Italian scientists travelling to measure Marmolada glacier ‘astonished’ when visitor overtook them on rocky path
Researchers monitoring a melting glacier on the Marmolada, the largest peak in the Italian Dolomites, said they were astonished to witness a tourist navigating one of its trails on a self-balancing scooter.
The group, from the University of Padua’s Museum of Geography, had been making their way down the mountain’s glacier of the same name after carrying out measurements on its retreat when they encountered the man on a path at an altitude of about 2,600 metres.
Giovanni Donadelli, one of the researchers, said the tourist had been trying to reach the front of the glacier, perhaps to “touch the ice and take a photo”. A video of the incident was shared on the museum’s Instagram account, attracting more than 600,000 views.
“I told him he wouldn’t be able to get up to the front on the unicycle,” said Donadelli. “But people take risks and this has been a problem throughout the Dolomites all summer.”
