The Antonio Locatelli hut (German: ''Dreizinnenhütte'', literally "three peaks' hut") is a mountain refuge located in the Tre Cime Natural Park in Alto Adige-South Tyrol, Italy. It sits at an altitude of 2,450 meters (8,038 feet).

Toponymy

The Antonio Locatelli hut (German: Dreizinnenhütte) is named after

Antonio Locatelli Antonio Locatelli (19 April 1895 – 27 June 1936) was a pioneering Italian aviator and National Fascist Party legislator. He served in Gabriele d'Annunzio's air squadron during the war against Austria and was decorated. After the war, he becam ...

who was born in

Bergamo Bergamo ( , ; ) is a city in the Alps, alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from the alpine lakes Lake Como, Como and Lake Iseo, Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Lake Garda, Garda and Lake ...

on April 17, 1895. He was a highly decorated aviator, the only Italian soldier to receive three gold medals for military valor. Locatelli was also a journalist, politician, mountaineer, and the president of the Club Alpino Italiano ( CAI) of Bergamo at the time of his death. Locatelli's illustrious career included significant contributions during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

as a pilot in military aviation. His daring exploits, such as participating in the famous flight over

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

with D'Annunzio, made him a well-known figure. Despite being shot down and captured on September 15, 1918, Locatelli managed to escape after a few weeks, disguised as an Austrian soldier. Tragically, Locatelli died on June 27, 1936, in the Lechemti massacre during the Ethiopian War. To honor his memory, a statue of the Virgin of Loreto, the patron saint of airmen, is housed inside the refuge. The hut, located in the Tre Cime Natural Park in Alto Adige-South Tyrol, stands as a tribute to his remarkable life and achievements.

History

In 1881, Karl Stemberger, the owner of the Post Hotel in

Sexten Sexten (; ) is a ''comune'' and a village in South Tyrol in northern Italy. The village is famous as a summer and winter sport resort in the mountains. Linguistic distribution According to the 2024 census, 92.37% of the population speak Germa ...

, proposed the construction of a refuge for the '' Deutscher und Österreichischer Alpenverein'', (the German and Austrian Alpine Club) near the Toblin pass. The members of the club were captivated by the panoramic views of the Tre Cime di Lavaredo, Mount Paterno, and the surrounding mountains. Motivated by the breathtaking scenery, they decided to build the shelter at the pass.Hanspaul Menara: ''Südtiroler Schutzhütten.'' 2. Auflage. Athesia, Bozen 1983, , p. 80-83, 162-163. Karl Stemberger oversaw the construction work, while the project was designed by the president of the section, engineer Rienzner from

Toblach Toblach (; ) is a ''comune''/''Gemeinde'' (municipality) in South Tyrol in Northern Italy, located in the Puster Valley about northeast of the city of Bolzano, on the border with Austria. Geography As of November 30, 2010, it had a population ...

. The work began in the spring of 1882. In two months, the equipment was available, and a simple one-storey building was installed, built with cut stones and a sloping roof. The ground floor of the small shelter included an equipped room with an integrated kitchen, two tables, benches, and chairs. Adjacent to this main room was a door leading to a second room, which served as sleeping quarters for the shepherds. An external staircase on the east side of the building provided access to the attic, which contained up to ten beds.Annemarie Maurer, Margareth Pallhuber, Ulrike Lanthaler: ''Naturparke in Südtirol. Naturerlebnis drinnen und draußen'', 2004, p. 18 The shelter was to be open for autumn, but the weather was not favorable. In fact, in September 1882, a flood occurred in the upper

Puster Valley The Puster Valley ( ; , ) is one of the largest longitudinal valleys in the Alps that runs in an east-west direction between Lienz in East Tyrol, Austria, and Mühlbach near Brixen in South Tyrol, Italy. The South Tyrolean municipalities of th ...

. The inauguration was then postponed to 1883. For its realization, 1,250

florins The Florentine florin was a gold coin (in Italian ''Fiorino d'oro'') struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains () of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a pu ...

were spent. The refuge was destroyed during the First World War by an Italian grenade. In 1922, a small refuge was rebuilt in place of the previous by the

South Tyrol Alpine Club The South Tyrol Alpine Club (, ), abbreviated AVS, is an association of German and Ladin-speaking mountain climbers in South Tyrol, northern Italy. Founded in 1946, it is subdivided into 36 sections and 58 local divisions. The AVS is based in Bol ...

. In 1923, the refuge was expropriated in favor of the CAI section of

Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...

, which planned a major restoration and expansion in 1935. Laghi_dei_Piani_-_rifugio_Locatelli

The new shelter was not renovated but was built in a slightly different position. A simple monument built on an edge of the former visible location recalls the previous structure. It also receives the complementary name of Sepp Innerkofler, a mountain guide in the Dolomites. At the refuge is a small chapel and two small lakes: the Piani lakes.

Access

The Locatelli refuge can be reached from the Auronzo refuge, connected to Misurina (a hamlet of Auronzo) by a toll road. The minimum walking time required to reach the Locatelli refuge from the Auronzo refuge (car park) is approximately 1h 20 '. The connection with

via the Fischlein Valley is more demanding. It can also be reached from Lake Landro in three hours. File:Drei Zinnen Hütte-Rifugion Locatelli 3.JPG, The Locatelli hut, and the Toblin Tower in the background. File:Dolomites2006-183.jpg, The Locatelli hut, and the Sasso di Sesto (on the left). File:Dreizinnenhuette02.jpg, The Locatelli hut. File:Tre cime inverno.JPG, The Tre Cime during winter, with the Locatelli hut in the foreground.

References

{{Reflist Buildings and structures in South Tyrol Buildings and structures completed in 1882 Mountain huts in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol 19th-century architecture in Italy