The history of the Alta Via Dolomiti Bellunesi began with a mention of a “TransParco” trek in a book published in 1994 by the Alpi Feltrine Cooperative.
Some 25 years later, a group of young men took up this trek and set about letting people know about it.
Transparco was the original name for this trek, which was initially plotted and described by Teddy Soppelsa in 1994 in a book published by the Alpi Feltrine Cooperative.
The Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park had just been established, on 12 July 1993. Teddy Soppelsa, Elena Luise, Roberto Luise, Juri Nascimbene and Fabio Padovan described its history and wealth and also suggested some routes to explore the area.
Amongst these, Teddy Soppelsa detailed a seven-stage trek from Forno di Zoldo to Feltre which brought together in one route the entire territory of the Park and took advantage of the network of trails already in existence.
Over time, the route was improved as new trails were developed, with the help of the Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park and CAI, the Italian Alpine Club. To improve the route of the trek, these trails were included in the project.
For example, hikers crossing the Val Cordevole now only have 1 kilometre of asphalt to cover instead of the 6 kilometres previously required.
In 1996, for the first time, the Mountain Wilderness Association and the National Park organised a trek guided by a geologist, a faunist and a botanist. The route used on this occasion was slightly different from the one described in the Transparco book.
This guided trek was recounted in the inaugural copy of Tracce, the Park’s magazine, with a journal of the days spent on the route.
One of the first sightings of a lynx inside the Park was actually made during this trek, in the section from the Rifugio Boz to Passo Finestra.
In 2017, CAI Feltre and the Dolomiti Bellunesi Park Authority relaunched a project created by a group of young men, all under 30, born and raised the valleys of Belluno, now called the Alta Via Dolomiti Bellunesi.
It was co-funded by the Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park and carried out by CAI Feltre together with the CAI groups based in Belluno, Longarone, Val di Zoldo, Oderzo and Agordo.
Key private partners such as AKU, Ferrino and Karpos were involved in getting the project under way. These companies financed some of the work and gave their support, along with other local businesses such as Dolpi – Eyewear Made in the Dolomites – and the local brewery, La Birreria Pedavena.
In 2018, a number of meetings were held with local associations, in particular the Centro Studi Montagna Sospirolese and Val di Zoldo Tourism Association. That summer the trails were marked, GPS tracks were recorded, photographs and video were taken. The work continued until the end of the year.
In 2019, the Alta Via Dolomiti Bellunesi became a reality!
