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Italy’s Remote Alpine Shelter

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One of the most striking remnants of World War I in Italy’s Dolomite Mountains is a compact alpine shelter that was constructed over 2,700 meters above sea level.

Italian soldiers used it to escape explosions, fire fights, and other calamities triggered by heavy fighting with Austro-Hungarian forces at the base of the mountain. The alpine shelter is built into the side of a vertical mountain peak on Monte Cristallo.

From a distance, the shelter appears completely inaccessible. Soldiers created a via ferrata—or secured climbing route—to scale the steep mountain, featuring a series of pathways and ladders that allow hikers to use harnesses and other special equipment to fasten themselves to cables so that they have a better chance of avoiding injury.
 

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