Management of geomorphosites in high tourist vocation area: an example of Geo-Hiking maps in the Alpe di Fanes (Natural Park of Fanes-Senes-Braies, Italian Dolomites).
Hiking tourism, which combines sport activities and appreciation of Nature, is today one of the main economic activities and among the markets that will experience a great increase in the near future. This paper illustrates a methodology to develop a thematic map, the “geo-hiking map”, which emphasises only the landscape elements that the tourist can recognise and observe, as well as the possible hazards. The geo-hiking map derives from the combination between the geo-tourist map and the geomorphological-hazard map: the first one is a map of geomorphosites enriched with useful indication for tourists (signed paths, refugees, camps etc.); the second one shows hazard levels of different landslide types, snow avalanches and floods. A prototype case study has been chosen within the Natural Park of Fanes-Senes-Braies (Dolomites, Italy). The area has a strong hiking-tourism vocation thanks to its spectacular high-mountain landscape and a dense network of hiking tracks. This innovative study could represent an important instrument for a responsible and safe fruition of high-mountain tourist areas: it combines a cultural dimension of the geomorphological landscape with a conscious respect of its natural behaviour
