The via ferratas of the Dolomites “were born” after the war, largely retracing those rocky paths that served the military to reach a strategic outpost or the top of a mountain, taking advantage of the easier and less exposed passages. Even today it is possible to see and explore trenches, caves or artifacts from the First World War (1915-18). The route today is well equipped with a metal rope fixed in the rock by sturdy metal nails that ensure the hiker’s passage and are monitored seasonally by qualified people. The via ferrata in the Dolomites are of varying difficulty, length and physical effort. The easiest are called “ferrata path” where the hiker always walks along a rocky path protected by a metal rope on the most exposed passages. The via ferrata instead climbs along a more or less vertical rocky wall where the hiker can secure and help himself with the metal rope.
