Hiking in the most beautiful valley of the Eastern Alps
The Gschlöß valley near Matrei in East Tyrol is often
called the most beautiful head of a valley. And rightly so, because
hardly elsewhere you can explore such a romantic landscape and
enjoy such a fantastic view to glaciated mountain as here in the
National Park Hohe Tauern.
In order to discover every facet of the unspoiled nature, you
have to roam on food through meadows and forests. In the Gschlöß
valley in the National Park Region Hohe
Tauern you'll find a very beautiful hiking
tour and just as you like to, you can even go on
farther.
Starting point is the car park next to the
Tauern House of Matrei (1,511 m). There it starts a quite broad,
slightly sloping trail to the mountain hut Außergschlöß, where
you'll have a breathtaking view to the glaciers of the Venediger
group dominated by the mighty, eponymous Mt. Großvenediger.
Then you can comfortably follow the Gschlöß stream until you
reach the famous rock chapel and the Venediger
House (1,689 m). Till there the walk will last about 1.5
hours. The excursion is suitable for families with children and
baby carriages and there is an eco-friendly shuttle service,
too.
If you still aren't tired, you can walk on till you reach the
head of the valley or make also the glacier path
Innergschlöß. The latter, however, requires a good
training and suitable mountaineering equipment. From the Venediger
House the trail follows the stream until the ascent in the
direction of the glacier Schlatenkees. Then you hike along a path
on former moraines to an old sheep meadow (the so-called salt
ground) and to the snout of East Tyrol's biggest glacier.
For the way back you take the Prager hut path.
With start next to the Tauern House in Matrei the whole glacier path will take you
about 6 hours.
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