She is a physiotherapist from Pesarohe a Breton carpenter. What they have in common Manuela Ferri and Rivael Guiheux, in addition to being born on the sea? The love for the mountains. They met while practicing trials, running in the midst of nature. In June they will begin a great adventure together: the management of a refuge at almost 2000 meters above sea level – the Peller, in the Val di Non, the northernmost part of the Brenta Group -, winning a announcement with which they defeated the competition of 13 other candidates, including those from Trentino and even a local consortium.
“The sea is in our blood, but we have the mountain in our hearts. The idea has always attracted us, we started talking about it when the Nuvolau refuge announcement came out. From that moment we committed ourselves to creating a real project: we had already tried when the opportunity arose for a refuge not far from where we live, Torrebelvicino (in the province of Vicenza), until they gave the Peller refuge to us for five years”.
A refuge that has a long history: rebuilt several times, it is very popular with the inhabitants of Val di Non and Val di Sole, but they also come many foreign tourists attracted by the mountain bike routes. While hikers can choose between various proposals: from the circular tour around Monte Peller to longer routes that reach the central Brenta: Grostè, Stoppani refuge, Madonna di Campiglio, Lake Tovel”.
“Why did they choose us? They were struck by our enthusiasm and our intention to involve the whole family in management: in addition to me and my partner, we will be joined by three of our four children, my brother and my sister-in-law. Behind the romantic idea there is concrete support”. In a refuge you have to take care of everything, from energy management, which is autonomous with solar panels for electricity and hot water, to water management: there are collection tanks for rainwater because Mount Peller has no springs. There are 33 beds for guests, in addition to the area reserved for staff. In the internal room there are 50 seats for eating, in addition to the external benches with another forty seats. A shelter mainly summer, with the possibility of opening in winter, frequented by those who go snowshoeing and ski mountaineering. Furthermore, there is a bivouac that is always open even in the winter season, with 7 beds, stove and kitchenette.
“We have been great frequenters of refuges and we have many friends who do this work and have given us valuable advice, as well as having the strong support of the Tridentine Alpinists Society of Cles. They are the ones who chose us. The real spring? At 50 I could no longer imagine myself still closed within four walls, I prefer the mountain air and I’m making a dream come true. Our children are happy to share this adventure with us, a new challenge to experience together: we already have reservations, the Germans were the first to show up. We will respect tradition, offering dishes prepared with raw materials linked to these areas. But we will also propose some new things, with wellness-related events such as themed days on herbalism and lo yoga. We will also organize trails around Mount Peller”. After all, this is how these two special souls met.
