Mountain Safety: Separate Mountain Hut, Bivouac Shelter and Alpine Farmstead POI Categories
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Hello,
I would like to suggest separating three different mountain POI categories that are currently often grouped together.
I live in Alps and I am a member of Mountain Rescue, so I think this is also a safety issue, not only a naming issue.
At the moment, there is only the possibility to define an alpine structure as "Shelter", but this definition is too simple.
In Alps there are:- Mountain hut (in italian Rifugio): normally managed, with staff, food, accommodation and the possibility of receiving active assistance.
- Bivouac shelter (in italian Bivacco): unmanned but normally always accessible, specifically intended as shelter and for overnight stays, including in bad weather or emergencies.
- Alpine farmstead (in italian Malga): a seasonal pastoral facility. A herder may be present, but may also be away with the livestock, and the building should not be considered a reliable emergency shelter or staffed refuge.
For someone unfamiliar with the area, this distinction can be very important.
In an emergency or during a storm, a user needs to know whether a place is a staffed refuge, an always-accessible unmanned shelter, or simply an alpine farming facility where nobody may be present.
It is also important when planning multi-day hikes: mistaking a bivouac for a staffed mountain hut could mean arriving without enough food or other necessary equipment.
The same mountain hut may also function as an unmanned winter shelter when the managed part is closed, so displaying the actual function and seasonal status would be particularly useful.
Even Bivouac shelter would be more appropriate than the generic shelter, because a bivouac shelter is a small enclosed building intended for overnight stays and emergency refuge, usually with beds or bunks and a table, rather than a simple outdoor or open-sided shelter such as a lean-to.
So I suggest adding separate categories for Mountain hut (italian: Rifugio), Bivouac shelter (italian: Bivacco or Bivacco alpino) and Alpine farmstead (italian: Malga) instead of grouping them under a generic refuge/cabin category.
Thank you for considering this improvement.
Andrea
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