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 SAS, and one who was once Regimental Medical Officer to the SAS. Together, we call ourselves The Fools — a name earned through years of rugged expeditions, half-planned adventures, and a refusal to act our age.

We begin in Versciaco, a small South Tyrolean town, where the ski lift will soon take us to Helm, and then onwards on foot to the Sillianerhütte, our first night on the trail. But before that, we take a moment to explain what this podcast is about — and why four men with creaky knees and more than a few scars would attempt a 150-kilometre, high-altitude walk with dodgy weather forecasts and even dodgier humour.

Expect history, honesty, dry socks, wet boots, ridge walks, brew stops, bunk beds, accidental introspection, and very few working knees.

In this episode:

• We reflect on the WWI military history behind the trail — the "Mountain War" between Austrian and Italian troops that raged through these peaks from 1915 to 1918, claiming thousands of lives in avalanches, frostbite, and long-forgotten skirmishes.
• We talk about the physical and emotional purpose of walking a long route later in life — and why friendship, distance, and age can become part of the same slow conversation.
• We introduce the podcast’s tone — light, humorous, but not flippant; open-hearted, but never sentimental. You’ll hear plenty of banter, but also the quiet rhythms of memory, loss, and laughter earned the hard way.

We also touch on the changing environment around us — how the Alps are warming twice as fast as the global average, how snowlines are rising and glaciers are shrinking, and how trails once carved by soldiers are being slowly reshaped by time, weather, and climate change.

Marching Like Fools isn’t just for ex-soldiers or hillwalkers. It’s for anyone who knows that time passes, knees ache, and friendships deepen when you’re sharing silence on a narrow trail.

So lace up your boots, grab your rucksack, and join us on the ridge.

The journey starts now — before the ascent.