The Digital Cadastre of the Italian Hiking Network
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<h2>Understanding to Protect and Enhance Italy’s Trails</h2>
<p>
This Saturday, <time datetime="2025-09-13">September 13, 2025</time>, I will be in <strong>Cantiano</strong>,
guest at the conference organized by the CAI Pesaro section on the occasion of its 50th anniversary.
</p>
<p>
The theme of the day will be: <em>“The CAI Hiking Network and Inner Areas”</em>, and I will present a talk
dedicated to the <strong>Digital Cadastre of the Italian Hiking Network (REI)</strong>.
</p>
<p>
The event is open to everyone: it will be a great opportunity for discussion, and I invite those in the area to join.
</p>
<h2>What is the Italian Hiking Network</h2>
<p>
When we talk about the <strong>Italian Hiking Network (REI)</strong>, we refer to more than
<strong>150,000 km of trails</strong> crossing the Alps and the Apennines.
</p>
<p>
This is a huge heritage that the
<a href="https://www.cai.it" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Italian Alpine Club (CAI)</a> helps to manage and maintain
through the work of its volunteers: clearing and restoring trails, painting the red and white trail markers,
and installing vertical signposts.
</p>
<p>
It should be noted that <strong>not all trails of the REI are directly managed by CAI</strong>: many routes are handled by local authorities or other associations.
However, CAI has taken on a fundamental role in collecting and coordinating information on all the trails,
through the creation and maintenance of the <strong>digital Cadastre</strong>.
</p>
<p>
Another important aspect: the CAI trail signage — especially the well-known red and white markers and the signposts —
is the most widespread and recognized standard throughout Italy, used to mark trails in a uniform and readable way everywhere.
</p>
<figure style="text-align:center; margin: 2em 0;">
<img src="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0965/9108/5908/files/bandierina-bianco-rossa-cai.jpg?v=1757427506"
alt="CAI red and white trail marker painted on a tree along a hiking path"
style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; box-shadow:0 2px 6px rgba(0,0,0,0.2);">
<figcaption style="font-size:0.9em; color:#555; margin-top:0.5em;">
The typical red and white CAI trail marker, signage recognized across the entire Italian hiking network.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>
The <strong>REI Cadastre</strong> is not just a collection of GPS tracks, but a true <em>geographic database</em>.
In practice, this means that each trail is recorded on a digital map, with its route line and a descriptive sheet
containing key information: difficulty level, length, elevation gain, and a unique REI code that identifies it.
</p>
<h2>How the Digital Cadastre Was Created</h2>
<p>
Building a national archive of this kind was not an easy task. It required an open, collaborative system
capable of handling thousands of updates. The choice fell on
<a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/" rel="noopener" target="_blank"><strong>OpenStreetMap (OSM)</strong></a>,
the “Wikipedia of maps,” which allows anyone to add and update data.
</p>
<p>
The <a href="https://www.cai.it/organizzazione/strutture-operative/struttura-operativa-sentieri-e-cartografia-sosec/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">
SOSEC (Operational Structure for Trails and Cartography of CAI)</a> signed an agreement with
<a href="https://www.wikimedia.it/wikimedia-per-la-conoscenza-libera/wikimedia-per-open-mapping/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Wikimedia Italia</a>
and trained hundreds of volunteers across Italy. A dedicated platform (<em>OSM2CAI</em>) was also created to validate trails:
the data entered in OSM are compared with recent field surveys, and only after this verification do they become
part of the official Cadastre.
</p>
<p>
Thanks to this effort, today we can count <strong>over 14,000 certified trails</strong>,
for a total of about <strong>75,000 km</strong> of hiking network, available online on
<a href="https://infomont.cai.it/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Infomont</a>.
</p>
<h2>What is the REI Cadastre For</h2>
<p>
The digital Cadastre is not a static archive, but a dynamic tool useful for many:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<strong>Hikers</strong>: can rely on updated and accurate maps, also available in apps and derived cartographies.
</li>
<li>
<strong>CAI Sections</strong>: have a clear overview of the trails to be maintained and of intervention priorities.
</li>
<li>
<strong>Mountain Rescue</strong>: finds a precise reference to coordinate operations.
</li>
<li>
<strong>CAI Headquarters</strong>: can monitor the entire hiking heritage and identify critical issues.
</li>
</ul>
<p>
An important aspect: the Cadastre data are
<a href="https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/odbl/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">open data (ODbL license)</a>,
meaning that anyone can reuse and develop them. It is also thanks to this that today there are many applications
and maps dedicated to hikers. I myself, as a cartographer, use these data every day – together with OpenStreetMap –
to create my maps: both those signed <strong>MountainCarto</strong>, and numerous commissioned hiking maps
for institutions and associations.
</p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>
The <strong>REI Cadastre</strong> is unique at the international level: a collective effort that combines
volunteer work, open-source technology, and a passion for the mountains.
</p>
<p>
On Saturday in Cantiano, I will have the pleasure of sharing this experience on behalf of SOSEC: I am not a direct member,
but I have collaborated in various ways, <strong>partly as a volunteer and largely as a consultant</strong>,
especially in training activities, data entry, and field survey campaigns.
</p>
<p>
It will be an opportunity to show how digital knowledge can become a powerful tool to
<strong>protect and enhance our trails</strong>.
</p>
<h2>Event Poster and Program</h2>
<p>Here are the poster and the full program of Saturday’s conference:</p>
<p>
<img style="max-width: 100%; height: auto;"
alt="Poster of the REI Cadastre event"
src="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0965/9108/5908/files/Convegno_rete_escursionistica_CAI_e_le_aree_interne_appenniniche_-_locandina.jpg?v=1757427989">
</p>
<p>
<img style="max-width: 100%; height: auto;"
alt="Program of the REI Cadastre event"
src="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0965/9108/5908/files/Convegno_rete_escursionistica_CAI_e_le_aree_interne_appenniniche_-_programma.jpg?v=1757427988">
</p>