Page 25 - 2023 AMA Spring

TREKKING
Lieutenant Colonel Ruta Murniece
As HQ ARRC representative from Latvia, I was given a unique opportunity to explore some outstanding hiking trails in the world's most majestic mountains – the Dolomites.
This was my first hiking tour in the Dolomites. The mountains are stunning and fantastic to experience. They provide the ideal chance to breathe air deep into your lungs, whilst soaking up the strength and energy from wide-open spaces. The hikes were not guaranteed to be easy, with the heat and rocky terrain as obvious challenges, but luckily for our team the temperature was just right at around 20 degrees Celsius at the base of the climbs,
reducing significantly as we ascended. The trails seemed simple at times but could suddenly transform into steep narrow paths that wound their way up the mountains. Any hardship and trials on the hikes only made the views once you go to the top even more spectacular and rewarding.
Lt Col Ruta Murniece on one of the unique WWI Via Ferrata
‘The quantity and concentration of highly varied limestone formations is extraordinary in a global context, whilst the superbly exposed geology provides an insight into the recovery of marine life in the Triassic period after the greatest extinction event.’
The team heading off in search of their next via ferrata adventure
“THE INSTRUCTOR ALWAYS GETS THE FINAL WORD”
Major Phil Garnett
The Dolomiti are a magical climber’s mecca with clean sheer rock hundreds of metres long, full day’s climbing and panoramic vista. Add in the hundreds of exquisite alpine-style via ferrata routes (that allows any novice to experience climbing), hiking in abundance with countless ski chalets offering fantastic accommodation, and cheap flights, topped off with a com- prehensive RockFax guidebook, and you have the makings of an expedition that you’ll be talking about for years. No wonder I found myself returning for the second time with Selva Backstop 22. Any fellow AMA members looking to organise a trip out there, drop me a line on MODNET for the real PXR.
‘The sublime, monumental and colourful landscapes of the Dolomites have long attracted hosts of travellers and a history of scientific and artistic interpretations of its values.’
ARMY MOUNTAINEER / 25
CLIMBING
Captain Jonny Edis
Exercise Selva Backstop was, for me, an opportunity to revisit some of the climbing skills that I had accrued during my time in the military and test them in a new, exciting and challenging environment. The exercise started a week early for the climbers. We were put through our paces in the Wye Valley with two days of ‘remind and revise’ training, progressing quickly back through bottom roping to single and multi-pitch climbs. This proved to be an excellent opportunity to restore some muscle memory and double check drills, and one that paid off in Italy the following week.
There are few better places to climb than the Dolomites and none more scenic. We were spoiled with numerous climbing routes, exceptional views and plenty of places to stop for a coffee. All personnel who attended Selva Backstop managed to take part in at least one day of climbing and practice their climbing techniques and belaying, but the aforementioned climbers were also able to expand on their training from the
The beauty of the Italian Dolomites
Wye Valley and conduct a number of challenging and intimi- dating multi-pitch routes.
An excellent week of climbing; it has inspired me to pursue courses with the Adventurous Training Group and hopefully return to the Dolomites for more climbing!