Sella Nevea ( fur, Nevee, german: Neveasattel, sl, Na Žlebeh), at an altitude of , is a high mountain pass in the

Julian Alps The Julian Alps ( sl, Julijske Alpe, it, Alpi Giulie, , ) are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps that stretch from northeastern Italy to Slovenia, where they rise to 2,864 m at Mount Triglav, the highest peak in Slovenia. A large p ...

, in the

Friuli-Venezia Giulia (man), it, Friulana (woman), it, Giuliano (man), it, Giuliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_t ...

region of northeast

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. Sella Nevea also lends its name to a ''

frazione A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate territ ...

'' of the Chiusaforte municipality and the nearby Kanin-Sella Nevea Ski Resort.

Geography

The mountain pass is located between the Montasio massif in the north and Mt. Kanin in the south, in the

Province of Udine The province of Udine ( it, provincia di Udine, fur, provincie di Udin, sl, videmska pokrajina, Resian: , german: Provinz Weiden) was a province in the autonomous region Friuli-Venezia Giulia of Italy, bordering Austria and Slovenia. Its capita ...

near the border with

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...

. The pass road connects Chiusaforte via the steep Raccolana valley in the southwest with

Cave del Predil Cave del Predil (german: Raibl, sl, Rabelj) is a ''frazione'' subdivision of the ''comune'' of Tarvisio in the Province of Udine, in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of northeastern Italy. Geography The hamlet is located about 15 km (9 ...

and

Tarvisio Tarvisio ( German and fur, Tarvis, sl, Trbiž) is a comune in the northeastern part of the autonomous Friuli Venezia Giulia region in Italy. Geography The town is in the Canal Valley (''Val Canale'') between the Carnic Alps and Karawanks ra ...

in the north. Sella Nevea is part of a European Watershed dividing the basin of the

Tagliamento The Tagliamento () is a braided river in north-east Italy, flowing from the Alps to the Adriatic Sea at a point between Trieste and Venice. The Tagliamento river is considered as the last morphologically intact river in the Alps. (Its c ...

river, running southwards to the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...

, from the Slizza creek in the north, which is part of the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , ...

catchment area. About 10 km (6 mi) north of the pass is the picturesque Lago del Predil, a popular destination for canoeing, wind-surfing, and other water sports. Sella Nevea offers facilities and equipment for winter sports, such as

alpine skiing Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether ...

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreatio ...

snowboarding, and ice skating. In the summer, the location is used as a base for mountain trekking and rock climbing.

History

For centuries, the Sella Nevea mountain pass marked the border between the ''

Domini di Terraferma The ( vec, domini de terraferma or , ) was the hinterland territories of the Republic of Venice beyond the Adriatic coast in Northeast Italy. They were one of the three subdivisions of the Republic's possessions, the other two being the origina ...

'' territories of the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...

and the Imperial

Duchy of Carinthia The Duchy of Carinthia (german: Herzogtum Kärnten; sl, Vojvodina Koroška) was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, and was the first newly created Imperial St ...

in the north. Incorporated into the Austrian

Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia The Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia ( la, links=no, Regnum Langobardiae et Venetiae), commonly called the "Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom" ( it, links=no, Regno Lombardo-Veneto, german: links=no, Königreich Lombardo-Venetien), was a constituent land ...

from 1815, the former Venetian territory in the south finally became part of the newly established

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia was proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to an institutional referendum to abandon the monarchy and ...

upon the

Third Italian War of Independence The Third Italian War of Independence ( it, Terza Guerra d'Indipendenza Italiana) was a war between the Kingdom of Italy and the Austrian Empire fought between June and August 1866. The conflict paralleled the Austro-Prussian War and resulted in ...

in 1866. The remote border region remained an agricultural area. In the late 19th century, the mountaineer

Julius Kugy Julius Kugy (19 July 1858 – 5 February 1944) was a mountaineer, writer, botanist, humanist, lawyer and officer of Slovenian descent. He wrote mostly in German. He is renowned for his travelogues from opening up the Julian Alps, in which he refl ...

(1858–1944) described it as a "forest paradise". In

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, however, the Italian Front ran along Sella Nevea, while the bloody

Battles of the Isonzo The Battles of the Isonzo (known as the Isonzo Front by historians, sl, soška fronta) were a series of 12 battles between the Austro-Hungarian and Italian armies in World War I mostly on the territory of present-day Slovenia, and the remainde ...

raged nearby. When in late 1917

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

forces were able to break into the Italian front line during the

Battle of Caporetto The Battle of Caporetto (also known as the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo, the Battle of Kobarid or the Battle of Karfreit) was a battle on the Italian front of World War I. The battle was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Central ...

, they also rolled over the top of the pass, nevertheless, they again moved out of the area after the Austrian defeat at the

Battle of Vittorio Veneto The Battle of Vittorio Veneto was fought from 24 October to 3 November 1918 (with an armistice taking effect 24 hours later) near Vittorio Veneto on the Italian Front during World War I. After having thoroughly defeated Austro-Hungarian troops ...

one year later. By the 1919

Treaty of Saint-Germain A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pers ...

, the area of Cave del Predil (''Raibl'') and Tarvisio (''Tarvis'') north of the pass also fell to Italy.

Ski resort

Tarvisio Rio del Lago Sella Nevea Kabinenbahn zum Monte Canin 10032015 0522

The beginning of the ski area date back to the 1930s, while the present-day Sella Nevea ski resort and hotel village started about 1965, when by resolution of the Chiusaforte municipal council plans for the first ski runs were developed. Considered as "snow-reliable", the area was projected to be a heaven for winter sports, including cable transport to the Celso Gilberti mountain hut at Mt. Kanin, several

surface lift A surface lift is a type of cable transport for snow sports in which skiers and snowboarders remain on the ground as they are pulled uphill. While they were once prevalent, they have been overtaken in popularity by higher-capacity and higher ...

s and a hotel complex. However, Sella Nevea's development suffered a serious setback after a series of avalanches struck it in March 1975. In 1980, the company that managed the ski runs went bankrupt. In the 1990s, Sella Nevea's ski runs fell under the control of ''Promotur'', a state-owned but independent company, which took charge of all five main regional ski resorts. The Sella Nevea resort suffered from neglect that caused it to lose popularity. Promotur said repeatedly that despite the potential of the location, nothing further have been done to arrest its decline. In 2001, preventive measures against avalanches were finally completed. While Sella Nevea was excluded from the

2003 Winter Universiade The 2003 Winter Universiade, the XXI Winter Universiade, took place in Tarvisio, Italy. Total 1,266 athletes from 41 countries performed at the Tarvisio 2003 Winter Universiade in Italy. Venues Tarvisio * Alpine skiing * Cross-country skiing ...

in Tarvisio, the location grew in popularity as a ski racing training camp. It acquired a reputation for uncrowded slopes.

Connection to Bovec

In 2005, it was announced that Sella Nevea will receive substantial funds to replace outdated ski equipment, and that a cableway will be built that will connect it to the neighbouring Goriška municipality of

Bovec Bovec ( or ; , german: Flitsch, fur, Plèz) is a town in the Littoral region in northwestern Slovenia, close to the border with Italy. It is the central settlement of the Municipality of Bovec. Geography Bovec is located from the capital Ljubl ...

, one of the largest winter ski resorts in Slovenia. The cross-border link of the two resorts was completed in December 2009. It is now possible to ski at both resorts. Because both Italy and Slovenia are members of the European Schengen zone, skiers are able to cross the border between Italy and Slovenia freely, effectively merging the Sella Nevea and Bovec ski resorts into one large ski resort covering both sides of the Kanin mountain.

Notes and references

External links