Borderland

Rifugio Carè Alto - "Dante Ongari" and the “Portatrici Adamelline”

"The soldiers fought the war but the women of Rendena did an incredible task with assiduous regularity" [Captain Heinrich von Jenni].

Laden with heavy equipment, they climbed the steep paths up from the Borzago Valley to the Adamello glaciers. These Portatrici Adamelline (literally Adamello Porters), were women from Val Rendena who, during the Great War, became 'Soldiers' for the Austro-Hungarian army. Wearing carpele on their feet, wooden clogs with metal studs on the soles to prevent slipping, a long skirt with deep pockets for a piece of polenta as their lunch, they covered two or three journeys a day carrying stones, ropes, and tools for the construction of the cableways.

They did this to survive and to bring home two loaves of bread and a few kronen a week, while the men emigrated to Italy or to the Russian front in the war. "I would set out from Sant'Antonio di Mavignola with a piece of polenta in my pocket for lunch; we would make two trips in the morning, and another in the afternoon in all weathers." These are the words of Giustina Ferrari of Pelugo, perhaps the oldest of the Porters.

A shrine with a mosaic, commissioned by the historian and engineer Dante Ongari, has today been dedicated to these extraordinary women at the entrance to Valle di Borzago: the starting point for all their journeys up into the mountains, up into the bitter cold, up to Rifugio Carè Alto in the Adamello-Presanella Group.

This site played a strategic role during the Great War, given its location close to the front line. Built in 1912 at 2,450 meters above sea level, it was a key support point for Austro-Hungarian Army troops fighting in the high mountains. Glaciers, ridges, harsh valleys and prohibitive weather conditions turned the entire surrounding area into a stage for battles and military operations on the very brink of survival.

Rifugio Contrin and its frescoed library

"Canta che ti passa!" (literally “Sing and you’ll be fine!”)

So reads an inscription that appears inside the large room of the Rifugio Reatto, right above the fireplace, while the walls are covered with a number of original illustrations by Beppe Novello (an artist who also illustrated Paolo Monelli's famous book "La guerra è bella ma è scomoda" — “War is great but it is uncomfortable”), an ironic tale of several episodes of the life of the Alpine soldiers during the war and military service.

Rifugio Reatto is now an annex of Rifugio Contrin, in Val di Fassa, used both for overnight stays and as a library. A magnificent natural amphitheatre, with the Marmolada in the background, that houses a tiny jewel, a little library with illustrated walls!

These two mountain huts are located at the foot of the south pillar of the Marmolada di Penia. The Contrin was built in 1897 by the Nuremberg Alpenverein and was occupied by the Austrian command during the First World War. On 6 September 1915, a mortar shell almost completely destroyed it. It was then rebuilt by the Italian Alpini soldiers at the end of the war and this marked the beginning of the close link between the ANA (National Alpini Association) and Rifugio Contrin. The new Rifugio Contrin was inaugurated in July 1923. A few years later, in 1930, two other new structures were built and inaugurated nearby, again thanks to the initiative of the Alpini: the shrine to the mountain’s dead soldiers (Cappella ai Caduti della Montagna) and the Rifugio Dei Lupi, now Rifugio Reatto, whose uniqueness is still enchanting.

The Rifugio Altissimo 'Damiano Chiesa' and Depero's drawing

Like many mountain huts, Rifugio Damiano Chiesa on Monte Altissimo has always had a Guest Book on show. And what is probably the first of these books, dating back to the early 1900s, was found in a dusty attic.  Pages from a priceless book (now preserved and available for consultation at the Biblioteca della montagna (Mountain Library) - SAT), which was also signed by some illustrious people. Prominent among the many annotations is one by the celebrated Futurist artist Fortunato Depero who, on 12 July 1914, wrote the phrase 'Linee - Forze (Futurismo)' in it, adding one of his drawings with his signature. Evidence of the presence of the so-called 'Futurists on bicycles' who took part in the decisive battle for the capture of Dosso Casina, an important position near Monte Altissimo. Another famous entry in the Guest Book is the phrase by Gabriele d'Annunzio 'Arm the prow and set sail for the world!', dating from 1907-1908. And then there are lots of pages of music, drawings and memories.

Sources:

[La guerra attorno al monte Carè Alto (The war around Mount Carè Alto) - Dante Ongari].

[Il Rifugio Contrin 1897 - 2012, National Alpine Association].

[Storia di un sodalizio - S.A.T. Mori (History of a partnership - S.A.T. Mori ) ]

[With thanks to Riccardo Decarli of the biblioteca della Montagna-SAT mountain library, for his valuable cooperation and information provided during the writing of this article].