Hiking to the Sarotlahütte – AustriaLast weekend we went to the Sarotlahütte in Austria, a perfekt spot for stay for a night and to do further hikes in this area. Snow came early this year and the hut was closed, as most huts at high altitude do. We enjoyed the warm sun the stunning panorama and of corse our “Brotzeit” / picknick up there.
From saturday till sunday we went to a hike to a 2395m high alpine hut which was on my absolute to see list since years. Bad weather or snow and bad maps were the reason I did not made it there yet. After a steady 5-6 hours wandering uphill we made it to the already warmed up cabin. 2 hiking couples moved already in and they even made too much pasta. We were generous enough to help them to recycle this well made dinner. In exchange we did the washing and I shared my last drops of Flor de Cana Rum with them.
This was also the first time I was just in time to feast on blueberries, they were always too green or too ripe. The mountains and the landscape in this area is great as well. On the way we passed some really rustic cabins for shelter and as hunting base as well.
I definitely have to head back there before winter comes for one or two nights.
Hiking – Kaltenberghütte:I just spent one day in the Alps and discovered another great hiking area with possible winter hike possibilities. The area around the Kaltenbergerhütte is not just surrounded by a great panoramic scenery but also the area to run free for easy more than 100 Haflinger horses.
3rd Day Konstanzer Hütte :
This day we had a spotless sky right from the sunset. It was a joy to see the sun rising and illuminating the surrounding mountains. While I took some photos my ears felt quite quick strange and cold. I found out that we had -20 C, that was the explanation. We prepared a hot soup, had a coffee, cleaned up the hut and made our way down the valley.
Not to forget to have some breaks in between to look back to where we´ve been and think about what great time we had. Lively and honest discussions, opinions, storys and advices. A time which should not be forgotten too early and be absorbed to soon by “Mondays”.
Konstanzer Hütte 2nd Day:
Due a really high avalanche risk on this day and the extreme steep part on the last part to the next mountain hut, the Mannheimer Hütte we decided to have a lazy day. Which started to go to the toilet with the snoeshoes on. Later that day we made a short trip without the heavy backpacks in the forrest not far from the hut. Returning we digged an Iglu for all four of us to gathered some skills to prepare shelters in the snow. The artist of our group carved some great faces out of candlewax. So this was really the day to relax and enjoy the easy way of living up there. What you need to be happy? Warmth, Food and good company
Snowshoe Trip Day 1 – St. Anton – Konstanzer Hütte:
After some delays be-cause of heavy snow on the motorway and too much snow on the pass, we finally made our way to St. Anton at around 2pm to our starting point of the trip.
Unfortunately after about an hour in the route we found out that the “Rosanna-schlucht” / “Rosanna canyon” indeed is something steep. That is usually obvious by the word “schlucht/canyon”. Walking this canyon in summer and the in winter can be a different league. A couple of times we were close to turn around and walk back to the official winter path but due to laziness and courage we made (digged) our way trough. After another 3 and a half exhausting hours, taking turns who will be the first to compress the powder about 30 cm down, we arrived half an hour after darkness at the hut. After the oven ran and the first snow was melted to prepare some hot soup the party began.
Cabin time with friends – Grabs – Austria:
Last weekend like the last 3 years we rented the local DAV (Deutscher Alpenverein / German Alpine Club) cabin with some friends and had a great weekend with backcountry alpine skiing, hiking and skiing. Of course some great food, wine and schnaps was also playing a role. Due to the schnaps and quite a hangover I was not too motivated to take photos on Saturday morning, sorry for that. But after 1 1/2 hours of walking uphill with the skis all systems were nearly working as normal. Great to be with friends up in the mountains and great to have clubs like the DAV who let you rent their huts/cabins for a reasonable price.
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