BergeSeen Trail 15: Gosau-Hintertal - Hallstatt
- Multi-day tour
Interactive elevation profile
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Tour-Details
Paths covering:
Adventurous hike along forestry roads and marked forest and meadow trails, which sometimes require a good sense of direction – and thus, caution is necessary during foggy conditions.
Technique: ***
Quality of experience: ****
Recommended season:
- April
- May
- June
- July
- August
- September
- October
Properties:
- Multi-stage route
- Scenic
- Refreshment stops available
During this stage, you will experience one natural wonder after another as well as several historical features – such as the most important high moor in the region, but also the grinding stone quarries that are still used and preserved by idealists today, and of course the famous salt mine of Hallstatt. However, the most interesting area would not be recognised at first glance: a centre of prehistoric mining used to lie beneath the rocky cliffs of the Plassen Mountain.
Directions:
From Gasthof Gosauschmied in Gosau-Hintertal, follow Gosauseestraße out of the valley for approximately 500 metres. Before the bridge and a curve to the left, take a sharp right at the Gamsjäger bus stop into Madlgasse. After about 300 metres, take trail no. 644, marked “Plankensteinalm, Schleifsteinbrüche, Löckernmoos”, which begins to the right and ascends through steep forest slopes. It crosses two forest roads, forks to the right and then arrives at the grinding stone quarries below the Ressenberg Mountain. This area consists of fine-grained sandstone, which was deposited 80 million years ago in the sea – for the last 400 years, it has been quarried to manufacture grinding stones and whetstones. From the visitor-friendly Badstubn Hut, a newly-laid, marked trail ascends through a rustic forest into the Löckernmoos Moor (1410 m). This strictly protected high moor, located on the crest of a flat mountain, is covered with “Löckern” or mountain pines and even has a small lake with dark moor water. From a viewing area, you can enjoy many peaks in the surrounding region – from the Hochkalmberg to the Gosaukamm and the Hochkönig. 2:00 h
From the Löckernmoos lake, the trail leads south down to the Hintere Grubenalm (1336 m). Following the forest road, you arrive at a nearby junction, where going left will bring you to the Triamer Hut on the Vordere Grubenalm (1348 m), which serves food and drinks in the summer. Several metres below, a small stream disappears into the legendary Wildfrauenloch (wild women’s hole). From the meadow, the route continues along the road for approximately 20 minutes to the Rastbankanger, until the sign “Plankenstien-Alm” indicates the turnoff for trail no. 644. On this route, you ascend to the right through romantic forest terrain to the wide, forest-enclosed alpine meadow of the Plankensteinalm (1530 m). This is the largest contiguous meadow area of the inner Salzkammergut – and possibly the most beautiful. To the south, you can see the grey limestone of the Dachstein foothills around the lonely Ochsenkögel and the mighty Hohe Kreuz Mountain (2837 m). In the northern section of the meadow, the 200-year-old Leutgebhütte Hut encourages visitors to take a break and enjoy some refreshments.
Now you cross the gently rolling meadow area to the east. At the beginning of the sparse treeline, a sometimes poorly visible path turns slightly to the left – look carefully here for the red-white-red markings on stones and tree trunks! Further ahead, the track becomes more well-trodden again. It leads underneath the Hohe Scheibe (1659 m) through small hollows and clearings to the “Durchgang”(passage) some 800 metres away. This small saddle (gate) is the connection to the Durchgang Meadow (1378 m), to which you steeply descend alongside rocky outcroppings. The rugged Plassen Mountain (1953 m) rises above the forest and meadow basin. Fresh rockslide remnants and tremendous debris piles indicate that this is a geologically unstable area. Briefly follow the forest road and then continue left along trail no. 644. After a descent through the forest, a forest track joins from the right. The route then continues somewhat uphill to the Dammwiese Meadow (1350). This saddle between the Plassen and the Solingerkogel (1406 m) was the location of salt mining during the early Iron Age. Starting around 2000 BC, a centre of the Latène culture developed here, which existed until the early years of the 1st century AD.
Hiking through a “grass jungle” along wooden paths, you descend into the Salzberg Valley, where you arrive at a road. Below and to the right is the present-day salt mine; the wide but steep path passes several tunnel entrances. Passing the entrance building to the exhibition mine (Salzwelten Hallstatt) and a “walk-in grave”, commemorating the burial ground discovered here which contained the remains of over 2000 people from the 1st century BC, you arrive at Rudolf’s Tower 04 (855 m). Below this medieval guard tower, which houses a restaurant today, the viewing platform “World Heritage View” offers a fantastic view of the village of Hallstatt and Lake Hallstatt in the valley some 300 metres below. 2:00 h
From Rudolf’s Tower, you finally hike downhill along the Salzbergweg Trail to Hallstatt. While the wide path is not high alpine, as indicated in a warning sign, it does zigzag down through steep, rocky forest slopes into the valley. Along the way, you pass the Franz-Joseph-Tunnel and further down there is a worthwhile detour on the left to the waterfall in the Mühlbach Gorge. Below at a lookout point, you reach a forest road, which you take to the left. Soon the Gaiswandweg turns to the right between the avalanche barriers and leads to the cemetery of the Catholic church in Hallstatt 04 (511 m). Take the Kirchenstiege (stairs) to arrive at Gosaumühlstraße, which leads right to the boat dock in front of the Protestant church and then continues to the picturesque market square. 1:00 h
Tip:
Note: The salt mine funicular can be taken from Rudolf’s Tower down to the neighbourhood of Lahn. From there, it’s a 20-minute walk next to the lake into the centre of the village.
Safety guidelines:
- In alpine terrain, be aware of the danger of falling rocks.
- Through early summer, you may encounter steep snowfields or firn gullies – especially during icy conditions, there is an acute risk of falling and thus fatal injury!
- Due to storm damage, forestry work or construction work, individual trail sections may be difficult or impassable at times.
- Cows in the alpine meadows are often curious. Because they are nursing mothers, they develop a strong tendency to protect their calves. Therefore, move through cow pastures quietly, keep at least 20 metres of distance to the animals and never pet calves! In the case of threatening behaviour (pawing, stamping) slowly back away (do not turn your back). Keep dogs on a leash. They must not bark at or chase cows. In the case of an attack, the dog must be released from the leash.
Equipment:
For all stages, you will need hiking or mountain boots with treaded rubber soles as well as wind- and rainproof clothing. A change of clothes and a small first-aid kit should also be included in your backpack. The amount of provisions you should pack depends on the number of available rest stops. In any case, you should always take along plenty to drink. Telescopic poles are helpful, especially when walking downhill.
Additional information:
Text kindly provided by the publisher KOMPASS-Verlag and Wolfgang Heitzmann.
Further information at trail.salzkammergut.at
further information:
- Multi-day tour
- Board possible
- Spring
- Summer
- Autumn
Please get in touch for more information.
Bad Goisern, Gosau, Hallstatt, Obertraun
4822 Bad Goisern am Hallstättersee
Phone +43 5 95095
Fax machine +43 5 95095 - 74
E-Mail info@dachstein-salzkammergut.at
Web www.dachstein-salzkammergut.at
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1. The tours presented for hiking, walking, biking and road biking, mountain biking, motorbiking, horseback riding, climbing, cross-country skiing, and going on skiing and snowshoe tours etc. are to be considered non-paid tour recommendations and only serve as non-binding information. We have no intention of concluding a contract with the users of this website. The utilisation of the data does not lead to the establishment of a contract with us.
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We point out that neither the tour recommendations included on this website nor the associated data and information were posted by us, but rather by third parties (Art. 16 Austrian E-Commerce Act). We have no influence on whether the details provided (e.g. distance, level of difficulty, change in altitude, description etc.) are authentic, correct and complete. We do not review these third-party contents. For this reason, we assume no liability for the authenticity, correctness and completeness of the information.
Construction-related measures or other influences (e.g. landslides and similar occurrences) can lead to temporary or permanent changes in a route (e.g. loss of a bridge and similar occurrences). Such occurrences can lead to part of the route or the entire route becoming impassable.
The use of the data as well as undertaking (riding, walking, taking etc.) the recommended tours or using the network of paths occurs at users’ own risk and on their authority. In particular, users themselves are responsible for the choice of route, outdoor orientation, adherence to traffic rules, supplies and equipment for tours listed in Point 1 (e.g. bicycle etc.), wearing a helmet, estimating their own fitness, recognising dangers and maintaining an appropriate velocity. We exclude ourselves from any liability whatsoever for damages, in particular accidents, that occur whilst taking part in the recommended tours.
2.Some of the tours lead over roads with normal traffic conditions. Please observe that there is an increased risk which can be avoided by means of appropriate attention and proper estimation and implementation of one’s own abilities. For this reason, please travel a route that is unfamiliar to you slowly and with special care. Pay constant attention to potential dangers and always observe traffic. Do not leave the routes featured in descriptions.
The potential use of private roads, in particular forestry roads and agricultural transport roads, can be subject to legal restrictions, which must be observed and adhered to.
The normal traffic rules apply. Each user (e.g. biker, motorbiker) is responsible for adhering to these rules and maintaining his/her bike/vehicle and its equipment (lights, brakes etc.) in good working order. Each user is also responsible for ensuring that he/she rides at a velocity that is appropriate for the conditions and his/her skill level and for maintaining sufficient distance to the rider in front. We explicitly recommend adjusting velocity to correspond to the respective field of vision, wearing a helmet, using reflective clothing (or similar) and employing bicycle lights in line with regulations.
3.Each tour requires good physical fitness as well as detailed planning. We explicitly recommend only taking the tours in the case of optimal healthiness.
We recommend that you conclude an accident and liability insurance policy. Use an onboard computer that displays the respective kilometres travelled per day and is calibrated for the front wheel.
4.Special for mountain bikers – Fair-play rules:
Mountain biking is one of the most wonderful outdoor leisure-time activities. Whilst biking or on a mountain biking tour, mountains and lakes, meadows and cabins are re-discovered in new ways. A couple of rules for fair play in the forest help to avoid conflicts whilst mountain biking.
a.Pedestrians have the right of way: We are accommodating and friendly to pedestrians and hikers. Upon encountering these fellow travellers, we alert them by using the bicycle bell and slowly overtake them. We avoid paths with heavy pedestrian traffic altogether. Take nature into account: We do not leave refuse behind.
b.The braking distance should be half of the total distance visible: We ride at a controlled pace, are ready to brake and maintain a braking distance half as long as the total distance visible, especially in curves, because we always have to count on obstacles on the path. Damage to the path, stones, branches, wood piles, grazing livestock, cattle grids, barriers, tractor-type forestry machines and authorised vehicles pose dangers that we need to be ready for.
c.Don’t drink and drive!: Do not drink alcohol when mountain biking. Take care at stop-off points (dealing with bike racks, dirty shoes or clothing).
It is obligatory to provide first aid!
d.Marked routes, closed paths and blockades: Keep to the marked routes, observe the blockades and accept that these roads are primarily for agricultural and forestry use!
Blockades can often not be avoided and are in your own interest. Biking beyond the intended path and outside of opening times is punishable and turns us into illegal bikers.
e.We are guests in the forest and behave accordingly, including vis-à-vis forestry and hunting staff. Whilst mountain biking, mobile telephones and music players are forbidden! Biking requires your full attention.
f.Avoid unnecessary noise. Out of consideration to the animals living in the wild, we only bike during full daylight. As a principle, we always wear our helmet (even when riding uphill)! Don’t forget emergency supplies: We always have a repair set and bandages along.
g.Don’t overestimate your skills: We should not overdo it when it comes to biking technique and physical fitness. Take the level of difficulty posed by the route into consideration and make a precise estimate of your experience and skills as a biker (braking, bell, lights)!
h.Close gates: We approach grazing livestock at a walking pace and close every gate behind us. We should avoid causing escape and panic reactions in the animals. Nothing stands in the way of the fun and athletic challenge in the mountains and forests!
i.Traffic rules: The general traffic rules (StVO) apply for all the mountain biking routes and we adhere to them. Our bike therefore needs to be in perfect technical condition and equipped in line with the traffic rules, including brakes, a bell and lights. We inspect and service our mountain bikes regularly anyway.
5.We assume no liability for the contents of external websites; in particular, we assume no liability for their statements and contents. Moreover, we have no influence on the design or contents of the websites to which hyperlinks on www.badischl.at lead or from which hyperlinks lead to www.badischl.at. There is no on-going review of websites to which hyperlinks on www.badischl.at lead or from which hyperlinks lead to www.badischl.at. We do not appropriate the contents of websites to which hyperlinks on www.badischl.at lead or from which hyperlinks lead to www.badischl.at.
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Interactive elevation profile
Create PDF
Tour-Details
Paths covering: