Record run along the renewed Via Alpina
Across the Alps on foot: British endurance athlete Jake Catterall covered more than 2,000 kilometres and 100,000 metres in altitude in just 35 days. He ran the renewed red route of the Via Alpina in record time - he started in Trieste/I on 8 July 2024 and reached Monaco on 12 August.
Endurance athlete Jake Catterall crossed the Alps on the Via Alpina: "That's about 50 marathons and 12.5 times the height of Mount Everest," explains Catterall. He also passed through Liechtenstein, which is home to the CIPRA International office and the Via Alpina secretariat. "We think what Jake is doing is great - after all, he wants to use activities like this to encourage others to have more confidence in themselves," says Via Alpina coordinator Nora Leszczynski, who cheered Jake on along the way. "We therefore presented him with a T-shirt with the message 'Run the change', in line with Via Alpina's message to walk the path of change towards a sustainable future together - or even run it!" Catterall documented his unique run along the Via Alpina on social media. "The many huts along the way make the Via Alpina unique," says Catterall. Without these huts, the helpful people there and the great team that accompanies him, this project would not have been possible.
The Via Alpina, the long-distance hiking trail across the Alps
Well-signposted, safe hiking trails from Trieste/I to Monaco: this is the Via Alpina long-distance transalpine hiking trail – an implementation project of the Alpine Convention for over two decades now – which runs like a thread through all eight Alpine countries and which, as of this year, has a new website that simplifies individual tour planning and offers information on the Via Alpina project, as well as providing numerous testimonials from hikers. A hike along the Via Alpina makes Alpine-wide challenges such as the climate crisis and overtourism tangible. At the same time, hikers can expect unique experiences along the way as well as impressive natural, cultural and linguistic diversity. “Supporting the local economy, cross-border exchanges between Alpine countries and further development of sustainable tourism – these are the core values of the Via Alpina, which celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2025”, Leszczynski explains.
Via Alpina: www.via-alpina.org | www.instagram.com/viaalpina/
Trail runner Jake Catterrall: www.jakecatterall.com | www.instagram.com/jakecatterall/
Further information
Via Alpina reborn with a new look
Via Alpina Explorer 2022
