There’s life in Alps During my last trail into the Alps, not far away from home, while climbing a steep path at 2000mt, not far away from a mountain refuge, I met a big old Ibex. It stood still right in the middle of the path, staring at me for a while. Just the time for me to take a picture, for it to warn of my presence its herd, which was not long away, and make them run away. Then it left the path and disappeared jumping quickly from rock to rock. Their speed and agility on rocky, steep and rough terrains are legendary. It’s not the first time I meet wild fauna on the Alps, while having trekking and trails: chamois, ibex, eagles, falcons and marmots are not unusual meetings into the mountains. But their number, which was rather small in past, is gradually increasing and these animals are becoming more and more common every day. And they are not scared of men anymore. This is, probably, the result of many successful campaigns for reintroduction and an increased care and sensibility for environment and wildlife. Just at the end of 1800, Ibex were almost completely disappeared from the Alps, and they were saved by the Italian monarchy. They created a natural hunting reserve in order to protect the animal (hunting was exclusive for the king), saving it from extinction. So, it’s a great pleasure encountering them in large herds on the side of our mountains.