Italy

Italy is not a flat country with a coast, but a spine with flanks. The Alps close off the north with glaciers and limestone peaks, and the Dolomites rise out of them like improbable steep rock cities. From there the Apennines run as a ridge from northwest to southeast, almost the whole length of the country, with beech forest, high plateaus and mountain huts that fill up in summer. Between the mountains and the sea lie the hills of Tuscany, Umbria and Piedmont. Elevation, not the beach, decides the direction of a long walk here. In the south of South Tyrol the Meraner Höhenweg follows an old high trail around the regional capital Merano, through meadows, orchards and mountain hamlets. In the west of the same province the Ortler Höhenweg circles the highest range of the region, with glaciers, high-alpine passages and huts above three thousand metres. Both routes walk hut to hut, with the best weather between late June and late September.