Eric yn yr Alpau Alpau Eric Jones

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-The Alps, the highest mountains in

-Europe, stretch over 74,000 miles...

-..through eight countries.

-Home to 14 million people.

-I've travelled and climbed

-in the Alps for over 40 years.

-The Alps are under threat.

-The thousands of tourists who flock

-here have caused problems.

-The traditions and customs

-of the mountains may cease to exist.

-Languages and cultures

-are at risk.

-Hundreds of miles

-separate Wales and the Alps...

-..but comparisons can be made.

-We face similar problems.

-I shall journey

-through the mountains...

-..in search of a solution.

-From Summit To Soul

-The Alps were formed

-53 million years ago...

-..when the African continent

-collided with Europe.

-This is Dent du Geant,

-a peak in the Mont Blanc region.

-Mountaineering started in the Alps.

-This type of climbing

-is known worldwide as Alpinism.

-Jungfraujoch in Switzerland

-is 3,500 metres high.

-I've witnessed many changes here.

-There's been an amazing change

-in the last 40 years.

-At my first visit,

-donkeys carried food to the huts.

-Nowadays,

-a helicopter does everything.

-Mountaineering is much safer

-as a result.

-Years ago, in an accident...

-..it took ages to transport

-the injured to safety...

-..but it only takes a matter

-of minutes by helicopter.

-I've been associated

-with the Alps for years...

-..particularly

-the Matterhorn and Eiger mountains.

-As my interest

-in mountaineering grew...

-..I read about early pioneers,

-like Teray, Heckmair and Harrer.

-I felt a strong attraction

-to the Eiger.

-It's the highest wall in the Alps

-with an exciting history.

-The danger made it

-a challenging climb.

-I came here in September 1980...

-..and climbed the face alone

-in around 18 hours.

-To climb the north face

-of the Eiger and Matterhorn...

-..you must master rock climbing,

-deal with ice and snow...

-..and learn

-when to push forward or turn back.

-The ascents are long and dangerous,

-standing at 9,000 feet high.

-It calls for stamina

-and a bit of luck!

-It felt amazing to reach the peak

-on my own, after years of dreaming.

-It's the zenith

-of my climbing career.

-These are two Austrian climbers.

-As a tribute to those

-who climbed this peak...

-..a statue of the Madonna

-was erected on the summit.

-This is Mont Blanc,

-Europe's highest mountain.

-Our journey takes us

-from Mont Blanc to Italy...

-..then to Switzerland's

-Matterhorn and Eiger...

-..to Austria and back to Italy to

-the home of the King of Mountains.

-I want to know

-what's happening in the Alps...

-..how locals overcome the problems

-caused by the changing climate.

-With the increase

-in tourism and traffic...

-..pollution is worsening...

-..and resources like water

-become scarce.

-Farmers diversify and this has

-an adverse effect on agriculture.

-At my home near Snowdonia,

-we face similar problems.

-What can we do

-to overcome these problems?

-Our journey begins in Chamonix...

-..at the highest mountain

-of Western Europe - Mont Blanc.

-I've climbed here many times.

-I've scaled the most difficult

-climbs of the area on my own...

-..including the Central Pillar

-of Brouillard on the southern face.

-Nobody had climbed it before.

-A few of my friends

-must remain here forever.

-I consider the Alps to be a place

-of beauty, peace and adventure.

-However, they can often

-be dangerous and lethal.

-As I wander

-through this cemetery at Chamonix...

-..I'm amazed at the number

-of climbers who have died here.

-I've lost six friends

-on the mountains of Mont Blanc.

-George Bettenburg,

-Tom Hurley, Arthur De-Kusel....

-..Rick Knight, John Eastwood...

-..and Roger Baxter-Jones

-who is buried here.

-Roger worked with me at a climbing

-school at Zermatt for three years.

-In 1985, Roger went climbing

-with another friend...

-..a Canadian living in Zermatt

-called John Eastwood.

-They attempted the northern face

-of Triolet, south of Chamonix.

-Halfway up,

-a large piece of ice fell...

-..killing both of them

-and two Italians.

-It was a sad time,

-losing two friends.

-This is the grave of another friend,

-Arthur De-Kusel.

-In 1970, four of us

-were climbing in the Alps.

-Mick Coffey, Rick Knight,

-Arthur and me.

-One day, the four of us were going

-to climb the Grand Capucin...

-..near Mont Blanc du Tacul.

-At the last minute, Mick and I...

-..decided to delay

-the climb until the following day.

-Arthur and Rick opted to go ahead.

-That night, a horrific storm

-blew into the valley.

-The mountain was struck by lightning

-killing five mountaineers...

-..including Arthur and Rick.

-Mick and I were very fortunate

-not to have climbed...

-..or we would have been killed too.

-When a friend or climber

-is killed on a mountain...

-..I feel maybe mountaineering

-is not worth the risk...

-..but the enchantment and charm

-of the mountains is so compelling...

-..that I always return here.

-The thousands of tourists

-who frequently return here...

-..have changed

-the face of the Alps forever.

-In the 1940s, a small number of

-people lived in Deux Alpes, France.

-This is where the first

-ski centres were built...

-..but there are no communities here.

-In the 1950s, villages and holiday

-resorts seemed to appear overnight.

-Only 17% of the Alps

-is protected as a national park.

-Nobody worried about the environment

-but as the ice and snow melt...

-..new ideas are needed

-to attract tourists.

-This sort of tourism invests little

-in the future of local residents.

-In the Deux Alpes region...

-..cable cars enable entry

-to 3,600 metres of ski resorts.

-In the process

-of preparing the slopes...

-..the snow is polluted

-which quickens erosion.

-There are currently

-over 600 ski centres in the Alps...

-..but I fear half of these

-will close by 2050.

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-My journey through the Alps

-continues southwards...

-..to an area

-that has seen great depopulation.

-The next village is Sambuco

-in northern Italy.

-I'm meeting

-student Erich Giordano...

-..and his grandmother,

-Maria Bagnis, who farms.

-I'm meeting them at Sambuco,

-on the French Italian border...

-..in the Stura Valley,

-an area known as the Cottian Alps.

-These valleys experienced

-heavy migration in recent decades.

-SPEAKS ITALIAN

-Chamonix attracts

-many visitors and workers...

-..yet other regions

-experience extreme depopulation.

-A century ago,

-some 1,200 people lived here...

-..but nowadays

-there are fewer than 90.

-Erich Giordano published the oral

-traditions of the area in a book.

-Hello, I'm Erich.

-Hello, I'm Erich.

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-I'm also Eric!

-ITALIAN GREETINGS

-Here's one of the deserted villages

-- Narbona in the Grana Valley.

-It's beautiful, but Erich Giordano

-can see beyond the beauty.

-I agree that this is

-a beautiful area on the surface.

-It would be difficult

-to imagine any problems here...

-..but I am not afraid to express

-a critical view of the situation.

-You must be critical.

-One must also acknowledge the fact

-that many people have left...

-..so the prospects for the future

-are very bleak.

-Erich is a scientist and author.

-His main interest is the fate

-of his family's native tongue.

-The language is still used

-in the western region of Piedmont...

-..but it's in decline

-due to the influence of Italian.

-What made the people leave

-so suddenly?

-Erich returned to Narbona

-with a former resident.

-It appears that the residents

-left in haste, leaving everything.

-This village was a busy centre

-until some 40 years ago.

-Young people under 18 years of age

-feel trapped in an area like this.

-They don't want to stay here.

-They choose to leave in search of

-work and start a family elsewhere.

-Let's have something to eat.

-Let's have something to eat.

-

-Yes, maybe.

-Your grandmother doesn't speak

-English and I don't speak Italian.

-I've lived here all my life.

-When I speak to my children...

-..I'm pleased

-that we live in such a safe place.

-Those who move away

-achieve a higher standard of living.

-When I speak to them, I wonder

-if they've made the right choice.

-As I think of the future in the

-village and within the family...

-..I cannot foresee a new generation

-taking my place.

-My nephew - Adriano, is the last

-sheep breeder in Sambuco.

-It has been a family tradition

-for generations.

-His great-grandfather and

-grandfather were shepherds.

-As a result of depopulation,

-the wolves have returned...

-..endangering his livelihood

-and the future of the farm.

-In Narbona, Adriano

-was overwhelmed with homesickness.

-Why has everybody left?

-The young girls left

-to go and work in the cities.

-We'd lost touch

-with the outside world...

-..which made it difficult to stay.

-The winter was particularly hard.

-The women went into service

-in Turin...

-..and young people were steered away

-from our way of life.

-This landscape had its own cultural

-identity that formed over centuries.

-People have left in droves,

-leaving villages deserted.

-Back in Sambuco,

-I had another coffee...

-..before I bade farewell

-and resumed my journey.

-Depopulation has taken its toll

-on this region of the Alps.

-It's becoming a natural habitat

-for wild animals, like wolves.

-It's the age-long battle

-between urban and rural areas.

-It's an all too familiar story

-back in Wales.

-Young people flocking to the cities

-to seek employment...

-..causes problems in rural areas.

-There are fewer people

-available to work...

-..maintaining families

-and communities.

-I've witnessed this problem

-at Tremadog - my home.

-I leave Italy for Switzerland

-and travel to San Gottardo.

-It isn't a picturesque region

-but a thriving centre of trade.

-I'm meeting Martin Immenhauser.

-He was the manager at Sasso San

-Gottardo - an underground fort.

-Morning, Martin. I'm Eric.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Nice model you have here.

-Our Bernese Alps.

-Our Bernese Alps.

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-Yes, I recognize one or two of them.

-We have Eiger and Jungfrau.

-Is this is the Lauterbrunnen Wall?

-Is this is the Lauterbrunnen Wall?

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-Yes.

-During World War II, we were

-under threat from many directions.

-We built a network of underground

-caverns along the Alps...

-..to defend ourselves.

-The aim was to prevent

-other countries from attacking us.

-The fort at San Gottardo was

-the largest structure of its kind.

-The air purification and heating

-systems are still in operation.

-When it was closed in 1997,

-they sought an alternative function.

-The Gotthard Pass was crucial

-for transport in the Alps.

-That's why these forts were built.

-We have some skis here. I used to

-ski on this type when I was young.

-It's changed a lot.

-Less than a kilometre away

-from Gotthard stands another fort...

-..that's been refurbished as

-an underground restaurant and hotel.

-San Gottardo is more than a pass,

-it's a place in its own right.

-Transport has been important

-to the area for centuries.

-It's evident throughout the area

-in its roads and railways.

-This is one of the main themes of

-the scheme, inspired by transport.

-The image of the space changes

-with those who make use of it.

-This is definitely the most

-important route through the Alps.

-1,000 metres beneath the fort...

-..boring takes place

-at an immense speed.

-A tunnel is being built to connect

-the northern and southern Alps.

-The Gotthard Tunnel is the first

-high speed tunnel in Switzerland.

-It'll take an hour off the journey

-from Zurich to Milan.

-The scheme costs

-five billion euros...

-..and opens a new 180km route

-to include a 57km tunnel.

-A large number of major routes,

-both roads and railways...

-..run through this region

-of the Alps in Switzerland.

-We don't consider

-the risks involved.

-Despite the responsibilities,

-we are constantly aware...

-..that we do not own these passes,

-we merely tend them.

-The traditionally impoverished

-district of Surselva...

-..lies to the east of Gotthard.

-A lift will be built to carry people

-from the tunnel to the town.

-The project

-is known as the Porta Alpina.

-It's an entrance to the Alps as the

-station's directly beneath Surselva.

-This would be the world's highest

-lift and could transform the region.

-These pioneering schemes

-aim to reduce pollution...

-..and improve transport.

-In the next programme,

-I travel to Switzerland...

-..and Zermatt, where I was a

-climbing instructor for five years.

-The Matterhorn fills the valley.

-I've scaled it seven times,

-twice up the northern face.

-It's an amazing mountain

-and a symbol of the Alps.

-S4C subtitles by Tinopolis

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