The final chapter of Marching Like Fools is less about mountains climbed and more about questions asked. After six days on the Karnischer Höhenweg, four ex-soldiers — boots worn, knees frayed, banter intact — find themselves at the Gasthof Valentinalm, with only a museum, a farewell dinner, and a final taxi ride left to navigate. Why listen to this episode? Because endings matter. Because laughter and silence share the same space. Because this isn’t just about finishing a trail, but abo...

Day Six of Marching Like Fools is about decisions, detours, and the kind of mountain wisdom that comes not from daring, but from declining. From Wolayerseehütte to Valentinalm, the Fools trade cliff-clinging bravado for cautious progress, Jetboil brews, suspicious looks from a hut owner, and one catastrophic Apfelstrudel. Why listen to this episode? Because sometimes the funniest, truest stories aren’t about what you did — but what you didn’t. This is a tale of saying no to danger, yes ...

Day Five of Marching Like Fools swaps razor-thin ridges for navigational blunders, larch forests, phantom wolves, and a lakeside beer or three. From Porzehütte to Wolayerseehütte, it’s a day of wrong turns, right people, and the kind of military-bred trust that needs no explanation. Why listen to this episode? Because it’s not just about hiking. It’s about how detours can deliver the best bits, why beer tastes better above 2000m, and how some bonds survive decades without losing s...

Day Four of Marching Like Fools lives up to its name — The Longest March — with 20km of high alpine terrain, eight to ten relentless hours on the trail, and three climbs that would make a drill sergeant blush. In this episode, the Fools tackle the stretch from Porzehütte to Hochweißsteinhaus — a leg defined by military ghosts, unforgiving ridges, changing climate, and the kind of shared endurance that turns walking into something more. What to expect in this episode: Segment 1: Military...

Day Three of Marching Like Fools delivers another laugh-out-loud, quietly profound, and occasionally nerve-wracking window into the journey of four middle-aged ex-soldiers across the high Carnic Alps. From Obstanter Seehütte to Porzehütte, this was no casual stroll — it was exposure therapy, spiritual cloudscapes, and more. Why listen to this episode? Because it’s funny. Because it’s honest. Because it’s about far more than hiking. This isn’t your typical outdoor podcast. You’ll get scenery, ...

In this wry, reflective, and unfiltered account of life on the trail, Marching Like Fools returns for Day Two of the Karnischer Höhenweg — a remote and rugged alpine crossing along the old Austro-Italian frontline. In this episode, “Cramped, Cloudy and Clattered by Timber,” we follow four middle-aged ex-soldiers (including the narrator) as they walk from Sillianerhütte to Obstanter Seehütte — a leg that is deceptively short in distance, but dense with memory, mishap, and meaning. You’ll hear ...

Karnischer Höhenweg – Day 1: Versciaco to Sillianerhütte Join us for Day 1 on the Karnischer Höhenweg, a high-altitude trail laced with memory, mischief, and a mounting climate crisis. In this episode of Marching Like Fools, four ex-military men — affectionately self-described as "The Fools" — begin a lengthy traverse along one of the most historically charged ridgelines in Europe. What begins with a lift from the car park at Versciaco (1200m) to the Helm station (2045m) soon becomes an explo...

A slow start, a long ridge, and a lot of foolishness ahead. Welcome to Marching Like Fools — a podcast chronicling the journey of four retired military men as they walk the Karnischer Höhenweg, a remote, historic alpine trail tracing the old First World War frontline between Austria and Italy. This is Episode 0: our prelude — recorded before we take a single step uphill. In this opening episode, we introduce the group: a band of friends over 65, each with a military past — 1 PARA, 21 SAS, 22 ...