BergeSeen Trail 12: Bad Ischl - Bad Goisern

Description:

On the trail from Bad Ischl to the south, you approach the “half-way point” of the Salzkammergut BergeSeen Trail. The route leads to the Ischl “home mountain”, the 1542-metre Katrin, with especially beautiful views of the glaciered Dachstein. Since there is a long descent on the other side into the Traun Valley to conquer, an ascent by the cable car might be the best option.

Directions:
From Schröpferplatz at the Empress Elisabeth Bridge in the centre of Bad Ischl, walk along the beautiful Esplanade promenade into the valley along the Traun River, past Café Zauner to finally reach the Hasnerallee. Soon turn left into the park-like Kaltenbachau following the signs to “Lauffen”, past the trotting track, the tennis courts and the Traun Bridge. At the small Rinden Chapel, turn right, cross over the Kaltenbach Stream and go past a pond. Then turn right onto Katrinstraße, which leads to Kaltenbachstraße. Go left on this street to the nearby valley station of the Katrin Cable Car (475 m) 30 min

 

Next to the cable car station, you ascend several steps over the ski slope, turn left above a tall building and then hike back to the right along a forest road underneath the Wildenstein Ruins towards the ski slope. Continue uphill to the right along the road for another 50 metres, passing a water reservoir, to a junction. A few steps to the right bring you to the turnoff for the ”Bilderweg”, marked no. 895 (trail marker “Katrinalm, Bergstation”). This trail leads left, zigzagging up through the forest slopes. After approximately 30 minutes, you reach the ski slope once again, which you then ascend to a forest road. Now follow the road uphill to the left, underneath the cable car and into the Windengraben Ravine. There, several hairpin turns are shortened by way of cut-through paths.

 

Head through somewhat flatter forest terrain and soon turn right to a viewpoint (1362 m). Stay left on a new, only gently ascending path over the southern slopes of the Feuerkogel to the rustic alpine hut on the Katrinlam (1396), which is just below the mountain station of the cable car. Spectacular views to the south of Lake Hallstatt and the Dachstein Mountains! 3:00 h

 

The descent follows trail no. 899, which leads downhill over the southern slopes of the Katrin Massif into the Traun Valley. Further down, you reach a forest track, which takes you to a junction with a road running perpendicular. From there, continue on the trail, from which you soon turn right. In this way – crossing more forest roads – you arrive at the first houses of Weißenbach (490 m). 2:00 h

 

After the bridge over the Weißenbach and the further crossing of the bridge over the Traun, then turn onto the Traunreiterweg towards Bad Goisern. Walk along the Traun to the Sophienbrücke bridge (currently closed) and turn left into Sophienbrückenstraße into the centre of Bad Goisern am Hallstätter See (502 m). 45 minutes

Tip:

Summit detour: To the Katrin (1542 m) – see Tour G6, page 250.

Note: Train and bus connection (Line 542) between Bad Ischl and Bad Goisern.

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