On the summit of Mount Rite, 2183 meters high, is the Messner Mountain Museum Dolomites by Reinhold Messner. Set up in a fort from the Great War, the "Museum in the Clouds" tells the story of exploration and mountaineering in the Dolomites...The Dolomites were declared a #UNESCO Heritage for the uniqueness and beauty of their landscape... #tuttitaly
Here we are on an excursion to Monte Rite, having as a destination the Italian fort of the Great War, the Messner Mountain Museum Dolomites dedicated to rock: to Dolomite mountaineering and its exploration.
Our route starts from the Forcella Cibiana and climbs along the south side of Monte Rite.
During the summer, taking advantage of the shuttle service that starts from the Forcella Cibiana and leads to the top of the mountain is possible. We did it on foot when Kevin, my son, was about 5-6, so it's nice to venture this way too.
Respecting a little the times of an adult and a little the times of a child, it took us at least two hours to get to the top of the mountain, to the fort. The satisfaction is great, but the splendid 360 ° panorama repays every effort.
From the top, the view sweeps over Pelmo, Civetta, Marmolada, Tofane, Sorapis, Antelao, Marmarole, Schiara, Agnèr, and Cimon della Pala.
The function of the fort
Given the strategic position of Monte Rite, which stands isolated on the side of the Boite Valley, with a wide range of action to the north towards Cortina and the Austro-Hungarian border, to the west on the Val Zoldana and the east towards the center of Cadore, the construction of the fort of the same name, so that the advance of the enemy could be stemmed.
Construction began in 1911 thanks to a cableway from Vodo. Subsequently, a road from Venas reached Forcella Cibiana and, therefore, the fort.
The Messner Mountain Museum Dolomites
The fort was transformed into a museum by the decision of the mountaineer Reinhold Messner and the Veneto Region, following a project developed by the University of Architecture of Venice. It has thus become the seat of the highest museum in Europe, the Cloud Museum.
The museum is open from 1 June to 30 September. Inside are works on the mountain donated by Messner: paintings from various eras, models of well-known mountain groups, and reproductions of typical mountain dwellings. We can also admire the reconstruction of some military environments of the Great War with furniture and furnishings.
In place of the steel domes, we now find glass structures that offer the opportunity to admire the surrounding landscape while remaining indoors.
The excursion to Monte Rite remains an unforgettable memory between history, art, culture, and nature.
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