is a 2,324-metre (7,625 ft) tall mountain in the Sexten Dolomites and located on the border between the provinces of South Tyrol and Belluno. The smaller Northern summit of the mountain is named Monte Piano (2,305m).
Sigmundskron Castle is an extensive castle and set of fortifications near Bolzano in South Tyrol. Today its ruins house the fourth mountain museum established by the South Tyrolean mountaineer, Reinhold Messner. On 9 June 2006 the MMM was opened in this fortified castle dating to the Late Middle Ages.
Angelo Dibona was an Austro-Hungarian and Italian mountaineer. He is remembered as one of the great pioneers of climbing in the Dolomites and is responsible for many first ascents throughout the Alps. The Aiguille Dibona in France, the Campanile Dibona and the Dibona-Kante on the Cima Grande di Lavaredo are named after him.
The Alpine Club Museum in Innsbruck, Austria is a museum dedicated to the history of alpinism. Located in the Hofburg in the Altstadt section of the city, the museum is owned by the Austrian Alpine Club (ÖAV). In 2009, the museum was assessed as "excellent" for the Tyrolean and Austrian Museum Prizes, and was also nominated for the European Museum Prize in 2010.
The Ladins are an ethnic group in northern Italy. They are distributed in several valleys, collectively known as Ladinia. These include the valleys of Badia and Gherdëina in South Tyrol, of Fassa in the Trentino, and Livinallongo and Ampezzo in the Province of Belluno. Their native language is Ladin, a Rhaeto-Romance language related to the Swiss Romansh and Friulian languages. They are part of Tyrol, with which they share culture, history, traditions, environment, and architecture.
Juval Castle is a medieval castle located at the entrance of the Schnalstal, in the Vinschgau, above the village of Naturns in the comune of Kastelbell-Tschars at around 1000 meters above sea level, in South Tyrol, northern Italy. It derives its name from the Latin name of the mountain, Mons Jovis.
