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0:00:04 > 0:00:10- The Alps, the tallest mountains in - Europe stretch over 74,000 miles...
0:00:10 > 0:00:14- ..through eight countries - and is home to 14 million people.
0:00:16 > 0:00:21- The Alps are under threat - due to the thousands who flock here.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28- Hundreds of miles - separate Wales and the Alps...
0:00:28 > 0:00:31- ..but comparisons can be made.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34- In a period - when we face similar problems...
0:00:34 > 0:00:37- ..I'll search for solutions.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46- The castle of the king of mountains
0:00:46 > 0:00:50- In this programme, - I'll visit the Eiger mountain...
0:00:50 > 0:00:53- ..and travel to Austria and Italy.
0:00:59 > 0:01:01- I meet a friend in Switzerland...
0:01:01 > 0:01:06- ..to see how tourism and culture - are encouraged to develop together.
0:01:10 > 0:01:13- I'm visiting a farmer in Austria...
0:01:14 > 0:01:18- ..and meet - the world's best climber...
0:01:18 > 0:01:20- ..at his castle in Tirol.
0:01:25 > 0:01:29- Eiger rises from the green fields - of Kleine Scheidegg.
0:01:30 > 0:01:35- Visitors watch the climbers - like an audience in a cinema.
0:01:37 > 0:01:42- Eiger isn't the tallest mountain - in the Alps, but it's well-known.
0:01:44 > 0:01:47- The north face - has a distinctive shape.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52- It's notoriously loose, so there's - a danger of falling rock and ice.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59- I came here in September 1980...
0:02:00 > 0:02:05- ..and climbed its face - in 18 hours on my own.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16- Eiger creates its own, - unique microclimate...
0:02:17 > 0:02:19- ..with storms - that start without warning.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24- Climbers often find themselves - in grave danger.
0:02:33 > 0:02:38- Following the first climb - of the northern face in 1938...
0:02:38 > 0:02:44- ..many have died scaling this - wall of loose rock, ice and snow.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04- After years of dreaming, - I reached the peak on my own...
0:03:05 > 0:03:06- ..and it felt amazing.
0:03:07 > 0:03:11- It was the zenith - of my climbing career.
0:03:19 > 0:03:23- People come from far and wide - to see the Eiger...
0:03:23 > 0:03:28- ..and travel on the train - that passes through the mountain.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39- Hannes Stahli is a former soldier - from Grindelwald...
0:03:40 > 0:03:45- ..but earns a living as a climber, - mountain guide and stonemason.
0:03:49 > 0:03:51- Hello, Hannes. My Friend.
0:03:51 > 0:03:54- Hello, Hannes. My Friend.- - Hello, Eric. Nice to see you.
0:03:57 > 0:04:02- Hannes claims that Eiger is an icon - for the Swiss and her visitors.
0:04:12 > 0:04:16- Eiger is an important mountain - for those visiting the Alps...
0:04:16 > 0:04:20- ..especially those interested - in climbing and mountaineering...
0:04:21 > 0:04:25- ..even if they do not want - to conquer the mountain itself.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30- She's close to the community...
0:04:30 > 0:04:35- ..and easy to reach by train from - Grindelwald to Kleine Scheidegg.
0:04:35 > 0:04:37- You could almost touch it.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50- How has Switzerland, more than - any other country in the Alps...
0:04:51 > 0:04:54- ..gained world recognition...
0:04:54 > 0:04:56- ..as the true Alpine country?
0:05:02 > 0:05:07- Switzerland has the largest area - of land within the Alps.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11- Two thirds of Switzerland - lies in the Alps...
0:05:11 > 0:05:15- ..and do not belong to - France, Italy, Austria or Germany.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19- In Austria, - the Alps are not as high.
0:05:20 > 0:05:25- From a plane, - Switzerland is the heart of Europe.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30- This is why we are recognised...
0:05:31 > 0:05:33- ..and acknowledged - as an Alpine country.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46- The Alpine tradition - is important to the Swiss.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51- In the mountains, examples of this - can be seen to this day.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02- Certain images in the Alps - are unforgettable.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09- HORNS PLAY IN UNISON
0:06:45 > 0:06:49- We have a structure - to maintain tourism...
0:06:49 > 0:06:51- ..in the Jungfrau region.
0:06:51 > 0:06:56- Many other areas have developed over - a number of years thanks to tourism.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01- We differ from - those areas in France...
0:07:01 > 0:07:04- ..which have been developed - just for tourism...
0:07:05 > 0:07:08- ..because we have grown - and developed organically.
0:07:13 > 0:07:17- We have local residents who - make a living from other sources.
0:07:17 > 0:07:21- The focus of our lives - continues to be local...
0:07:22 > 0:07:25- ..as it has been for many centuries.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31- Some large areas - are empty and silent...
0:07:31 > 0:07:35- ..and this is how we want them - to remain - for a long time!
0:07:54 > 0:07:59- I think that the area in which - one is raised shapes your character.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02- Eric's character - was formed by Snowdonia...
0:08:03 > 0:08:07- ..and I was formed - by these mountains in Switzerland.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24- The tourist and agricultural - industries of Switzerland...
0:08:24 > 0:08:26- ..are at the mercy of the weather.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29- Hannes and his kind - expect hardship...
0:08:29 > 0:08:32- ..but the recent times - have been unusual.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44- Today's weather is very strange - - it's more extreme.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48- It can either be hot and very dry...
0:08:48 > 0:08:51- ..or extremely cold and wet.
0:08:55 > 0:09:00- Two years ago, we had floods - that drowned half of the village.
0:09:00 > 0:09:03- We had never experienced floods - of this kind before.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11- The changing weather - has affected the mountains.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16- The safe climbing periods are - shorter due to frequent avalanches.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22- I know from experience - the might of an avalanche.
0:10:12 > 0:10:17- Many climbers are killed each year - by avalanches in the Alps.
0:10:19 > 0:10:21- Sometimes, - entire villages are buried.
0:10:22 > 0:10:27- Last summer, six young soldiers - were killed on Eiger by the snow.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38- Grindelwald will always have - a place in my heart.
0:10:38 > 0:10:43- Their ideas and common sense - of using and promoting tourism...
0:10:43 > 0:10:46- ..yet ensuring other means of income - is a lesson to learn.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58- Next, I'm going to visit - a unique farm in Austria...
0:10:58 > 0:11:03- ..and meet the climber who scaled - Everest with me some 30 years ago.
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0:11:11 > 0:11:11- 888
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0:11:20 > 0:11:24- Differing from those who know - the perils of living in the Alps...
0:11:25 > 0:11:29- ..city dwellers have - a romantic image of the mountains.
0:11:33 > 0:11:36- They explore the waterfalls...
0:11:36 > 0:11:39- ..heavy woodlands - and beautiful valleys.
0:11:42 > 0:11:45- These stem from the Romantic era.
0:11:46 > 0:11:50- In the final leg of my trip, I'll - visit a farm in the southern Alps...
0:11:51 > 0:11:54- ..before going - to the Tirol in Italy.
0:11:59 > 0:12:02- It's a tough life for farmers - in the southern Alps.
0:12:02 > 0:12:07- Some think it's impossible to make - a living on these rocky slopes.
0:12:08 > 0:12:13- Josef Holzer has spent a lifetime - farming on the Austrian Alps.
0:12:13 > 0:12:17- He fears that he will be - the last of his family to do so.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34- I call these - the perennial Holzer farms.
0:12:35 > 0:12:40- I tend to the land in a way - that works in harmony with nature.
0:12:41 > 0:12:46- One must be cautious of the natural - symbiotic relationship of plants.
0:12:49 > 0:12:51- In one of the coldest - Austrian regions...
0:12:52 > 0:12:55- ..Josef Holzer - has grown lemons and grapes...
0:12:55 > 0:13:01- ..despite an average annual - temperature of four degrees Celsius.
0:13:03 > 0:13:04- He has a variety of plants...
0:13:05 > 0:13:08- ..using seeds that are to be planted - in poor soil...
0:13:09 > 0:13:12- ..and restarts - the fertilisation process.
0:13:15 > 0:13:17- He rears pigs for their meat...
0:13:17 > 0:13:22- ..which, in turn, rummage through - the rocky ground in search for food.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25- No money or time is wasted.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30- All he has to do is plant the seeds.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38- It's a Garden of Eden - in the icy Alps.
0:13:47 > 0:13:52- By avoiding chemicals or expensive - machinery and working with nature...
0:13:52 > 0:13:55- ..he's proved - that you can live well...
0:13:56 > 0:13:58- ..whilst caring for the environment.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04- He planted crops of barley - where they wouldn't normally grow.
0:14:06 > 0:14:11- I wonder if schemes of this kind - would work in Wales?
0:14:16 > 0:14:21- I've left Innsbruck in Austria - and am climbing the Brenner Pass.
0:14:22 > 0:14:27- Forty years ago, I would travel - this route every summer...
0:14:27 > 0:14:30- ..en route to climb the Dolomites.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34- At that time, - there were terrible traffic jams.
0:14:34 > 0:14:38- It would take four or five hours - to travel a mere 20-mile journey.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42- They were building the motorway - at that time.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49- These days, - the motorway is very busy...
0:14:49 > 0:14:52- ..carrying hundreds of vehicles - each hour...
0:14:53 > 0:14:55- ..and this road is quiet.
0:14:57 > 0:15:01- This valley is highly polluted - due to the traffic.
0:15:01 > 0:15:02- In this valley...
0:15:03 > 0:15:07- ..the petrol stations - and restaurants have closed.
0:15:08 > 0:15:13- There's less work or profit - for the local residents.
0:15:24 > 0:15:30- I first heard - about Reinhold Messner in 1965.
0:15:33 > 0:15:39- The climbing magazines had a story - about a young climber from Tirol...
0:15:39 > 0:15:43- ..who did some amazing climbs - in the Dolomites.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46- Climbers were cynical about him...
0:15:46 > 0:15:51- ..and wondered how this rock climber - would cope with the Western Alps...
0:15:51 > 0:15:57- ..and her large ice and snow climbs.
0:15:57 > 0:16:02- A year later, Messner - went to the Mont Blanc region...
0:16:02 > 0:16:05- ..and did some amazing climbs - on ice and snow.
0:16:13 > 0:16:19- I met him when I accompanied - Leo Dickinson and his film crew...
0:16:19 > 0:16:23- ..to film Reinhold in his attempt - of the southern face of Dhaulagiri.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31- A year later, we went to Everest.
0:16:31 > 0:16:37- Reinhold and Peter Haberler were set - to scale Everest without oxygen.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40- They were successful.
0:16:45 > 0:16:50- I filmed them at 8,000 metres - when they came down from the peak.
0:16:52 > 0:16:56- This climb was very important - in the history of mountaineering.
0:16:59 > 0:17:05- In my opinion, Reinhold Messner - went down in history...
0:17:05 > 0:17:08- ..as the greatest mountaineer - of all time.
0:17:28 > 0:17:32- I'm finally making my way - along this steep and narrow road...
0:17:32 > 0:17:36- ..to Reinhold Messner's home - which is a castle.
0:17:37 > 0:17:40- It's apt for the king of mountains.
0:18:00 > 0:18:01- Hello, Eric!
0:18:01 > 0:18:03- Hello, Eric!- - Hello, Reinhold.
0:18:04 > 0:18:05- Still alive?
0:18:05 > 0:18:06- Still alive?- - Just about.
0:18:11 > 0:18:14- Eight different nations - control the Alps...
0:18:14 > 0:18:18- ..and of all these nations, - it's the people of the city...
0:18:18 > 0:18:20- ..who make decisions about the area.
0:18:21 > 0:18:26- They decide where development - is needed, but I don't like it.
0:18:26 > 0:18:30- City culture - is destroying the mountains.
0:18:30 > 0:18:34- I think we should decide - what takes place here.
0:18:38 > 0:18:41- It's a massive problem, - as it is in Wales.
0:18:41 > 0:18:46- How do you ensure that traditional - methods continue and flourish...
0:18:46 > 0:18:50- ..and take advantage of tourism - that doesn't destroy the culture?
0:19:05 > 0:19:09- I'm not against tourism - - I like tourists...
0:19:09 > 0:19:12- ..but if you want to use the Alps - as a business...
0:19:12 > 0:19:15- ..they must be used sensibly.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19- Where's your wife from?
0:19:19 > 0:19:20- Where's your wife from?- - Vienna.
0:19:21 > 0:19:26- Reinhold offered to show us - his traditional farm.
0:19:27 > 0:19:30- THEY SPEAK ITALIAN
0:19:40 > 0:19:44- We produce good wine on a site - where a vineyard didn't even exist!
0:19:44 > 0:19:47- We're now building a vineyard - near the castle.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50- It's much higher than any other...
0:19:50 > 0:19:54- ..but I'm sure there'll be - higher vineyards in a hundred years.
0:19:54 > 0:19:59- This is both good and bad - because we'll have a water problem.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02- Water is needed on the mountain.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06- The water that irrigates the - vineyard comes from the glaciers.
0:20:06 > 0:20:10- If the glaciers disappear - and we have a dry summer...
0:20:10 > 0:20:13- ..it would be difficult - to get water to the vineyard.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17- We must learn how to cope.
0:20:25 > 0:20:31- It takes me back to my childhood - - we had pigs when I was a boy.
0:20:38 > 0:20:42- Reinhold's greatest fear is that - the city folk want to tame the Alps.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50- Everything has changed.
0:20:50 > 0:20:53- City-dwellers - do not fear the mountain.
0:20:53 > 0:20:58- The tourist office has eliminated - all talk of the dangers of the Alps.
0:20:59 > 0:21:03- We should stop and close - the cable cars on the glaciers.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06- I think the glaciers are sacred.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10- We should protect them - in the best way we can.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14- We should preserve - our special culture.
0:21:34 > 0:21:39- Tourists will come here if - we have something amazing to offer.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44- They enjoy our farms, - forests and fields...
0:21:44 > 0:21:49- ..but above these, - at 2,400 metres high...
0:21:49 > 0:21:51- ..stand the mountains.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53- Those who can venture higher...
0:21:53 > 0:21:57- ..should learn - to deal with the dangers...
0:21:57 > 0:22:01- ..the erratic weather, - snow and avalanches.
0:22:01 > 0:22:03- These dangers - should not be dismissed.
0:22:05 > 0:22:08- The mountain is a natural wall...
0:22:09 > 0:22:11- ..that reminds us of a danger...
0:22:11 > 0:22:15- ..that cannot be controlled.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25- Messner has a great influence - over the Alps as a famous climber...
0:22:25 > 0:22:28- ..and former European - Member of Parliament.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32- Will they listen to his ideas?
0:22:50 > 0:22:53- I've enjoyed my journey - and learnt a lot.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56- I've met the wonderful people - of the Alps...
0:22:57 > 0:23:02- ..the country folk, descendants - of those who have shaped the Alps.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08- I met people from many remote areas - and small villages...
0:23:08 > 0:23:10- ..with a wealth of knowledge...
0:23:10 > 0:23:13- ..who through variety - and hard work...
0:23:13 > 0:23:16- ..try to ensure the Alps' future.
0:23:19 > 0:23:23- Global warming means that - we must care for the environment.
0:23:26 > 0:23:30- Tourism is important, but - one shouldn't depend on it too much.
0:23:31 > 0:23:33- The Alps, - like the Welsh mountains...
0:23:34 > 0:23:37- ..should be a place of enjoyment.
0:23:39 > 0:23:42- However, one must respect - local residents...
0:23:43 > 0:23:45- ..their culture and way of life.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27- S4C subtitles by Tinopolis
0:24:28 > 0:24:29- .