Romping and Nguyening

Hiking in Dachstein. Check.

Driving on Grossglockner. Check.

Last but not least, a hike in Tirol near Innsbruck!

In order to avoid a mishap like in Dachstein, I double checked the route and thoroughly planned our transportation options.  The only real issue was weather.

“Isn’t it wonderful when you wake up before dawn, put on a 30-lb. pack, and hike for three hours up a steep mountain just to stand in a white room?” a friend sarcastically asked once.  That was what I was afraid of most.  All our efforts of getting up early, spending money to take the chair lift up, all for hours of hiking in a cloud.

We awoke in the quiet, deserted dirt lot of the Giessenbach train station which was also a trailhead for the mountains.  Fortunately the train was closed for the last two weeks of July for maintenance, and we were rewarded with a silent, calm night.  We caught the 8:07am bus for €2.90 each to Seefeld and then walked over to the cableway.

Because it was early Monday morning with clouds enveloping the mountains, it was no surprise that we were the first passengers on the cableway.  We paid €18 each for a one-way ride up to Seefeld Joch with a transfer at Rosshutte.  

When we reached the top, my heart sank with disappointment.  The supposedly epic “Panorama Trail” from Seefeld Joch to Seefelder Spitze was completely socked in. The trail over Seefelder Spitze was hardly any better.

We at least got to witness an adorable sight: two tiny reptiles wrestling.

However, the weather turned for the better as we approached the foot of Reither Spitze.

Reither Spitze, at 2,374 meters, was our highest point of the day.  Mild scrambling and climbing with the aid of a ladder and some cables got us to the summit, but the trail wasn’t as scary as its description made it out to be.

Looking down from the ladder, I saw this incredible, clear view that only lasted a few seconds:

The Reither Spitze Summit:

The view of the town and valley from the summit:

The classic King’s Trail takes hikers down to Nordlinger Hutte, then down the same side of the mountain back to Rosshutte.  We didn’t do the classic.  We opted for the extended version: a hike along the back side of the mountains, down into the mountain valley, and up a ridge to Eppzirler Alm.  This portion of the hike turned out to be extraordinary; we were offered a different perspective of the mountains and we hiked on trails that seldom saw hikers.

Nordlinger Hutte, with the clouds parting ways for us:

Hiking along the backside over washed out trails:

Incredible rock formations caused by water:

Eerie rock formations:

A walk along the ridge of Sunntigkopfl Peak engulfed me in a panorama of mountains.

And finally, Eppzirler Alm, a small chalet and chapel easily reachable by car:

Then the 1.5-hour hike from Eppzirler Alm back to our motorhome in Giessenbach was a simple, pleasant stroll.

Overall, the extended Seefeld King’s Trail  was a hiker’s paradise, even with the panoramic views socked in.  We had no regrets getting up early and taking the risk of crappy weather to complete this hike.  Oh Austria, you’re too damn beautiful.

It is said that a drive on Grossglockner High Alpine Road is a must on anyone’s itinerary in Austria. The pricy toll of €35 per vehicle with the addition of iffy weather made me grimace, but we took the chance anyway with the weather and headed up the road early in the morning to avoid crowds and the possibility of rain. We were glad we did.

But first, our plan:  We’d hang out in Zell Am See during the day, drive to the entrance of the toll booth in the evening, and spend the night in the parking lot.  We’d wake up bright and early, drive the glorious road and tack on a couple short hikes, pass through northern Italy, return to Austria, and spend the night near Innsbruck for more epic hiking the following day.

Considering it was a summer weekend and Zell Am See was a popular local vacation spot, I knew parking in Zell Am See would be interesting.  We avoided driving along the western side of the lake and drove up the eastern side instead, and easily found parking in the northeast part of the lake for €4.  A stroll along the placid lake was memorable.

Just before sunset we headed up the valley into the mountains to the toll booth.

When we arrived, we were happy to find other motorhomers who had the same idea.  It also turned out that our motorhome was an alpaca magnet.

We had a wonderful, quiet evening at the toll booth parking lot and we woke up excited for the day’s journey.

At 7:15am we paid the €35, crossed the toll booth, and steadily made the climb.  Because we had a huge head start before the masses could arrive, we relished on the glorious lighting and emptiness of the road.

Can you find me in this panorama?

We slowly made our way up the steep road to the Kaiser Franz Josefs Haus, parked the motorhome, and hiked the short trail to the highest point of the Grossglockner Road: Edelweiss Spitze at 2,571 meters.  From there, we pondered, “Wow, our motorhome made it up all that?!”

We saw at least three fat, furry marmots on this trail.  

Drifting clouds prevented us from seeing the Grossglockner Peak, Austria’s highest peak.  But it didn’t matter.  The views were still outstanding and we were relieved to not be completely socked in.

We continued down the road past Fuscher Lake.

And we made a stop in the parking lot just before the final tunnel at Hochtor.  We hiked up a short trail to a lovely viewpoint:

But we climbed even further up to a peak, scrambling over loose rocks and scree.

The views were worth it.  And no one else dared come up that high.

As we concluded our tour through Grossglockner Road, we drove past more quaint scenery.

And even through more picturesque villages as we crossed the border into Italy.

To our amusement, our brief stop in Italy included a couple scoops of gelato, and several packages of ravioli.  Yay, Italian food!

We finished our driving tour through Grossglockner High Alpine Road with yet another long day of driving back to Innsbruck to get ahead on another epic Austrian hike.  Unlike our hitchhiking misadventure in Dachstein, my plan through Grossglockner worked out smoothly: a relaxing afternoon at Zell Am See, a beautiful evening at the foot of the mountains, a gorgeous drive and hikes on Grossglockner Road, and an uneventful journey back to Austria.  It’s not always the case my plans work out so smoothly. =)

With all the countless mountains and trails scattered throughout Austria, choosing a mountain range to hike turned out to be quite the difficult task.  I don’t know what drew me to the Dachstein.  The easily accessible chair lift to the mediocre skywalk, the family-themed Ice Palace, and the uninspiring suspension bridge obviously attracted groups of inexperienced “hikers” but I managed to find a hike long and challenging enough only suitable for the determined.  Despite the crowds lingering near the chair lift, we only saw one other couple during our hike, and my poor planning led to additional unplanned adventure. =)

Due to unfavorable weather in the forecast, I had to alter our itinerary.  Originally I planned to visit Salzburg after Vienna, followed by hiking in the Dachstein.  But with thunderstorms on the rise, we ended up skipping Salzburg completely and hit the road at 7am to drive 3 hours to the mountain.

We made it to the parking lot shortly after 10am. Gorgeous views all around!

We rode the chair lift up, which cost €22 per person. Purchase of a chair lift ticket validates the €14 fee to drive up the road and park in the lot.

Once at the top, we immediately set off for the Dachstein glacier walk, a 45-minute hike across a glacier to Seethalerhutte.  The hut is situated at the foot of Dachsteinwarte Peak, just below the Hoher Dachstein, the highest peak in the range.

Standing on the summit of Dachsteinwarte Peak:

From Dachsteinwarte Peak, I gazed down at the neighboring massifs and the valley below. This view was a winner.

We carefully returned down the glacier (30 minutes) and headed toward Kleiner Gjaidstein Peak.  However, instead of hiking up the peak we took a right at the fork toward Guttenberghaus.  Little did we know it would be a long, 1-hour downhill scramble over steep piles of rocks.  There were a few climbers coming up, and they all wore helmets for protection against loose rocks.  Smart.

Fortunately after the 1-hour rock scramble, we hiked an easy trail through the mountain range behind all the craggy peaks.  We had the entire trail to ourselves.

Curious and adorable sheep:

Two and a half hours later we made it to the scenic Guttenberghaus, the highest mountain lodge in the Dachstein mountains.

My poor planning became apparent at Guttenberghaus.  Originally I planned to hike all the way back to our motorhome, which was parked at the Dachstein chair lift parking lot.  “It is too late to start now,” the woman in the lodge told us, giving us the “stupid tourists” look.  She confirmed that the trail wasn’t a simple hiking trail, but a technical route that required proper mountaineering equipment.  “There are no more buses to the parking lot,” she added, “so you’ll have to hike down to town and take a taxi.”

That’s when we decided to hike down the mountain to the nearest town of Kulm.  We’d catch a ride to the turn in the road leading up to Dachstein, and try to catch another ride from there.

Fortunately the hike down to Kulm was gorgeous.  All the rain painted the mountains a glorious green, and wild flora dotted the hills with color.

As we gingerly made our way down, making up stories of how our night would end, a solo male hiker hurried past us down the mountain.  Pointing at the thick clouds in the distance, he said, “The storm is coming!” He disappeared around the bend, and we picked up our speed.

It took us an hour and fifteen minutes to hit the pavement and by then the sun had disappeared behind a sky full of clouds.  Darkness was settling in quickly, despite sunset being scheduled two hours out.  Luckily there was a bus stop and within ten minutes a bus appeared. We each paid €2.20 and rode it to the last stop, exactly where the road turned up to the Dachstein chair lift parking lot.

At the same time the bus slowed to a stop, giant rain drops began to pit-patter all around us, quickly increasing to a downpour.  We hopped off the bus, put on our rain gear, and hurried toward the toll booth for shelter.  What a wonderful time to begin hitchhiking, I thought.  But hey, at least we have shelter.

I knew at that point our only chance of hitching a ride was if a local or Dachstein employee happened to be going up the mountain.  We hopelessly watched every car, bus, and truck drive along the main road without passing the toll booth as the winds picked up, the rain poured down around us, and the lightning boomed every few seconds.  At least this particular hitchhiking episode wasn’t boring.  We had a lightning storm to watch, and my feet needed rest anyway.

Twenty minutes later, literally after we discussed the possibility of a taxi, approaching headlights sparked our hope and stopped just before us at the toll gate.  Putting our hands together like beggars, we asked, “Can you please, please, please give us a ride to the top? Our car is parked up there.”  He told us to hop on in.  It turned out he was a local climbing guide, and he had plans to meet a client at the hotel in the parking lot to discuss their climbing route the next day.

And that was how our six-hour hike in the Dachstein mountains ended: a last-minute change in plans, a bus ride, a lightning and thunderstorm, and a hitchhike back up the mountain.

The next morning, as we drove through the beautiful mountain villages, we planned our next adventure in the Austrian Alps.  

Hopefully this time around, my plan wouldn’t leave us stranded on the street in the pouring rain.  But hey, I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

Rich, prosperous, and musically legendary, Vienna definitely has a lot to be proud of.  As Austria’s largest city (consisting a population of 2.6 million in the metropolitan area, nearly 1/3 of the entire country!), Vienna offers plenty to do for its locals and tourists.  However, we weren’t in Vienna, or Austria for that matter, for the glorious architectural wonders or the myriads of packaged symphonies and concerts catered to tourists.  We were there for Austria’s western treasures–the glorious mountains and quaint villages comparable to Switzerland but without the Swiss price tag.  This sadly meant a rush through Vienna’s “must-see’s” before heading for the mountains.

Once again like in Budapest and Slovakia, a conveniently located and free parking lot beside a park offered a place for our motorhome during our time in Vienna.  From this shaded parking lot at Kurpark Oberlaa, we easily traveled to the heart of Vienna by taking the line 68 A or B bus (€2.30 each) and transferring to the metro at Reumannplatz.

Our first stop was St. Stephen’s Cathedral, which was located on a square filled with too many hustlers in costumes trying to sell us symphony concert tickets.

Wandering through the streets around St. Stephen’s Cathedral offered wonderful glimpses of other beautiful buildings.

And of course, we grabbed a cheese-stuffed sausage while wandering the streets.

I even tried a sachertorte, a culinary Viennese specialty. It was disappointing. Maybe I’m spoiled by Belgian chocolate cakes. =(

Vienna’s notable buildings include the opera house.  We preferred the pink bunny in front of the opera house to the actual building itself.

Museumsplatz, filled with art and museums and locals and lounge chairs.

Across from Museumsplatz was the massive park centered between the Natural History Museum and Art History Museum.

The Maria Theresia Memorial up close with the Art History Museum in the distance:

Of all Vienna’s grandiose buildings, I think I found the Hofburg Palace most stunning.

From there we walked down to the town hall, a magnificently old building where their annual summer film festival was taking place.

And just down the street from the town hall was the Parliament.

No visit to Vienna would be complete without a visit to Schoenbrunn Palace, equivalent to Paris’s Palace of Versaille.  However, unlike the Palace of Versaille, the Schoenbrunn Palace was quite bland from the outside, and even more so in the inside (I’ve heard).  I was actually surprised to see the insane number of crowds lined up to purchase tour tickets of the bland palace.  Luckily the palace gardens and park are free to the public (and not crowded!), and we enjoyed our time in the beautiful floral garden.

I include Melk in this post only because of its vicinity to Vienna.  After spending a few hours at Schoenbrunn Palace we left Vienna to head west for the mountains.  It just so happened that the Melk Abbey was conveniently on the way.

Originally I planned to only walk around it to take photos.

But we discovered that one could roam through the courtyard for free! It only cost a fee to enter the abbey.

Views of the charming village below were lovely from the abbey.

And of course, the town of Melk and its church were adorable too.

If one was to only visit Austria for a limited time then historic Vienna would absolutely deserve more than a couple days.  We truly enjoyed the architectural gems in and around Vienna, but we couldn’t wait to leave the metropolitan city and play in Austria’s western wonderland.