Mountains

When you come to the Dolomites for winter walking, it’s with the intention of having spellbinding snow-streaked peaks that are unlike anything else in the Alps as your constant companion. But with impenetrable cloud and heavy rain forecast, it was hard not to feel deflated.

Then again, this was Italy, where it’s easy to make the best of things whatever the weather. And the 3 Zinnen Dolomites ski resort and nature park – right on Italy’s border with Austria, about two-and-a-half hours north of Venice, is always charming, with the usual jumble of cultures you see in South Tyrol. Part Italian, it’s more Austrian thanks to the legacy of the Habsburgs, who ruled this part of Italy until 1918. Hence most places have an Austrian and an Italian name, 3 Zinnen or Tre Cime (meaning three peaks) being a case in point. It’s the home of Ladin, an ancient Romance language, too.

Of the five villages that make up 3 Zinnen Dolomites, I was staying in the largest, San Candido (or Innichen), which looked as Austrian as could be – onion-domed church and pastel-coloured, richly detailed houses you would see in Salzburg. Even under leaden skies, it was a pretty place, its pedestrianised centre filled with classy shops selling cashmere and leather goods and, happily, an impressive number of delis stocking high-quality (but not necessarily high-priced) regional food. The sort that makes you want to move to Italy.

Keeping an eye on the weather was simple from my balcony at Hotel Leitlhof overlooking San Candido, with a view of the village’s ski slope and snippets of the Dolomites between the clouds. All five villages are connected by bus and some by train, with links to 3 Zinnen’s various ski areas, cross-country ski trails and high-altitude walking trails that don’t even require snowshoes.

One of those buses took me to Signaue, where I caught glimpses of faintly blue sky as the cable car whizzed me up to Stiergarten at 2,100m. Turning my back on the skiers at the top, I followed a signposted walking trail that took me slowly back down the mountain. The only other prints in the fresh snow were of a four-legged creature, possibly a hare or a fox. Occasionally, the clouds would swirl and a rugged peak would poke into view before being obscured again. But in this winter wonderland, those atmospheric clouds were playing as much of a starring role as the mountains they were shrouding.

The only sound was my boots in the snow as I descended into pine woods. Light snow was falling again and it whetted my appetite for lunch at Skihütte Henn-Stoll (or Baita Pollaio) at the foot of the cable car. I fell on a plate of Knödel/canederli – dumplings packed with cheese and melted butter served with a cabbage salad flavoured with caraway seeds. This was classic Ladin mountain comfort food.

March’s longer days meant the sun hadn’t quite set on San Candido when it was time for the early-evening passeggiata and aperitivo. Thrillingly, it actually made an appearance, bringing a warm glow to the mountains rising behind those beautiful Austrian-style houses before dusk exposed the full moon to midnight-blue skies. Pure magic.

The next morning I took the bus to the cable car in the neighbouring village of Versciaco (Vierschach), another 3 Zinnen ski area. At Helm (or Monte Elmo), I stumbled into Narnia: a trail through pine woods. It was soothing to shuffle gently through the snow and think about lunch.

At the rear of Helm Restaurant, beyond the self-service area, was the gourmet section, which was only about 10% more expensive and a lot quieter. Chunky ridged swirls of maccheroncini pasta came with a veal ragù, porcini and a dusting of hazelnuts, and the South Tyrolean rye flatbread called Schüttelbrot which zinged with fennel and cumin. The robust flavours were a perfect match for the misty mountains.

Opening the curtains on my last morning was like waking up on Christmas Day. Snow had covered everything. I was on the bus to Val Fiscalina to follow a trail through larch forests. As it was Saturday, I seemed to have been joined by half the population, all apparently with the same destination – Talschlusshütte, a charmingly rustic restaurant in the woods (open Christmas to Easter). I had been warned not to be late and lose my table; since San Candido local boy Jannik Sinner became the world No 1 tennis player and word went out that his father had been the chef at Talschlusshütte, the restaurant’s popularity has soared, even if Sinner Senior is no longer in the kitchen.

Whoever was in the kitchen knew how to make a mean bacon knödel and the clear herby broth it was served in. The penne with the house ragù of aubergines, courgettes and mushrooms was piled high, turning me into a contented dumpling.

Buoyed up by grappa that tasted more like herby génépi, I walked back to the bus. The clouds were on the move. I turned round to catch a glimpse of a mountain, then another, then another. Finally, just hours before I was to go home, the 3 Zinnen – or Tre Cime, three peaks – revealed themselves in all their jagged glory. I whooped in joy, then turned round again and they were gone.

This trip was provided by 3 Zinnen Dolomites. Doubles at Hotel Leitlhof start at €287 half-board

The town is known for being very clean and was recently voted the best place to live in the country. It is surrounded by mountains and islands, and has some great pubs

The UK boasts countless charming villages and towns. Indeed, if you’re seeking cobbled streets tucked into rolling countryside, clifftop whitewashed settlements, or picture-perfect cottages dotting a hillside, then you’re in one of the finest locations.

However, if you’re prepared to venture just a touch further, you can uncover towns of arguably Britain-surpassing calibre. Westport in County Mayo, Ireland, ranks amongst the absolute finest. Reaching there is straightforward enough, with Ryanair, British Airways, and Aer Lingus all operating flights to Knock, the nearest airport to Westport.

From there, it’s an hour’s journey west to the stretch of coastline where the designated Heritage Town is situated. En route, you’ll meander through increasingly striking landscapes as the Atlantic approaches and the peaks grow loftier.

Croagh Patrick, Ireland’s “Holy Mountain,” stands five miles from the town; its cone-shaped summit towering above Clew Bay. The mountain serves as a popular pilgrimage destination and tourist draw. On the final Sunday of July, faithful worshippers undertake a demanding ascent to the peak, where pilgrims visit a chapel, celebrate Mass, and frequently perform acts of penance, such as walking barefoot or on their knees.

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Milo Boyd

If that strikes you as rather too demanding for holiday pursuits, then worry not. There’s abundant entertainment within the town itself to occupy you. Westport features a Georgian town centre, and stone bridges connect the tree-lined walkway along the banks of the Carrowbeg River.

The standout feature about the place is that it’s spotless, and the quality of life is excellent. Westport claimed the Irish Tidy Towns Competition three times in 2001, 2006, and 2008, and in 2012 it secured the Best Place to Live in Ireland competition organised by The Irish Times.

As you’d anticipate, Westport isn’t lacking in pubs. Establishments like Matt Molloy’s, MacBride’s, Porter House, and JJ O’Malley’s are all excellent options and likely to host traditional bands during the evening.

When the weather’s pleasant, you can stroll along the Quay and then continue to The Point. “This is a fabulous place to meet locals on a nice day as they swim in the shallow waters of Clew Bay. I sat at a table and laughed as they chatted with each other, calling to friends who were not in the water. It was a kick to be a fly on the wall and witness friends and neighbours giving each other a hard time and laughing and gossiping,” writes the blogger Wander Your Way.

Numerous visitors to Westport for a holiday choose to discover areas beyond the town, venturing into the breathtaking magnificence of the surrounding landscape. There’s a well-known phrase in Clew Bay that there’s “an island for every day of the year.”

Actually, there are nearer to 120 named islands, with countless more smaller, submerged limestone drumlins emerging when the tide recedes. The largest of the genuine islands is Clare, whose magnificent outline emerges on the horizon like an enormous humpback whale.

You can catch the brief ferry journey from Roonagh Pier and spend the day enjoying beautiful walks and views. Clare is a big spot for birders, who come to spot kittiwakes, fulmars, peregrines, guillemots, and, cutest of all the birds, puffins.

If you’re willing to travel a little further out to sea, you’ll reach Inishturk, a “little piece of paradise,” according to the area’s tourist board. Highlights include the sandy beaches of Trá na nÚan and Curraun, Ireland’s only offshore-island natural lagoon, sea cliffs, and rare wild flora.

It is difficult to find a bad word said or written about Westport, which is widely considered to combine the best natural Ireland has to offer with a welcoming culture and streets that rarely get too busy.

“I am a huge fan of Westport and County Mayo, maybe because my wife’s cousin owns the Clew Bay Hotel and Madden’s Restaurant. I highly recommend both. Renting bikes in Westport and riding the Great Western Greenway is awesome, love it. It is a great little town with good restaurants and pubs,” one enthusiast recently wrote on Reddit.

Another added: “I second Westport! My wife and I had our honeymoon there (years ago, and in Clew Bay Hotel too! ) and frequently return. The people in the restaurants, bars, and shops are all so welcoming. If you don’t like the pubs (and the music), there are many interesting and easily accessible walks and cycle paths nearby. Can’t wait to return!”

A third wrote: “It really does seem magical out there, lots of outdoor activities and seems less busy with tourists.”

The easiest way to reach Savannah-Ngurore is to tell the cab drivers at the park that you’re headed to Wurin pasa dutse, a Hausa phrase meaning ‘the place stones are broken’. It is a rural community in Yola North Local Government Area, Adamawa State, northeastern Nigeria. 

With no signposts leading into the community, the only marker is a bus stop across the road, directly opposite a once-massive mountain. For decades, its slopes have been cut down, felled, and flattened into stones and gravel by labourers who toil from dawn to dusk. 

For many of these stone crushers, quarrying — the process of breaking rocks from the earth, either by hand or heavy machinery, for construction or industrial use — has been a means of survival for decades. Equipped with gloves, hammers, sunglasses, and sometimes heavy machinery, they leave home at dawn for the mountain they call ‘site’.

The only path he knew

Nehemiah Nuhu sits atop a pile of gravel he has broken. While his legs sprawl to the side, a hammer is clutched in his left hand, and his right hand is gloved. He continues to break the stones into tiny fragments. A small music box blasts Afrobeat rhythms beside him, its speaker carrying the beat across the dusty air. 

“The mountain has slowly given way over the years,” he said. As one of the stone crushers who has been carving into the earth for nearly a decade, he has mastered the art of quarrying. His hands move very quickly as his hammer splits the stones in seconds. 

The 28-year-old has been doing this since he reached adulthood. “I don’t have any job apart from this,” he told HumAngle. “It’s not a good job. It requires a lot of energy, and it’s very exhausting.” With high unemployment across the country, Nehemiah said his secondary school certificate is not enough to get him a white-collar job.

“Nobody taught me this business. This is something that has been going on in this community since I was a boy, so I grew up and joined them,” he said. 

He explained that the struggle to survive drove him into quarrying. The trade provides him with an income to support himself and his younger siblings. Nehemiah believes the mountain is a gift from God to the community. He noted that most youths in Savannah-Ngurore have little or no formal education, and with few job opportunities, the quarry has become their only means of survival.

“Most of the youths from this community work here. We are happy that God gave us this mountain to break and earn a living from it.”

Daily labour, hard choices

Nehemiah and other stone crushers start their day by climbing the mountain to carve out excavations. From the top, they roll heavy rocks down a sloping channel that they have shaped over the years by repeated use. Once the stones reach the ground, they are gathered at the foot of the mountain, where they are broken into smaller pieces. 

After the stones are reduced to gravel, they are measured in wheelbarrows and sold to individuals or dealers who come with trucks or open vans. Each wheelbarrow sells for about ₦400 or ₦500, and Nehemiah says he makes around ₦4,000 daily.

“I fill up like 10 wheelbarrows or more in a day. I come here every day and work from 6 a.m. to 12 p.m. Then I return home to rest. By 2 p.m., I come back and continue, then close around 5 p.m.,” he told HumAngle. 

Sometimes, dealers call them to request specific quantities. “The ones that trust us give us contracts with specific targets, then we deliver to them,” Nehemiah said. When buyers don’t show up, they keep adding to their piles, waiting for the next order.

When other jobs fail

For 45-year-old Ibrahim Hassan, quarrying became a last resort after trying several jobs that yielded little or no results. He started working at the site about five months ago, and despite the physically demanding nature of the job, he finds satisfaction in it. 

“Quarrying fetches quick cash,” he said. “I worked in a bread factory. I worked as a construction labourer, and I was a mechanic one time.” 

He travels 40 minutes from Jimeta to Savannah-Ngurore every weekday. “I’m enjoying the work so far. Apart from its complex nature, I don’t have any problem with it.”

There is also 26-year-old Faruk Muhammed, who has been working at the site for a decade. From his earnings, he established a local tea shop around the community, which he runs alongside his quarrying business. 

“I do both jobs hand in hand,” he said, face down as he split rocks. Faruk arrives at the site in the morning, leaves around noon to rest, and then prepares for his tea shop. 

What he appreciates most about quarrying is not having to search for customers, since the dealers come to the site. “It’s a very tough job. You have to be strong to handle it, but I’m glad I use it to fend for myself. I don’t have to beg anyone for a penny,” he said.

A toll on the environment 

Even though quarrying has become a source of livelihood for many in Savannah-Ngurore, the trade continues to burden the earth. Amid the heaps of broken rock lies a toll impossible to ignore.

Zaccheus Bent Adams, a geologist, said quarrying causes air pollution, biodiversity loss, flooding, and erosion, among other environmental and health hazards.  

“Dust settles on leaves and can physically cover the surface, reducing the amount of sunlight available, which can lead to water stress because the pores on the leaves are crucial for gas exchange,” he stated. Such disruption, he added, affects water circulation above and below the earth’s surface.

He also said the extraction affects both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, destroying habitats and diminishing biodiversity. Zaccheus stressed that conserving biodiversity is essential because all species are interconnected and depend on one another for survival.

He added that climate change exacerbates these effects, contributing to droughts, heatwaves, rising sea levels and wildfires. “Extreme weather conditions increase storm and flood levels, causing damage to communities,” he said.

Living with risks

Quarrying comes with other risks and hazards to the stone crushers.

“While excavating the stones, we sometimes slip and fall, and when we manage to roll the rocks down the slope, we must stand firm or fall down the mountain,” Nehemiah said. He noted that several accidents had occurred at the site, resulting in injuries to workers. He himself bears scars from those incidents. 

“The accidents are regular. Some died when the rocks crushed them during excavation. Others tripped and fell,” he told HumAngle. 

Despite the dangers, the stone crushers show up every day. Although Faruk has not suffered any major accident, he has sustained injuries — and admits he is often afraid. 

“If I get another job right now, I’ll quit quarrying. It’s strenuous. I don’t enjoy it. It’s just that the income helps me and my parents a lot,” he stated. 

Zaccheus added that both residents and stone crushers are at risk of developing respiratory illnesses and symptoms such as shortness of breath. “Exposure to quarry dust has been linked to headaches, eye itches, and skin irritation,” he said.

Nearby communities, he noted, are not immune to the hazards. Landscape degradation, noise pollution, air pollution, and water contamination can lead to social tension and the loss of agricultural land.

Paying the price

Far from the clatter and the dust, 55-year-old Jauro Tafida, the community leader of Savannah-Ngurore, believes that these operations are responsible for several environmental challenges affecting the community. As someone who was born and raised in the area, Tafida draws a comparison to the rapidly vanishing landscapes.

“Before they started quarrying, our lands absorbed water, but now it flows through the lands and farmlands very easily,” he said, explaining that erosion is worsening. 

During the rainy season, water cascades down the mountain along channels carved by the stone crushers, often causing floods that damage homes and farms.

“Where there were no holes before, you now see holes everywhere — even on our farmlands,” Tafida said.

He also noted that local water bodies are shrinking and vegetation is losing its richness.

“There are so many changes,” he told HumAngle. “Years ago, we didn’t bother about spraying herbicides or anything on our farms because the land is rich, but now, we must spray herbicides, and the harvest is no longer bountiful.”

Zaccheus confirmed that quarrying stirs up sand sediments, reduces water quality, and disrupts photosynthesis in plants, ultimately destabilising the food chain. “Coastal and riverine areas face increased erosion as sediment transport changes. Flooding also intensifies, with serious socio-economic impacts on farming communities,” he said.

The community leader said quarrying in Savannah-Ngurore began about fifteen years ago and has since intensified, attracting workers from neighbouring communities. “People from Rundamallu, Ngurore town, Jimeta, and other places all come here to work and then return home,” he said.

Some workers, he added, have died or suffered amputations after accidents. Yet he believes the practice will continue. “It will go on since the children have no other work. Quarrying keeps them occupied and prevents idleness,” he said.

Regulation gaps

The National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) Act, established in 2007, aims to prevent environmental degradation, air and noise pollution, and the obstruction of natural drainage channels. The Act restricts quarrying and blasting activities that cause public nuisance.

Similarly, Section 76 of the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act prohibits individual quarrying. “Every operation for extracting any quarriable mineral, including sand dredging for industrial use, shall be conducted under a lease or licence granted by the Minister,” the Act states.

Before any lease for quarrying is granted, the legislation requires an environmental survey to determine approval. Despite these legal frameworks, quarrying activities continue largely unchecked. In 2024, it was reported that Nigeria loses about $9 billion annually to illegal mining and unlicensed quarry operators.

According to Zacchaeus, unregulated quarrying amplifies social and environmental harm. “The local miners aim to extract the stones without backfilling, which is required after every extraction,” he said. Backfilling, he explained, restores land and vegetation, creating new habitats for plants and animals. It ensures the area can be used again after mining is complete.

He urged the government to engage in community outreach to ensure the implementation of stricter environmental regulations or laws governing quarrying operations. “Through this, the negative impact on the environment and local communities would be minimised,” he said.

Zaccheus also called on policymakers to conduct regular environmental impact assessments to evaluate the effects of quarrying on ecosystems and water quality. “Sustainable practice is the key,” he stressed, “because it promotes rehabilitation and the protection of biodiversity.”

WITH a bright blue flowing river, mountains and a huge canyon, you might think this spot is in America at first glance.

But no, this beautiful place is not in Arizona, instead it’s in one of the prettiest French regions, and Brits rarely travel to it.

You’ll find this spot in Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, which is one of the six departments in the Provence region.

The department is home to ‘Europe‘s Grand Canyon’ called Gorges du Verdon in France, which is a huge limestone gorge carved by the very blue Verdon River.

The Gorges du Verdon is 15 miles long, up to 700 meters deep, and between 6 and 100 meters wide at the bottom.

While it’s a great place to get pictures, there’s even more you can do there, from hiking to climbing, and watersports.

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The river begins near the town of Castellane, and ends at the Lake of Esparron.

To see more of the natural beauty, and particularly wildlife, head to the Verdon National Park where there are vultures, eagles and falcons.

There are also wolves, chamois (a type of goat-antelope), roe deer, wild boar, and ibex, as well as reptiles, bats, fish and scorpions.

The Sun’s Brittany Vonow explored France in a campervan earlier this year where she discovered the incredible canyon along the way.

She said: “One highlight was a visit to the Verdon Gorge, a river canyon close to the region of Quinson, filled with deep turquoise water.

“We filled up on a quick lunch from our gas stove — two minute noodles with some tinned veg mixed in — before hiking the stunning mountains bordering the water.”

Brittany continued: “Our “cooee” calls echo around the rock faces and at that moment, it feels like we are the only people left in the world. A short drive west of here took us to Sainte Croix Verdon, home to a huge lake with waters as turquoise as the Verdon Gorge.

“With each turn, southern France shows off its jaw-dropping vistas, from rolling lavender fields to gorgeous gorges that make way for towering snow-capped mountains and picturesque French towns nestled in between.”

The Alpes-de-Haute-Provence also has mountains with ski resorts in the north, with many in the Verdon valley.

The department is also famous for its lavender fields, especially the Plateau de Valensole – to see them in bloom, visit from late June to mid-July.

The Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department of France has no main airport and so it’s not as visited as some of its neighbours nearer the coast like Marseille and Nice.

These cities are the ones that Brits will have to fly to, and then drive into the department from.

Both Marseille and Nice are around two and a half hours away from the Verdon Gorge by car.

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For more in France, here’s an underrated city that has a ‘bit of everything’ with picturesque beaches and new cheap hotels.

Also in France is the world’s most beautiful village – with classic car tours & fairytale lavender fields.